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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 12-16-1998 Board Mtg Minutes Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board December 16, 1998 The Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board met Wednesday, December 16, 1998 at 8:00 a.m. at the Sheraton Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill. . Creston Woods, Vice Chair, called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. Board Members Present: Creston Woods, Vice Chair Moses Carey, Jr. Rick Strunk Nancy Davis Pat Evans Steven Halkiotis Catharine Callaway Diana McDuffee Board Members Absent: Lee Pavao Catherine Martin Glenn O'Neil Guests: Sandy Roberts Staff Present: Joe Blake, Executive Director Betty Davis, Administrative Assistant WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS Mr. Woods welcomed members and guests to the meeting. Mr. Woods announced that Mr. Pavao was unable to chair the meeting because of illness. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Mr. Woods asked for the approval of the minutes from the October 1998 Board Meeting. Ms. Pat Evans made a motion to accept the minutes as written and Dr. Halkiotis seconded the motion. With all members being in agreement the minutes were approved. SUB-COMMITTEE REPORTS Marketing Committee Mr. Woods reported the Bureau was in the process of updating the Chapel Hill/Orange County promotional brochure with scheduled completion by early March. It was noted the brochure would retain its current design with minor listing updates. The group tour manual is also being updated. Because the publication was produced in loose-leaf format, only pages that require listing updates would be reprinted. Lastly, the Bureau's web site had been completed with map links on the attractions page. Staff will submit listing updates/changes once per month to ensure the site is accurate and up-to-date. Budget and Finance Committee Mr. Moses Carey stated that he had reviewed the financial records and all was in order. Mr. Carey asked about the line item of rent. Mr. Blake explained that a line item transfer would be necessary because the rental cost of the storage building had been charged incorrectly to the building rental account. A request to the Orange County Budget Department will be issued for this transfer to take place. By-Laws Committee Mr. Blake reported a draft of the revised by-laws with suggested committee changes had been submitted to Geoff Gledhill, Orange County Attorney. Mr. Gledhill responded to the committee suggesting some articles needed to be addressed to accurately reflect Orange County policies. It was noted that the By-Laws Committee would reconvene in January to complete the revisions for Board review at the February meeting. DIRECTORS REPORT Mr. Blake reported that the Bureau and two industry partners attended the 17th Annual Association Executives of North Carolina Trade Show with 201 attendees visiting the booth. Three additional industry partners were exhibiting in booths adjacent to the Bureau's. Potential business was derived from this trade show. Upcoming promotions next month will be The Travel South USA Showcase. It will be the first week in January in Greensboro. Travel South is comprised of 11 Southeastern member states. The Showcase targets group tour operators that either currently conduct or have potential group business in the Southeast. Immediately following the Showcase, a group of 16 tour operators will take part in a FAM tour of Orange County January 11th & 12`h. Mr. Blake reported to the board members that all of Orange County's accommodations, attractions, calendar of events and sports and recreation information had been entered into the North Carolina Division of Tourism's database. The call center operators use the database to provide up-to-date visitor information to callers utilizing the 1-800-VISIT NC line. Mr. Blake commended Patty Griffin, the Bureau's Communications Manager, on her role in promoting the Hillsborough Chamber of Commerce's Hillsborough Christmas Candlelight Tour. The event reported a very successful Candlelight Tour with 500 2 advance tickets being sold this year vs. 36 advance ticket sales for the 1997 Candlelight Tour. It was announced that film shoots for the promotional video had been completed. The next step in the process is the outline and script which was being prepared by staff. A copy of the script will be provided to the Board for review upon completion. Mr. Blake also reported that Mr. Dale Chodorow had been hired for the position of Publications Coordinator. He had been employed with the Bureau since November 1997 as a temporary employee. Mr. Chodorow will be responsible for facilitating updates of visitor publications, the website and the bureau's databases. The search for the Bureau's Director of Sales position was re-opened due to the lack of qualified candidates with the closing date extended to late January. Mr. Blake stated the time of year had been the primary reason for a low response rate. An announcement informing board members of the Seventh Annual Orange County State of the Local Economy Breakfast hosted by The Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Hillsborough/Orange County Chambers of Commerce on January 14th at the Friday Center was made. Board members interested in attending the function were asked to contact Betty Davis at the Bureau to complete their registration. In the December board packet Mr. Blake included a graph of Orange County Occupancy Market Share of the Research Triangle Area. It was noted that the major increase of lodging properties in the Triangle had inversely impacted hotel occupancies and average daily rates. However, even with a decrease in Orange County hotel/motel occupancies, the average daily rate growth had resulted in a net wash for occupancy tax revenues collected year to date vs. prior year to date. Mr. Blake announced that the new Days Inn was targeting to be open for business at the end of January 1999. OLD BUSINESS Ms. Pat Evans reported that the matter of Bed & Breakfast establishments in Chapel Hill was unsettled. There will be a public hearing on Bed & Breakfast establishments on April 19th, 1999. Mr. Woods reported that the majority of Orange County Lodging Association members were not in favor of the proposed Hilton Garden Inn located at the Meadowmont development site. Mr. Woods stated the Association would further elaborate on their views, as more information became available. After a brief discussion it was revealed that data being used in the project's feasibility could be as much as two years old. The discussion was tabled until additional information on the project could be obtained. 3 Mr. Woods called for a motion to accept the proposed market research proposal from D. K. Shifflet & Associates, LTD. (Copy of proposal attached to minutes.) At the October meeting the proposal was discussed but was not brought to a vote. Ms. Evans made a motion to accept and to go forward the proposal; Mr. Carey seconded the motion. With all members in agreement the Board accepted the proposal. . ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Strunk reported on the NCHSAA Football Championships held in December. Mr. Struck reported 15,000 in attendance at the 4A Championship game on Saturday, December 12 '. During the Championship games there was a scheduling problem with the University. Rick states that if the conflict cannot be resolved with the athletic department of the University the championship games may have to move to another location. It is not the desire of the NCHSAA to move the games. Board Member Ms. Nancy Davis, and also Director of Community Relations with the University, stated she would research the issue and report back to the Board any solutions to the scheduling problem. ADJOURNMENT With all business being concluded Mr. Woods asked for a motion for adjournment. Ms. Pat Evans made the motion for adjournment; Mr. Moses Carey seconded the motion. All members being in agreement the meeting adjourned at 8:45 a.m. Minutes Drafted by: Minutes Accepted by: Joe Blake, Executive Director Lee Pavao, Chairman Date Date c:my document/Board/December 16 1998 Board Meeting Minutes 4