Grand County Colorado Tourism Board Agenda Thursday, December 5, 2024

Mission Statement:We inspire a sustainable, year-round tourism economy in Grand County with an emphasis on strengthening the vitality of our communities, celebrating our local culture and traditions and respecting our environment and resources.

Board Member Attendance:Kristen Spronz, Ron Ellis, Joanna Whitemarsh, Jennifer Brown, Elizabeth Brumm, Beau Larson, Gretta Fosha, Dakota Cordle.

Absent: Rebecca Bierden,

Attendance by Zoom:Dave Huber (Board Member), Jeremy Belnap (Board Member), Cheryl Spezia (Board Member), Carrie Tomlinson (Miles Partnership), Leslie Rowbal (Madden Media)

Also In Attendance: Gaylene Ore, Paula Isakson, Katie Hearsum, Megan Dryden, Sarah Cichon (Destination Granby), Catherine Ross (Winter Park Chamber of Commerce), Brittany VanderLinden (Kremmling Chamber of Commerce), Lisa Bornfield (Hot Sulphur Springs Chamber of Commerce), Kelly Kirkpatrick (Grand Lake Chamber of Commerce), Steve Kudron (Grand Lake Mayor), Heather Bishop (Grand Lake Business Owner)

Call To Order

Kristen called the meeting to order at 3:05 pm

Audience Participation

Heather Bishop | Owner Wild About Birds in Grand Lake

Heather introduced herself to the board members. She is a business owner in Grand Lake and attended the meeting to learn more about the tourism board.

Leslie Roybal \ Madden Media

Leslie introduced herself to the board members. She is the Destination Strategy Director for Madden Media.

ChamberUpdates

Catherine Ross | Winter Park Chamber of Commerce

  • Catherine reported that summer and fall visitation was strong. Sales tax was up 4.7% overall.
  • Current travel trends are back to the trends we saw in 2019. Winter and Spring Break reservations are down.
  • Winter Park is sold out from December 26 through the first week of January.

Dakota Cordle arrived at 3:10 p.m.

  • The Winter Park Chamber is working with the Office of Emergency Management to set up a list of lodging vendors' availability and contact information for travelers in case of inclement weather.
  • The chamber staff is working on their 2025 budget and work plan. Some of the work plan highlights focus on destination stewardship, increasing mental health resources for the workforce, and partnering with Grand Kids Learning Center. In addition, they are working on summer events and ways to elevate current signature events.
  • Catherine said the GCCTB's grants help extend their marketing goals and objectives.

Lisa Bornfield | Hot Sulphur Springs Chamber of Commerce

  • Lisa reported that sales tax numbers are down 20% this year.
  • The Hot Sulphur Springs Chamber is working on its budget and advertising for 2025. Some contracts include the Colorado State Vacation Guide and the Colorado Directory.
  • The chamber has a new website and is working on updates and keeping current on its social media platforms.
  • Hot Sulphur Springs events with the Annual Easter Egg Hunt will start again in the spring.
  • Lisa stated that GCCTB Grants enable the Hot Sulphur Springs Chamber the opportunity to afford and participate in the Co-Op Ad in the Colorado State Vacation Guide.

Sarah Cichon | Destination Granby

  • Sarah reviewed the year and reported that the social media for Destination Granby performed well this year with continued growth and reach.
  • Destination Granby used the GCCTB Marketing Grant for the Boondocks Co-Op Promotion between Granby, Grand Lake, and Kremmling and tested a retargeting campaign focused on longer stays for destination visitors. She continued the Independent Marketing Campaign, which focused on local businesses, townspeople, and events throughout the year.
  • The visitor center had 3300 people who called or stopped by to get information.

Kelly Kirkpatrick | Grand Lake Chamber of Commerce

  • Kelly reviewed the year and said that the Grand Lake Chamber built a new website and that social media did well, with a 12% increase in followers on Facebook and a 17% increase in followers on Instagram.
  • Advertising for the year included digital and traditional print along with tv ads.
  • The Grand Lake Chamber brought the Grand Lake Annual Guide production in-house and will renew again in 2025.
  • Kelly reported that Grand Lake had a strong summer, with lodging sales at 5.75% and restaurant sales tax at a 10% increase.
  • The Chamber will be updating the town map with QR codes.
  • Kelly noted that the GCCTB Marketing Funds help Grand Lake achieve a greater marketing reach.

Brittany Venderledden | Kremmling Chamber of Commerce

  • Brittany reported that the Kremmling Chamber of Commerce focused on the Visitor Guide and Marquee. In addition, she noted the success of the Boondock Co-Op with Granby and Grand Lake.
  • To date, visitation numbers are down.
  • Brittany is working with the Grand County Economic Development Department to get a new brand-name hotel in town to help capture visits to the area.
  • Summer was busy with the new Farmer’s Market event and will plan on adding a music component to the event name next year. The event already has music, but they’re just looking to make that more clear in the name. In addition, the Chamber will bring back the Demo Derby.

Approval of Minutes – (2 mins)

Meeting minutes for November 2024 are approved as distributed

Approval of Invoices by Finance Committee- (3 mins)

Gaylene reported that the invoices for November were $152,673.87

Board of Committee Reports- (15 mins)

Marketing Committee– Elizabeth Brumm had nothing to report

  • Gaylene is working with Madden to transfer information from Miles Partnership.
  • The Marketing Committee has its next meeting on December 13.
  • Madden Media, our new marketing agency, will be here in January to attend our board and tour the county.
  • Gaylene and Kristen will attend a conference that Madden Media is hosting next week.

Finance Committee– Ron Ellis

  • Ron had nothing to report.
  • Gaylene said that we are down 2% for the year.

Executive Director Report – Gaylene Ore - (5 mins)

  • Gaylene reported that she had meetings with Madden Media and Miles Partnership.
  • She worked on and attended the Grand County Economic Summit & Destination Blueprint events.
  • Gaylene has also been working with Travelstory, a destination GPS for guests to locate and visit museums in Grand County.

Marketing Update- Carrie Tomlinson - (15 mins)

  • Carrie reviewed some of the highlights over the past year:
  • The website provided 30K referrals to local businesses
  • Images were added to the asset gallery featuring events in Grand County
  • A total of 855 people were added to the GCCTB email list, with a 23% open rate on average for emails
  • Miles Partnership was able to drive a low cost per click on Paid Social Ads
  • There was a total of 675K impressions on the website

Carrie mentioned that the 2025 publishing calendar starts in Q4. The GCCTB participated with the Grand County Chambers on a Co-Op ad in the Colorado State Vacation Guide.

Carrie asked if the board wanted to add a media package with the National Parks Journal Ad. The media package includes an email list, an email feature, and a promoted social post for an additional $5,500.00. The Current ad cost is $9495.00.

Joanna motioned to approve $5,500.00 for the media package for the National Parks Journal Ad, and Ron seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

Miles Partnership met with Madden Media and is working through a transfer between both agencies on GCCTB assets. Carrie noted an additional fee for these services of $9,100.00.

Elizabeth motioned to approve $9,100.00 for the additional costs for Miles Partnership to transfer agency work to Madden Media, and Beau seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

Old Business- (5 mins)

3 new board members approved: Beau Larson (3 Lakes), Gretta Fosha (3 Lakes District), Dakota Cordle (Mainstem District)

New Business- (20 mins)

Grant Process

Gaylene noted that we have a new grant process. Each district will be able to approve grants and moving forward, the grants will then need to be submitted to the BOCC for approval.

Destination Stewardship

Gaylene will be getting strategies to the board to review

Ron Ellis Appreciation Acknowledgement

Gaylene and the board thanked Ron for his years of service on the Grand County Colorado Tourism Board.

2025 Board Executive Committee

Next month, the board will vote for president, vice president, secretary, and the finance committee members.

Adjourn

Ron motioned to adjourn the meeting, and Elizabeth seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

Meeting Adjourned at 4:37 p.m.

Next Meeting: January 16th, C Lazy U