10-07-15 Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
Location: Kalispell Chamber of Commerce
October 7, 2015
3:00 pm — 5:00 pm
Location: Kalispell Chamber
Minutes
Board Members Present: Janet Clark, Lisa Brown, Karena Bemis, Nautam Patel, Dawn Hendrickson
Board Members Absent: Vanessa Nordahl, Dan Moderie
Staff Present: Diane Medler, Dawn Jackson, Vonnie Day
Visitor: Rich Vasquez, Kalispell Wrestling Club
Meeting was called to order by Janet Clark, Board Chair, at 3:05 PM.
1. Hear from the Public —Rich Vasquez proposed to the Board that CVB provide a grant of $3,600 to cover
facility rental for the Little Guy Wrestling Tournament in March, 2016. CVB provided a grant for the event
in 2012 and 2013. A grant application was submitted for the 2014 event. Additional information
necessary to complete the application was requested by the CVB, but was not provided so grant wasn't
awarded. The Board asked Rich to submit an application for the 2016 event before the next scheduled
meeting.
2. Board Action
a. Approve minutes from the September 2, 2015 meeting:
Action: Motion was made by Dawn Hendrickson to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by
Karena Bemis. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b. TBID financial statements for August, 2015:
Action: Motion was made by Dawn Hendrickson to approve the financial statements. Motion
seconded by Karena Bemis. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
c. Approval of allocation of TBID uncommitted rollover funds:
Action: Motion was made by Lisa Brown to approve allocation of uncommitted rollover funds.
Motion seconded by Karena Bemis. Board approved unanimously.
Discussion: Total rollover funds are $160,000 less 10% contingency funds of $52,500. The
remaining funds available for allocation are $107,500. Following CVB staff recommendation, Board
agreed to reserve $49,300 for special projects and allocate the remaining $58,200: $12,000 to
Consumer Marketing, $700 to the Winter Geofencing Campaign prize package, $10,000 to Event
Operations and $35,500 to Meetings and Conventions. Board authorized staff to make minor
adjustments to the allocation as needed. If the $12,000 grant for the Meetings and Conventions
website is received, the allocation to M&C will be reassessed.
d. Confirmation of Laurie Schultz for Hilton Garden Inn board seat:
Board approved unanimously. The confirmations of Laurie Schultz and Nautam Patel will be
forwarded to Kalispell City for approval by Mayor Johnson.
3. Board Discussion
a. STIR Report— occupancy was down 12% for August (19% for economy properties, 6% for mid/upper).
Two properties did not report.
b. Dragon Boat Festival —financials are not in yet. Diane met with representatives of the
Lakeside/Somers Chamber and West Shore Visitors Bureau to review the impact of the event on the
community. Leadership of those organizations would like the event to return, recognizing the long-
term benefits to the community. There are some business owners who are opposed, voicing that
the event had hurt their business that weekend. Some businesses over -prepared and many locals
stayed away out of concerns about traffic and parking. CVB is looking at making the event more
beneficial to Lakeside businesses by creating on -site vendor opportunities and other ways for the
businesses to engage with festival attendees. The focus remains on attracting out -of -market teams.
Events committee is discussing making the event a regional or national finals competition. Another
option would be establishing the festival as a qualifying event for club teams to earn points for
national finals. Promoter Kevin Kwan feels the venue would be excellent for this purpose. Closure
of Lakeside Blvd. will not be necessary next year since it was minimally used this year. The park will
accommodate up to 75 teams. The registration fee will be increased for 2016 to increase revenue.
Lakeside covered the Friday welcome party, a cost savings to the KCVB of $4,000 to $5,000. Dragon
Bash attendance was down this year at 250. A tiered system of ticket pricing, based on purchase
date, is being discussed. RFP for the 2016 Dragon Bash will be sent in first part of December. Event
dates for 2016 are September 9 — 10. Volunteer Park has been reserved. Flathead County is
requiring a Conditional Use Permit. Board discussed possible incentives for teams to stay in hotels
rather than vacation rentals.
Pond Hockey Classic — 30 teams have registered, including several new out -of -market teams. Pond
Hockey lodging packages are requested by November 1, including early bird discounts. Scott will
distribute package information to teams. Board requested that all possible methods be used to
communicate packages with teams and suggested reworking the lodging package page on
discoverkalispell.com and looking at offering Pond Hockey packages on Expedia. Moose's sponsored
the player check -in party last year. The Board decided to keep the party at Moose's considering the
cost to the TBID if held elsewhere.
c. October Shows — IMEX, Calgary Women's Show, Media Events —Dawn will attend IMEX, October 12 -
14 in Las Vegas with Glacier Country, Whitefish, Missoula and Billings CVB's. Dawn has five
appointments scheduled. Diane will attend the Calgary Women's Show, October 24 — 25. CVB is
working on an event flyer featuring Black Friday promotions and activities. Diane will attend media
events in San Francisco, Portland and Seattle.
d. Montana Lodging and Hospitality Association Conference — October 26 — 28 at the Hilton Garden
Inn. Janet and Lisa will attend statewide TBID meeting 10/26, representing KCVB.
e. Group, M&C updates - Dawn attended a planning meeting for Governor's Conference on Tourism.
She was involved in planning for the Montana Downtown Coalition and put together a panel on agri-
tourism and farm -to -table partnerships plus organized an Instagram scavenger hunt in downtown
Kalispell.
f. Marketing updates — recent media: Travel Bliss: Blog - Flathead Lake and Where to Eat and Drink in
Kalispell and Motor Home magazine - Montana's Grand Glacier Country.
The robust and targeted fall/winter campaign is underway. Details of campaign were provided in
October board packet. Two fall e-newsletters have been sent, one general and targeted toward
outdoor enthusiasts.
Meeting was adjourned at 4:45 PM
Respectfully Submitted: Diane Medler
For Further Information, Please Contact:
Diane Medler, CVB Director, diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808