07-01-15 Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
Location: Kalispell Chamber of Commerce
July 1, 2015
3:00 pm — 5:00 pm
Location: Kalispell Chamber
Minutes
Board Members Present: Janet Clark, Vanessa Nordahl, Dawn Hendrickson, Gib Bissell, Karena Bemis, Dan Moderie
Board Members Absent: Lisa Brown
Staff Present: Diane Medler, Dawn Jackson, Vonnie Day
Meeting was called to order by Janet Clark, Board Chair, at 3:10 PM.
1. Hear from the Public — no public comment
2. Board Action
a. Approve minutes from the June 3, 2015 meeting:
Action: Motion was made by Gib Bissell to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Dan Moderie.
Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b. TBID financial statements for May, 2015:
Action: Motion made by Dan Moderie to approve the financial statements. Motion seconded by
Dawn Hendrickson.
Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
c. Sponsorship request — Rocky Mountain Friesian Horse Show
Action: Motion made by Dawn Hendrickson to offer an in -kind promotion package in lieu of a
cash sponsorship. Motion seconded by Gib Bissell.
Discussion: This is the event's first year with limited out -of -market draw. Low attendance
projection will yield minimal hotel nights. Board approved unanimously.
d. Sponsorship request — Flathead Celtic Festival
Action: None
Discussion: Board recommended that grant request be revised to provide more information on out -
of -market draw and potential hotel nights. Dawn will get more information from applicant. Board
discussed need for scoring system to evaluate and rank future grant requests.
3. Board Discussion
a. Recap of High School Rodeo —the event attracted 214 contestants and their families for a period of
5 to 7 days and generated approximately 300 room nights.
b. Dragon Boat Festival — 53 teams have registered so far. A total of about 60 teams are projected. If
the Lakeside venue works well this year, the number of teams participating can be increased.
Tickets for The Dragon Bash are available on the website. With consideration given to paddler and
race director feedback, this year's Captain's Briefing will be held at the race site, Friday, September
11 at 5pm. No welcome party will be held in conjunction with the briefing. The briefing will last
about an hour, and then captains will be able to join their teams for dinner and evening activities.
The Lakeside community is favorable toward the event. The approval of the road closure
application is pending.
Meetings have been held with Emergency Services, Sheriff and Posse. Event sponsors are still
needed.
c. Other events - Representatives of The Event at Rebecca Farm, Jerome Broussard and Ruth Ackroyd,
met with Joe, Dawn and Diane. They would like to become more involved in the community and
make the venue more accessible for community events. CVB will host a table in the hospitality tent
which will provide an opportunity to network with coaches, judges, contestants and associations. In
support of the event, Diane will coordinate an ITRR survey utilizing our experienced event survey
volunteers.
ACTION: Karena Bemis made a motion to purchase a $500 Patron Pass Sponsorship for The Event at
Rebecca Farm. The motion was seconded by Dawn Hendrickson and the Board approved
unanimously.
d. West Glacier Information Center — Whitefish Chamber and Glacier National Park Conservancy are
spearheading a joint seasonal visitor information center in West Glacier. They are asking for a
$1,200 contribution to display brochures in the facility which will be staffed 4 hours per day by the
Whitefish Chamber. The Board agreed to evaluate the operation this summer and consider
participation for next year.
e. Group, M&C updates —The Kalispell Beer and Wine Open yielded 17-18 room nights. Attendance
was low. Organizer is looking at moving the event to April. Wrangler Team Roping generated 5-10
room nights. RFP from Chris Parsons for a Haas Technical Education Centers Conference in July,
2016 has been distributed. Kalispell Welcome bags can be ordered for groups by contacting Dawn
Jackson. Advance notice is requested. Dawn has developed a flyer about group discounts for air
and train travel for the POMA Conference in June, 2016. Six surveys have been received from Group
Sales Committee members. Those who've submitted surveys say Wednesdays and Thursdays are
the best meeting days. Contact Dawn for more information about the survey results. Amore will
provide $25 gift certificates to conference attendees. The Digital Meeting Kit is still under
construction. Dawn is requesting ideas for unique local tours and activities suitable for groups.
f. Marketing updates — Montana Office of Tourism is offering trade show grants for organizations
other than CVBs. According to Star Report for May, the occupancy rate is up 16.3%, ADR is up 2.4%
and YTD occupancy is up 9.3%. Kalispell occupancy is up significantly over similar locations. Growth
in the numbers of hikers/bikers with early access to GNP and the Spartan Race were drivers of the
increase in occupancy. It appears that potential negative impact of the weakness of the Canadian
dollar is being offset by other gains. Discussions with LaQuinta continue and it looks promising that
the property will join the TBID. The Wayfinding project is moving forward. Kalispell was featured in
a recent food -focused article in Avenue Calgary which was supplemented by an ad and online
coverage.
Meeting was adjourned at 4:15 PM
Respectfully Submitted: Diane Medler
For Further Information, Please Contact
Diane Medler, CVB Director, diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808