04-06-16 Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
Location: Kalispell Chamber of Commerce
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
3:00 pm — 5:00 pm
Minutes
Board Members Present: Janet Clark, Vanessa Nordahl, Dan Moderie, Dawn Hendrickson, Laurie Otto, Nautam Patel
Board Members Absent: Lisa Brown
Staff Present: Diane Medler, Dawn Jackson, Joe Unterreiner, Vonnie Day
Visitors: Tom and Denise Lewis, Hilltop Inn; Dennis Rasmussen, Greenwood Village; Joanne Schadowitz, Kalispell Grand;
David Herberg, Guesthouse; Alex ?, Guesthouse Regional Manager; KPD Chief Roger Nasset, Officer Corbett
Meeting was called to order by Janet Clark, Board Chair, at 3:06 PM.
1. Hear from the Public— no public comments
2. TBID Safety Awareness information sharing — properties continue to experience increased drug trafficking
and theft activities. The TBID Safety Awareness Alert email system within the TBID hotels is working
well. KPD Chief Nasset and Officer Corbett shared information and received updates from the hotels.
3. Board Action
a. Approve minutes from the March 2, 2016 meeting:
Action: Motion was made by Dawn Hendrickson to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Dan
Moderie. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b. TBID financial statements for February, 2016:
Action: Motion was made by Vanessa Nordahl to approve the financial statements. Motion
seconded by Dawn Hendrickson. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
c. Approval of FY2017 marketing plan and budget:
Action: Motion was made by Dawn Hendrickson to approve the FY2017 marketing plan and budget.
Motion seconded by Dan Moderie. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
d. Approval of applications for expiring board seats:
Action: Dawn Hendrickson and Vanessa Nordahl applied to renew their four-year terms. Motion to
approve was made by Dan Moderie. Motion was seconded by Laurie Otto. Discussion: none.
Board approved unanimously.
e. Approval of slate of officers to May 1, 2016 — April 30, 2017:
Action: Proposed slate of officers was Vanessa Nordahl, Chair; Dawn Hendrickson, Vice Chair; Janet
Clark, Treasurer. Motion to approve was made by Laurie Otto. Motion was seconded by Dan
Moderie. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
4. Board Discussion
a. Event updates -
Spartan Race — registration numbers are on track with last year's event. NBC Sports is filming The
Sprint again this year. Their production will air in July. Feedback on room nights for events is
essential in determining ROL Passes to the Spartan Race are available to board members. Spartan,
Inc. is partnering with Miller -Coors. This year's Beast is predicted to be the most challenging one
Spartan has created.
Dragon Boat — meetings have been held with Lakeside -Somers Chamber and West Shore Visitors
Bureau. Lakeside -Somers Chamber members will be offered an opportunity to submit vendor
applications early and vendor fee will be waived. Lakeside Condo owners are supportive of the
event. The road closure permit is in the works. Team marketing is under way.
Pond Hockey — Diane's letter to the editor detailing the positive aspects of the tournament
cancellation was well -received. 2017 Pond Hockey Classic is scheduled for January 20 — 22. TBID
expenditures for the 2016 event totaled $18,722. Those expenditures will result in some cost
savings for the 2017 tournament.
b. Governor's Conference on Tourism — 425 are registered and the event is on track to surpass
previous attendance records. Area tours focusing on a variety of topics will be offered on Sunday
afternoon. 320 have signed up for the welcome reception, hosted by the CVB. There will be shuttle
busses running between the Hilton and the Red Lion. Local businesses will be provided with
welcome signs and the CVB is collaborating with the Flathead Beacon and the Kalispell Downtown
Association to create a virtual coupon for conference attendees.
c. Group, M& C updates —Job Service will present at the next board meeting about resources available
for attracting and retaining hotel staff in the current tight labor market. Job Service staff can be
consulted in the meantime for help with summer hiring challenges. Employment posters are
available. The new CRM system is working well. A monthly report of upcoming conference leads
will be distributed. The economic impact of the Governor's Conference will be shared. A group
sales meeting will be scheduled for the last week of April. A Red Bus Tour hosted by Xanterra is
being planned for the end of May or first of June. Group leads are coming in from locals who are
members of national boards.
d. Marketing updates — Attendance at Calgary Outdoor Adventure Show was 13,800. There was a lot
of interest in Kalispell from a higher income demographic, especially in hiking, kayaking and scenic
driving. Diane won a drawing for $500 of booth fee for next year. Northwest Regional Elementary
Duels, an event at the Fairgrounds that received KCVB Event Grant dollars is taking place at the
fairgrounds this weekend. Second installment of a print and online piece by travel writer from Time
Out Chicago characterized Kalispell as the hub for Glacier Park. Printed copies of the new Kalispell
Visitor Guide are available, along with a link to a PDF on discoverkalispell.com. Discover Kalispell
Facebook post showing the Space Needle in downtown Kalispell had a reach of 92,000. Social media
results are strong and growing on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook gathering 10,334,000
impressions. Fall/Winter media campaign completed. Total budget was $32,314, total impressions
10,339,785, campaign clicks to website 7,801, campaign leads 1,359. February STIR report showed a
decrease in occupancy of 3.4%, ADR up 1.4%. Statewide, occupancy is down 4.3%, ADR is up 1.6%.
Meeting adjourned at 4:49 pm.
Respectfully Submitted: Diane Medler
For Further Information, Please Contact:
Diane Medler, CVB Director, diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808