10-26-22 Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Location: Kalispell Chamber
Board Members Present: Britta Joy, Zac Ford, Robert Hall, Skyler Rieke
Zoom: Bryce Baker
Absent: Dawn Hendrickson
Staff Present: Marisa Mikonis, Diane Medler, Dawn Jackson
Guest: Adrian Knowler, Daily Inter Lake
MINUTES
The meeting was called to order at 3:04 PM by Bryce Baker, Chair of the Board.
1. Hear from the Public – None.
2. Board Action Items
a) Approval of minutes from September 28, 2022
• Motion was made by Britta Joy to approve the minutes. Motion was
seconded by Zac Ford. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b) Approval of financials for September 2022
• Motion was made by Zac Ford to approve the minutes. Motion was
seconded by Britta Joy. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
4. Board Discussion
a) Indoor Sports Facility
• The first draft of the Indoor Sports Facility Market Opportunity Study was
submitted and reviewed by all board members. The board’s discussion
included:
o Britta Joy would like to know how they identified the primary sports.
She felt there could be more sports added such as soccer and
lacrosse for the indoor turf use.
o There was no indoor Olympic sized swimming pool included in the
study. It was suggested by many people in the community as a need
for regional meets. The Summit and The Wave are the only indoor
pools used for meets and they are not large enough.
o The board wonders if the height of the proposed facility will be high
enough for non-sporting event such as concerts.
• The board will schedule a zoom with the consultant to review the draft
report.
b) FY23 Group Sales Strategy
• Dawn Jackson presents to the board on where we have been, where we
are, and where we are going with our Group Sales Strategy. In the past the
CVB has focused mostly on meetings and conventions to gain measurable
room nights and create compression to other property. The focus now is
to diversify our portfolio of group sales.
• Building better relationships with tour operators opens up for increased FIT
travel as boarders reopen.
• Key actions in the strategy include International Rebound Workshop,
newsletters, paid media, attending trade shows, FAM trips, sales calls, and
support materials for hotels.
• Dawn is also focusing on military reunion groups and sports groups to
drive group travel.
c) Staff Reports
• Marisa updated the board on further progress with Highlander Event
regarding route planning. Conversations with Blacktail Mountain, Foy’s to
Blacktail Trails, and Forest Service.
• The Gas Card campaign has ended. Relaunched the Winter in Kalispell Ski
Package. The Towns and Trails pass has been successful with 10 total
redemptions at the visitor center.
• Diane and Dawn will start their TBID hotel visits again for outreach on what
Discover Kalispell is doing, our resources, to gain insights on how we can
support the TBID properties, and what they would receive as visitor
resources.
• Diane was recently appointed to the board for the newly founded Montana
Travel Association, a political advocacy 501c4 for the state tourism industry.
The group just launched and is preparing for the upcoming legislative
session by establishing organizational bylaws and priorities and selecting a
lobbyist through a competitive RFP process. The MTTA is asking for
sponsorships. Bryce Baker believes the TBID should contribute to the MTTA
to actively support and protect our industry funding. Discover Kalispell
supports Voice of Montana Tourism annually. Voices is the educational
outreach organization for the tourism industry. The financial contribution
to Voices of MT Tourism for FY23 is from bed tax.
o Britta made a motion to support the MTTA with a $5,000
contribution which would come from the TBID reserve account.
Robert Hall seconded the motion. Discussion: none. Board approved
unanimously.
• Diane reviewed the STR report. Bryce had attended a STR meeting at the
recent MLHA conference and reported that STR forecasts a 1.4% growth in
occupancy for 2023 (nation-wide).
• The Community Engagement Study on Growth Sentiment has been
launched. This study will help our organizations (DK and Chamber) develop
strategies that continue to recognize the importance of tourism to our
region’s economy and to balance the economic needs with our
community’s long-term health and vibrancy. Several opportunities for
community input: an online survey and two public engagement meetings
being held on November 16 and 17. More information and registration
available at KalispellChamber.com.
Meeting was adjourned at 4:05pm
Respectfully submitted: Diane Medler
For further information, please contact:
diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808