06-05-19 Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
June 5, 2019
3:00 pm
Location: Kalispell Chamber Conference Room
Minutes
Board Members Present: Dawn Hendrickson, Lucy Weeder, Emily Schroeder, Janet Clark
Board Members Absent: Zack Ford, Bryce Baker, Sean Morris
Staff Present: Diane Medler, Joe Unterreiner, Vonnie Day
Guests: Scott Reike, Best Western PLUS Flathead Lake Inn & Suites
Meeting was called to order by Chair Dawn Hendrickson at 3:07 pm.
1. Hear from the Public — none
2. Board Action Items
a. Approval of minutes from May 1, 2019:
Motion was made by Janet Clark to approve the minutes. Motion was seconded by Emily Schroeder.
Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b. Approval of TBID financial statements for April, 2019:
Motion was made by Emily Schroeder to approve the financial statements. Motion was seconded by
Lucy Weeder. Discussion: None. Board approved unanimously.
2. Board Discussion
a. Event updates:
Spartan Race — stats for this year's event haven't yet been received. Spartan is planning to add the Ultra
Race which is 30 miles and 60 obstacles and will retain the Beast and Sprint races in 2020. The first and
second weekends of May are being considered for next year. A decision on the date will be made soon.
b. Event grants - Rebecca Farm submitted a post event report for Skijoring. Unusually frigid March
weather seriously reduced participation in the 2019 event. A decision will be made in the fall about
scheduling the event in 2020. Northern Rodeo Finals issued a press release about their event in
Kalispell in October which was picked up by eastern Montana news outlets.
b. Marketing updates:
• On June 9, Discover Kalispell will host a post -event for 30 attendees of Beer Now, a conference held
in Great Falls for beer bloggers from across the U.S. Their visit to Kalispell will start with the option
of a boat ride, bike ride or nature walk in Glacier Park and will wrap up with a mini beer-fest
featuring local breweries held at the Museum at Central School.
• The American Airlines inaugural flights from Dallas and Chicago will arrive June 6. The flights will be
greeted by a fire truck water tunnel, local press, the Glacier AERO board and airport management staff.
• As part of the promotion of the inaugural American Airlines flights, Discover Kalispell will host a
press trip for three Dallas area media influencers and one from Chicago June 8-9. Their visit will
include a visit to downtown, a kayak tour of Somers Bay, a visit to Purple Mountain Lavender, the
Conrad Mansion and dinner at Desoto Grill.
• June 14 —16, Discover Kalispell will host a travel writer with Northwest Living Magazine who will be
covering bike trails around Kalispell and riding on Going to the Sun Road.
• Chuck Haney recently completed a photo shoot downtown that included several stores, galleries
and a brewery. He also got beautiful hiking shots at Herron Park and Lone Pine showing territorial
views.
• Clint Ekern will take motorcycle touring shots around Flathead Lake, scheduled for late June.
• The Kalispell Launch of Taste Our Place will take place June 17 at four downtown restaurants: Ceres
Bakery, Montana Coffee Traders, Desoto Grill and Hops. Made in Montana will cover the cost of a
videographer to record the event and Discover Kalispell will have use of the footage. Taste Our
Place is a collaborative program between the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture to
recognize food and beverage operations that commit to using significant Montana -sourced
ingredients on their menus. Other local food and beverage businesses will be invited to apply for
the program to take advantage of the marketing opportunities it provides.
• The Discover Kalispell 2020 Marketing Plan will be presented to the City Council Monday night.
• Diane will present the Marketing Plan to the Tourism Advisory Countil for state approval next week
in Helena.
• Montana Basecamp RV Park will be collecting bed tax but not the TBID fee, an unprecedented
situation in Kalispell. CVB will review TBID statute and bylaws to see if the nightly rental RV Park can
meet the requirements to join the TBID, or can join as an Associate Member.
• The Visitor Guide retargeting campaign continues to be successful with 1499 copies mailed YTD
compared to 1369 for all of 2018. An almost equal number have been downloaded.
c. Group, M&C updates:
• Dawn is currently representing Kalispell at the IPW Meeting Planner Show in Anaheim California.
• Kalispell is a finalist for the Outdoor Media Summit Conference for May, 2020. A decision is
expected by the end of June.
• POMA organizers have selected another location for their 2020 conference but would like to hold
their 2021 conference in Kalispell
• MEDA MT Economic Development Association has chosen Kalispell for their spring 2020 conference.
• The Montana High School Lacrosse Association is evaluating whether there is enough interest
among clubs to bid for the 2020 championship game.
• Dawn met with 40 international tour operators at International Roundup in Spearfish, SD, renewing
old relationships and making new contacts. Tour operators emphasized that they're looking for
activities that are bookable online and are especially interested in Native American, rodeo and other
Western cultural experiences.
• The Herd Bull Powwow is taking place as far as we know. Concerning feedback has been received
about organizer's conduct at a member property.
• The Future Conferences & Events list in the monthly TBID board packet is a great resource for
information about upcoming groups.
e. FY20 Consumer Travel Show Schedule:
• The LA show is expensive and involves shipping backdrops and supplies at a significant cost. The
show attracts 38,000 attendees. There's value in face to face contact but it's difficult to define a
return on the investment. If a partner can't be found to share the cost of the booth, Discover
Kalispell will skip the show in 2020.
• There may be an opportunity to partner with Billings for the Denver show, promoting visits to
Glacier and Yellowstone. Billings sponsored a Montana photo booth at the show last year which
attracted a lot of attention.
f. Strategic plan discussion — since the plan is an extensive document, 15 minutes of monthly board
meetings will be devoted to discussion.
1. Branding Kalispell as its own destination (outside of its proximity to GNP and Flathead Lake) was
advised and has been reflected in the visitor guide and the website through the introduction of
Kalispell Discovery Guides, sharing the passion of the locals, telling stories, getting people engaged
with the destination.
2. Discussion of the summary document:
Section 1— occupancy is not a perfect way to judge the number of visitors considering the opening
of new properties and increase in short term rentals. Consider other ways to quantify visitations.
Section 2 — we have a great product. We've used "discovery in every direction" with the key
message that Kalispell is a hub. The plan recommends that we position Kalispell as a destination
in itself which involves determining our unique value position and answers to:
• what separates us from Whitefish
• what are our most compelling assets
• which seasons to we need to focus on
• do we need to shift more resources to M&C, sports tournaments, tour groups
• downtown Kalispell is important in making us unique
• public art initiatives are value propositions
• our community friendliness is unique
• board discussed retaining and building on the image of Kalispell as the hub
Results from the survey at the Chamber tourism luncheon in May indicated attendees valued
outdoor activities the most followed by community, downtown, and the arts in that order. When
asked what is the most important thing for the tourism industry to consider when growing a
sustainable economy, they indicated "more year-round activities and events" as the top priority.
Discussion evaluating seasonal focus: The strategic plan recommended rethinking our winter
promotional strategy. Since the winter traveler is a small segment that will travel primarily for
downhill skiing, our promotions may be creating additional room nights for Whitefish as they
have the capacity in winter and now have two flagged properties.
• Does it make sense to continue to promote downhill skiing?
• Would it be a better use of those funds to promote name recognition/brand awareness?
• Would it be advisable to create a new winter event?
• Should non -skiing winter events be promoted?
The board discussed the importance of keeping M&C going, building group travel business and
supporting sports tournaments.
Diane will issue an RFP for Public Relations soon and will combine services needed to include a
brand content strategist to develop consistent brand messaging.
Meeting was adjourned a 4:15pm.
Respectfully Submitted: Diane Medler
For Further Information, please contact:
Diane Medler, CVB Director, diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808