What Happened to Main Street?
(or, why can’t we make it work in WV?)
The concept behind Main Street Crafters & Artisans in Harrisville was a simple one. There are a lot of local artisans in the area who make items by hand. Most do it as a hobby. A few have fledgling businesses. Not being an artist myself, I thought that I could provide these artists and craft persons with a place to showcase and sell their work. By bringing them all under one roof, we were able to create a very interesting store with an amazing variety of handcrafted items. By manning the store 6 days a week – 8 hours a day, collecting sales tax and remitting it to the state, and paying the artists when their work sold, we freed the artisans to do what they love to do – their art.
It all worked fairly well for about 18 months. When we closed the doors, there were 90 some artists represented in the store. We even had artisans from Charleston and the eastern panhandle … Main Street was becoming known outside the immediate area. In the short time we were open, the store never broke even but I was beginning to believe that it would within a few years.
So, what happened?
Very simply, all the artisans became subject to the Commercial Business Property Tax because they had items in the store. It didn’t matter that it was a hobby for them and that they didn’t have, or need to have, business licenses.
Commercial Business Property Tax is like Personal Property Tax – you are taxed on property just because you own it. So, it didn’t matter whether an artisan ever sold anything. In fact, only the items that didn’t sell are taxed as Commercial Property. So, the senior citizen who had six handmade dishcloths and a baby burp pad in the store on 1 July received a Commercial Property Tax Return Form. Another senior citizen who had three handmade aprons in the store received one also.
I came to the realization that I was hurting the very people I was trying to help and encourage. So, I closed the store.
Now, we have another empty store on Main Street. The state will no longer receive sales tax. The landlord has lost a renter. The phone company, insurance company, credit card and check processing companies, bank, window washer and other contract employees have all lost a customer. There will be no more ads placed in newspapers, directories, or on radio stations. There will be no more donations to the high school band, the twirlers, or the host of other organizations and causes.
If you agree that this onerous tax law should not be applied to hobbyists, please write our State Senators and State Delegate and tell them so or simply cut out this ad and send it to them. Their addresses are:
Senator Larry Edgell
Room 223W, Building 1
State Capitol Complex
Charleston, WV 25305
larry.edgell@wvsenate.gov
Senator Jeffrey Kessler
Room 227M, Building 1
State Capitol Complex
Charleston, WV 25305
jeff.kessler@wvsenate.gov
Delegate Woody Ireland
Room 151R, Building 1
State Capitol Complex
Charleston, WV 25305
woody.ireland@wvhouse.gov
Signed: Linda Bowlby