Wicomico County Tourism Board met Sept. 17.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The Wicomico Tourism Advisory Board met in regular session on September 17, 2018. Chairman Delano called the meeting to order at 11:05 am. The following Board members and staff were present:
Board Members
Mike Delano, Chairman Ed Urban
Mike Getzey
Bak Patel
Kathleen McLain Stephanie Willey
John Hall
Staff Members
Steve Miller
Chuck Rousseau
Kevin Wright Kristen Goller
Minutes from June 18, 2018 were approved as circulated.
Mrs. Goller presented the Key Indicators Report for tourism. USSSA hotel rooms compared to previous years were broken down very similar between Ocean City, Worcester County and Wicomico County properties. She noted a 28% increase overall (8,878 rooms in 2018 compared to 7,180 in 2017). Contracts have been sent to hotels already for 2019.
Ms. Willey led the conversation regarding the National Folk Festival heled September 6-9. She stated the Folk Festival was well attended considering the inclement weather. Media sited approximate attendance numbers as 25,000 Friday, 35,000 Saturday and 9,000 Sunday. Attendance was calculated through cell phones and other wi-fi enabled devices. The downtown restaurants were disappointed with the business from the festival. They felt it was too difficult for the public to have access to the downtown area. Per tourism research, data indicates that the bulk of the hotel pick up was from entertainers and festival staff, which brought approximately 700 room nights to the market. The shuttle bus service was successful and parking was not an issue. The festival guide along with the write up in the Daily Times was very thorough. The National event will have two more years in Salisbury and then will maintain a similar festival after the three year contract is complete. It is expected that he City will release economic impact numbers by the next meeting.
Mr. Delano informed the board that a proposal has been made to combine the Tourism Advisory Board and the WYCC Commission into one board. This proposal is in the approval process with the Wicomico County Council. If approved, it will not be official until November or December.
Mr. Rousseau presented a proposed Event Booking Policy to the board. The current process is a hold system, whereas any event can put a hold on a room in the venue. This potentially limits business as a social event in Flanders on a Saturday limits the availability of the arena as noise from a concert, etc. would disrupt the social event. For same date requests, existing priority is given to a returning annual event while the overall economic impact and net revenue of potential events is not a major factor in the booking process. The new event booking policy would classify current and potential events into tiers based on their net revenue and economic impact potential. Higher tier events could be booked 12+ months out, while lower tiered events would have a shorter booking window. Mr. Getzey commented that the hotels look one year out for bookings. There is a misperception in the community that the Civic Center is a ‘budget’ rental, which is not the case as the venue staff strives to provide an exceptional experience, which comes with a higher cost. Staff noted the need to host multiple events in the facility at one time. Board members also encouraged staff to keep policies broad to increase flexibility in the booking process. Mr. Delano suggested to put together a five person committee to discuss the booking process.
Mr. Miller opened the discussion, asking what role should local/Civic events play in programming for the facility. Mr. Hall mentioned that the building is not used for local sports as it was in the past. Mr. Miller commented that the Midway room can be used for local sports but the condition of the room is not ideal as the flooring is sub-par, ceilings are too low, among other issues. Ms. Willey suggested a study be conducted on what to do with the Midway space. Mr. Getzey reminded the group that a study had already been done and a three step renovation plan was previously presented. This plan wasn’t carried out due to costs. Ms. Willey suggested that staff conduct a new study, suggesting the focus be on the type of events that we are unable to book because of the Midway space or lack of space overall. Staff research should be compiled to continue discussion on possible future development of the facility.
Meeting was adjourned 12:10 pm. Next meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 15, 2018 at 11:00 am.
http://www.wicomicocounty.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09172018-500
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