It might also be known as the violinist tax, or the flautist tax.

So says Steven Monder, president of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In a recent letter to Mayor Charlie Luken, Mr. Monder said the tax would hurt Cincinnati's reputation as a regional arts leader.

“While it may appear such a tax would only impact out-of-town artists and athletes, in fact this tax would increase the cost of guest artists for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra,” Mr. Monder writes. “This new tax would increase the challenge to the CSO as artists negotiate for higher fees to compensate for the tax, thereby increasing our expense to deliver this talent.”

Councilman David Pepper, who has been championing the tax to fund crime-fighting and drug-treatment programs, doesn't like the terms “jock tax” or “violinist tax.” He calls it “closing the jock loophole.”

Mr. Pepper said enacting the tax would help the city recoup money it loses to other cities. If a Cincinnati violinist plays in another city and pays taxes there, for example, the Cincinnati Income Tax Division gives her a credit for the tax paid elsewhere. Other cities give the same courtesy.

Hail to the chief: When the president visits your city, the protocol is for the mayor to greet him as he exits Air Force One.

There's no protocol for a city manager-run city, but Valerie Lemmie was there nonetheless Monday, equal partners with the mayor, meeting President Bush and traveling in the motorcade to the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal.

There's usually not much time for small talk on the tarmac, but Mr. Luken — who served in Congress during the elder George Bush's administration and voted to support the Persian Gulf War — said he had a pleasant exchange with the commander in chief.

“He said he's watched the tension here over the past year, and that I handled it about as well as anybody could,” Mr. Luken said.

Name game: City Council got itself in a real morass last year when it voted, over the objection of the city administration, to rename Glenwood Avenue in Avondale to L. Venchael Booth Avenue.

The Rev. Mr. Booth, a founder of the Progressive National Baptist Convention and friend to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., is the father of Councilman Paul Booth. But City Council's efforts to honor him with a street ran afoul of the neighborhood, where 86 percent of residents surveyed objected to the change.

Last week, council unanimously approved a compromise that council members hope will make everyone happy. Henceforth, the corner of Reading Road and Glenwood Avenue will be known as the “L. Venchael Booth Corner.”

Post-script: City Council also hopes to close the book today on the West End Community Council-Genesis Redevelopment scandal.

The controversy over the West End nonprofit developer divided City Hall mostly along racial lines last year, as then-Councilman Phil Heimlich launched a crusade to uncover how almost a $1 million of West End development money was spent — or misspent.

With new leadership at the West End Community Council and allegations of self-dealing in the past, City Council will vote today on a proposal to free up $267,800 in city funds. The community council will have input on how the money is spent, but with strict city oversight.

GOP Councilman Pat DeWine isn't satisfied. He wants to allow other nonprofits — not just the Democratic-controlled community council — to bid on the money.

But Republican colleague Chris Monzel, a veteran of the Winton Place Community Council, says he's willing to give the community council system a second chance.

City Hall reporter Gregory Korte can be reached at 768-8391 or e-mail gkorte@enquirer.com.

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