The Dalles City Council is making a counter-offer to The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce for their tourism services in 2017.  Mayor Steve Lawrence made the request to make the counter-offer to the Chamber’s proposal for $243,844, which is down by over $2,600 from last year but removes the cruise ship program that will be operated by The Dalles Main Street with a contribution of $40,000 from the City.  Lawrence felt shifting the cruise ship relations to Main Street should have reduced the cost further.  The City’s counter offer is $215,000.  But Chamber Executive Director Lisa Farquharson said even if the ship program was in the organization’s request, it would have increased to keep their marketing efforts competitive with other areas, noting only the three summer months see over 70 percent occupancy in the city’s hotels.  The Council voted 3-2 to make the counter offer, with Darcy Long-Curtiss and Tim McGlothlin opposed.  Long-Curtiss said she was frustrated that the proposed cuts were being put forward at a late hour in the process, noting the issue never came up in Council goal-setting session and the Chamber’s efforts had increased transient room tax revenues.  Farquharson said the counter offer would go to the Chamber board…and the issue will be back to the Council on May 22.