May 28, 2020 – Santee, CA – Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve and Padre Dam Municipal Water District applaud the City of Santee’s “Support Our Santee” efforts to help the Santee residents and business community through the economic challenges due to the COVID-19 health emergency. The City’s plan allows for Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) deferral from the City’s hotels, which would include Santee Lakes. Santee Lakes and Padre Dam have made the decision to partner with the City in COVID-19 recovery efforts and will not defer TOT that is paid to the City.
Santee Lakes and Padre Dam care deeply about the health and well-being of the community we serve. It is important to us that the City of Santee continues to be able to provide the vital services necessary. Santee Lakes partners with the City of Santee throughout the year on events at the Park and believes this is another opportunity for the agencies to come together as one community to continue offering the best services and recreational opportunities to our community. We support our community and hope that partnering with the City to support Santee will help lead our community to a brighter future.
As the largest tourism destination in the City of Santee, Santee Lakes provides tremendous value to the community and its visitors through many amenities including recreation, fishing, picnicking and camping. Also, the Park has a positive impact on the City of Santee’s revenue stream. Santee Lakes pays close to $200,000 annually in TOT to the City – significantly more than local hotels. The park attracts over 750,000 visitors annually, which provides additional tax revenue to the City as visitors shop and dine at local restaurants.
“We believe this is an opportunity to partner with the City of Santee in its effort towards COVID-19 recovery,” comments Padre Dam CEO/General Manager Allen Carlisle. “The continuous TOT revenue from Santee Lakes will assist the City of Santee in maintaining the services to residents and businesses in our community and this is important to us.”
Santee Lakes experienced significant financial impact while the day use park was shut-down. The day-use portion of the Park was shut-down from the end of March until May 1. We recognize revenue losses will likely impact the City revenues for this year as well. We hope the submittal of continuous non-deferred TOT from Santee Lakes will assist the City in continuing to provide vital services to our community.
The day use portion of Santee Lakes reopened to the public on May 1, 2020. Visitors are now able to walk, exercise, fish from the shores, ride bikes, and pursue other outdoor activities with physical distancing in place.
With the implementation of Proposition U in 2013, short-term campers and cabin renters at Santee Lakes pay a Transient Occupancy Tax to the City of Santee for camping stays. Santee Lakes works tirelessly to provide campers with a top-notch camping experience at the best possible price. During these challenging times, we continue to be here for the community as a close to home getaway. We encourage people looking for a change of scenery to come out and enjoy a few days camping at Santee Lakes.
Santee Lakes is a 190-acre park with seven beautiful recycled water lakes. Amenities at Santee Lakes include camping, cabin rentals, fishing, boating, playgrounds, walking trails, facility rentals, special events and approximately 230 bird species. Santee Lakes is owned and operated by Padre Dam Municipal Water District. It is self-sustaining, receiving no funds from water or wastewater ratepayers or taxpayer subsidies. The Park operates from guest user fees, grants, collaborations with community groups and sponsorships. For additional park information and campground reservations please go to www.santeelakes.com.