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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 02-19-1997 Board Mtg Minutes Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board February 19, 1997 The Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board met Wednesday, February 19, 1997 at 8:00 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Chapel Hill. Board Members Present: Lee Pavao, Chairman Dr. Steven Halkiotis Hilliard Caldwell Moses Carey, Jr. Pat Evans Margaret Skinner Rick Strunk Remus Smith Michael Weil Staff Present: Shelly Green, Director Betty Davis, Administrative Assistant Guests: Ted Abernathy, Orange County EDC Sandy Roberts, UNC Visitors Center Nancy Davis, UNC Dept. of Advancement Chairman Lee Pavao called the meeting to order at 8:05 a.m.. INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS Mr. Pavao welcomed Michael Weil and Moses Carey, Jr. as new members of the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board. Chairman Pavao also welcomed Nancy Davis, Director of Community Relations of the UNC Office of University Advancement, and Sandy Roberts, Manager of the UNC Visitors' Center, as guests representing the University. Ted Abernathy of the Economic Development Commission was also welcomed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Mr. Pavao requested the approval of the minutes of December 18, 1996 with the correction noted on page four, (corrected to read board and not broad). Ms. Pat Evans made a motion to approve the minutes with change. Ms. Margaret Skinner seconded the motion. All members were in favor and the motion was approved. MARKETING COMMITTEE Ms. Margaret Skinner reported that a Marketing Committee of three members, including a cross section of representative from various county businesses and organizations, had been established. Joe Blake, Director of Sales for the Bureau will provide staff support. Upcoming tasks include compiling competitive research data and planning for a community wide meeting with hospitality industry employees and interested citizens in March. A first draft of the marketing plan should be completed for presentation to the Board at the April meeting with a final version submitted for the board's approval in June. BUDGET AND FINANCE Mr. Moses Carey, Jr., Treasurer, reported the overall budget was in "good shape" and the revenues were "on target." The budgeted amount spent through the month of December was 26% of the overall budget for the fiscal year. A brief discussion regarding the impact of the loss of the occupancy tax from the Carolina Inn ensued. Ms. Green stated that most of the impact would be felt next year. Ms. Green also stated that the strong increase in average daily hotel rates for the last three years was promising for the bureau and would help offset the loss. DIRECTOR'S REPORT Ms. Green provided Board members and guests with a copy of the new issue of Happenings (calendar of events). She stated that the participation from various people and organizations was improving. Ms. Green noted that the Bureau would be working with the Durham Herald to try to increase the size of the publication in the next fiscal year to 16 pages instead of 12. Laura Streitfeld with the Orange County Arts Commission will be working with the bureau to strengthen the participation from artists and arts organizations. The sales activity of the bureau has increased tremendously. Joe Blake has reached 79% of his annual goal as of January, and he is expected to meet his year-end goal by late February or early March. He is also working on the Group Tour Manual for promoting motor coach tours, which is in production and should be completed soon. Ms. Green reported that three proposals to provide marketing, advertising and design services to the bureau were received from advertising agencies. After reviewing the proposals, Jennings and Co. and Sheer and Associates have been asked to make oral presentations to a committee consisting of bureau staff and Ted Abernathy. After this process is complete, the committee's recommendation will go before the commissioners for approval. Having established a long-range goal to improve and expand its electronic access and automation, the Bureau has been pursuing a project that would automate its calendar of events listings by phone both during and after hours with a local company called Voice of the Town. Ms. Green reported that a new system could be up and running by the summer for a minimal investment. The bureau would utilize the services of student interns from the journalism program at UNC-CH to record entries and provide technical support. More information on this will be presented as progress is made in the implementation of this program. Permission has been received and the fee waived from AAA in the use of their logo on the proposed poster that has been presented to the Board at a previous meeting. Ms. Green reported that she is now waiting on permission from the university to use representations of their trademarked icons on the poster. The Board will be updated as the Bureau receives information. Ms. Green reported that the Governor's Conference on Tourism will be held in Asheville April 6 - 9 with information on the conference distributed to each member of the Board. If anyone would like to attend they should contact Ms. Green. The Bureau is now situated in their new offices and plans are underway to host an open house on March 26th from 4 to 6 p.m. Invitations will be sent to all local officials and others who may be interested in visiting the Bureau at the new location. OLD BUSINESS Commissioner Bill Crowther has talked with Ms. Green about signage for Orange County. Ms. Green reported that Beverly Blythe with the Commissioners office presented four drawings for signs to be used on secondary roads for this board's input. A brief discussion about the words people,progress and preservation on the signs ensued and it was decided that the preference of the Board was to recommend People, Progress Preservation in that order. Mr. Caldwell stated that he had recently done business with a company making signs for his school and that the cost was very reasonable. Ms. Green will get the name of the company in order to do a price comparison. Since it was a consensus of the entire Board, no motion was made. Ms. Green will forward the design to the Commissioners as a recommendation from this board. A brief discussion about the status of occupancy tax collections at the Carolina Inn ensued. Ms. Davis from UNC-CH had not been directly involved in the issue and was not familiar enough with all of the intricacies of the university's position to bring the board up to date on any recent developments. Ms. Skinner reported they were not collecting occupancy taxes from individuals whose purpose of visit was university-related, as outlined in the letter from Carolyn Efland to Terry Murphy (provided). NEW BUSINESS In new business it was reported by Ms. Skinner that Carolina Inn's new general manager was Creston Woods. Ms. Green also advised that Rex Hollis was now the general manager at the Omni Chapel Hill and Jared Dawson was the new general manager at the Best Western University Inn. OTHER Mr. Caldwell expressed a concern about the availability of inexpensive facilities for local groups and organizations to use for events. He indicated that the fees were high, which prohibited many organizations from doing business with local facilities. Ms. Green stated that the Bureau could assist organizations with their search for appropriate facilities, and it would be desirable for anyone getting these types of inquiries to refer them to Bureau staff for follow-up. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Carey made a motion to adjourn and Ms. Evans seconded it. With all members in agreement the meeting was adjourned at 8:40 a.m. The next meeting will be April 16th at 8 a.m. at the Orange County Speedway. Minutes Drafted by: Minutes Accepted by: Shelly A. Green, Executive Director Lee Pavao, Chairman Date Date a:MS:board disk:Feb 19 1997 Board Meeting Minutes