Master Plan October 2011 - Pacific Lutheran University

COMMUNITY BENEFITS
TAXES
Though PLU is a tax exempt organization under Federal 501(c)3 standards, PLU pays a
considerable amount in sales, property and payroll taxes. Property taxes are paid on vacant
properties, houses rented to the general public and investment property. In 2010, PLU paid a
total of $101,485 in property taxes to Pierce County. Garfield Commons, owned through a LLC in
which PLU is a partner, paid a total of $16,480. PLU remitted $533,363 in excise tax directly to the
State of Washington and paid sales tax related to campus construction.
PLU will continue to pay tax on property owned by the University but not directly related to the
educational mission of the campus. Future retail and non-student residential development has
the potential to generate significant excise tax as well as property tax for the Pierce County.
KPLU
PLU holds the license for the public radio station KPLU. In addition to broadcasting at the
frequency of 88.5 at 100,000 watts of power, KPLU also broadcasts through KVIX in Port Angeles
and KPLI, in Olympia. KPLU is rebroadcast on seven translators throughout the Puget Sound
region. KPLU also has a strong presence on the Internet, where it broadcasts both its regular onair
program and a 24-hour jazz stream. KPLU is one of the most listened to NPR-affiliate radio
stations in the country. Its broadcast signal reaches over 3 million people and stretches from
Victoria, British Columbia, to Astoria, Oregon, and from the Washington coast to the Cascade
Mountains.
KPLU’s Internet webcast is heard world-wide. KPLU has the distinction of being in the top ten
in terms of listenership of all jazz music streams in the world. On any given week, KPLU serves
upwards of 500,000 listeners. KPLU recently moved into the new Martin J. Neeb Center, located
at Park Avenue and 125th. In addition to this new construction, PLU added sidewalks and street
lighting to a section of Park Avenue adjacent to the building. PLU also improved the abandoned
creek bed of historic Clover Creek by adding native plants and trees rather than putting in a
fence, an allowed alternative. This new building provides an anchor to the neighborhood and
continues to improve the southeast corner of campus. In the future, PLU will continue to add
sidewalks, crosswalks, and street lighting in the vicinity of the Neeb Center at the southeast
entrance to campus, making the area more pedestrian-friendly.
November 2011
Pacific Lutheran University MIMP
113