Mayor Charlie Luken said Tuesday that an anonymous donor would pay the city $125,000 of Tall Stacks' debt if the city would forgive the remaining $118,000.

Luken, who has been working for a year on a deal, said he would encourage council to take the money.

"It's not a perfect arrangement - but it is, I think, the best we will get within the foreseeable future," Luken said. "They have no money. So we take the $125,000 or we get nothing."

Luken said he would like to see Tall Stacks come back to Cincinnati next year. However, he said, city officials would need to take care in dealing with festival organizers.

The 2003 Tall Stacks Music, Arts & Heritage Festival drew a record crowd of 800,000 people downtown over five days last October and generated about $48.5 million for Greater Cincinnati. The festival lost money and wound up owing the city $311,000 for police and fire overtime.

The city and the Tall Stacks Commission negotiated a two-year payment plan in April to handle the debt. The commission's most recent payment of $50,000 was received in June.

Some council members expressed reservations about forgiving such a large amount, particularly when the city is facing a $7.8 million general fund deficit this year and an $11.5 million budget hole next year.

Councilman Christopher Smitherman said it was "irresponsible" to walk away from any of the money when the city is "browning out" fire companies and laying off part-time workers. Smitherman said the deal sets a bad precedent.

"What happens when the next person comes to us in the same situation and they cite this example?" Smitherman said. "We seem to have a history of forgiving where we want to forgive."

Councilman David Pepper questioned why the city can't get all the money back.

"If this is getting us $125,000 that we wouldn't otherwise get, it's better than nothing," Pepper said. "Of course, I would rather we be repaid fully."

Councilwoman Laketa Cole said she might support forgiving the balance, but added she would not support giving the Tall Stacks Commission money to hold the festival next time. Festival organizers had an $11 million budget in 2003.

Tall Stacks "is a great event, but the business side wasn't handled very well," Councilman David Crowley said. "It wasn't managed the way it needed to be."

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