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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCH-OCVB minutes 082003Minutes Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board August 20, 2003 The Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board met at the Sheraton Chapel Hill, One Europa Drive, Chapel Hill on August 20, 2003. Board Members Present: Lawrence Walters Pat Evans Lee Pavao Sam Hobgood Kevin Callaghan Rick Strunk Nancy Davis Frances Dancy Board Members Absent: Moses Carey Bill Crowther Anne Loeb Creston Woods Staff Present: Joe Blake Betty Davis Guests: Dianne Reid Sandy Roberts CALL TO ORDER Chair Lawrence Walters called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS Mr. Walters welcomed board members and guests. Mr. Walters, also hosting the board meeting, gave an overview of the improvements and updates at the Sheraton since his arrival in 1998. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chair Walters asked for approval of the minutes of the July 16, 2003 meeting as presented. Mr. Lee Pavao made a motion to accept the minutes as presented. Ms. Frances Dancy seconded the motion. With all Board Members in agreement, the motion was carried unanimously. COMMITTEE REPORTS Budget and Finance In the absence of Mr. Carey, Mr. Joe Blake presented the preliminary fiscal year-end financial report. It was anticipated that final year-end totals would be available by the next board meeting. Marketing Mr. Rick Strunk, Marketing Chair, reported that the Happenings, quarterly calendar of events had been printed and appeared in the August 18th edition of the Chapel Hill Herald. The Happenings publications were available for immediate distribution to all Orange County accommodations, town and county offices, and other designated delivery points. Mr. Strunk also reported the “Great Summer Getaway” seasonal promotion campaign would end September 1, 2003. There were 12,800 promotional brochures distributed. The Bureau received 819 phone requests for the brochures, 500 reply card requests from the ad in the “AAA Go” magazine, 2,400 website visits with 1,200 visits to the “Getaway” section on chocvb.org. Mr. Strunk announced that the Visitors Bureau monthly electronic newsletter was released on August 18th. Mr. Strunk announced that the new, revised Official Visitors Guide and the companion publication, Dining and Nightlife Guide, would be available in September. The staff was working on the “Wonderful Whimsical Winter” promotional brochure for printing and distribution in late September or early October. DIRECTOR’S REPORT Mr. Blake announced that the Bureau hosted a meeting planner focus group on August 13, 2003 with four meeting planner participants. The purpose of the focus group was to gain insight from them on the electronic request for proposal (RFP) form on the meeting planning section of chocvb.org. The meeting planners presented some helpful feedback that will make it possible to enhance the on-line RFP for more efficient and effective service to meeting planners. Mr. Blake reported the Visitors Bureau hosted the North Carolina Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus monthly meeting at the Sheraton Chapel Hill on August 7-, 2003. There were approximately 40 representatives from across North Carolina in attendance. Lynn Minges, State Director of Tourism, attended the meeting and presented a favorable forecast for tourism for the state. Mr. Blake reported that the steering committee for the Research Triangle Regional Partnership’s (RTRP) Future Cluster Initiative had adopted the recommendations on the seven work groups. RTRP staff would compile the recommendations into a combined plan for final review and implementation. Mr. Blake reported that the Meeting Professional, the magazine for the Meeting Professionals International association, would be featuring the area in its University Towns section in an upcoming edition of the publication. The story was an outcome of the Bureau’s idea pitching over the last several years. Recently the Siena Hotel hosted the Triangle Hotel Motel Association’s meeting. There were approximately 65 people in attendance. Mr. Blake reported that the occupancy year-to-date was up from 63.1% in 2002 to 64% for 2003; however, there was a decline of approximately $5.00 in the average daily rate. Mr. Blake reported that the Visitors Bureau served 465 visitors during the month of July. The visitors index for July showed an increase of approximately 91% in visitors to Orange County. The Triangle Sportsplex, Morehead Planetarium, Kenan Stadium, and the Horace Williams house showed significant increases in attendance resulting from special programs during the month of July. Mr. Blake reported that there were two confirmed group bookings for July and visitor inquiries were up by 30%. There were 51 room nights booked through the on-line reservations for July. OLD BUSINESS Mr. Blake reported that the Triangle Chambers of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau were still involved with the Triangle, Family of Communities project through a Core Communications Committee that was implementing another phase of the campaign. During the fall, the municipal and county governments in Durham, Orange and Wake Counties would receive a presentation on the campaign and be presented with a customized flag. Ms. Dianne Reid, Economic Development Director, updated Board Members on the Orange County Agricultural Heritage Festival and the Festival of The Moon to be held at the Blackwood Farm in September that would conclude the 250th Anniversary Celebration of Orange County. On Saturday, September 20 the festival was scheduled to be open to the public from 10:00 a.m. till 6:00p.m. Many activities (for both children and adults) would be available including local crafts, artists, storytellers, animals, blacksmithing and many other agricultural activities of years past. The committee planned the Festival to occur in conjunction with the Festival of the Autumn Moon, which would provide performances and other activities during the day. All parking would be located off-site with shuttles running from several park and ride lots to the festival site. Ms. Reid extended a special thank you to the Visitors Bureau Director and Communications Director for their assistance with promoting the 250th event. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Walters presented the proposed meeting dates and sites to Board Members. The June 2004 meeting site will be announced at a later date. Ms. Diane Reid stated that the Business Expo would be held at the Sheraton Chapel Hill on October 18th, 2003 from 1:00PM until 7:30 PM. The Chapel Hill/Carrboro Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Commission jointly sponsor the event. Mr. Walters reviewed the Board Members terms that will be expiring effective December 31, 2003 asking those Board Members to have their organizations to nominate a new representative to the Visitors Bureau Board. Mr. Blake announced that spending by domestic U.S. travelers totaled $111 million in Orange County during 2002. The report was conducted and prepared by the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) for the N.C. Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development. Blake also reported that this number was a 2.3 percent increase over the 2001 figures released by the State Division of Tourism. Other Matters of the Board and Announcements No other matters or announcements were presented to the Board for consideration. ADJOURNMENT With all business of the Board completed, Mr. Lee Pavao made the motion to adjourn the meeting with a second to the motion by Mr. Sam Hobgood. With all Board Members in favor, the meeting was adjourned at 9:03 a.m. ________________________________ _________________________________ Minutes Drafted by: Minutes Accepted by: Joseph Blake, Executive Director Lawrence Walters, Chairman ________________________________ _________________________________ Date Date