Mendota City Clerk Emily McConville reported February retail sales were down 9% year over year, but year-to-date sales in 2024 remain up by 1%.
The year-over-year increase is impressive because Mendota enjoyed a record retail sales year in 2023, with City Hall notching a share of $1.72 million, including the city’s best-ever first quarter in 2023. Mendota also toppled monthly records in June, August and October.
“We are very happy with the retail performance,” McConville said. “The No. 1 reason, in my opinion, is the huge increase in number of taxpayers.”
McConville said there was an eight-fold increase in the number of retail providers who contribute to the city coffers. The include remote and online retailers, who were added after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling (South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., 2018) that lets municipalities tax remote retail sales.