12-06-17 Tourism Business Improvement District MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting
Kalispell Tourism Business Improvement District
December 6, 2017
3:00 pm — 5:00 pm
Location: Kalispell Chamber of Commerce
Minutes
Board Members Present: Dawn Hendrickson, Lisa Brown, Janet Clark, Emily Schroeder, Zac Ford
Board Members Absent: Shawn Campbell, Dan Moderie
Guests: Rob Brisendine; Scott Rieke, Best Western Flathead Lake Inn & Suites; Lucy Weeder, SpringHill Suites
Staff Present: Diane Medler, Dawn Jackson, Vonnie Day
Meeting was called to order by Dawn Hendrickson at 3:04 PM.
1. Hear from the Public— none
2. Board Action Items
a. Approve minutes from the November 1, 2017 meeting:
Action: Motion was made by Zac Ford to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Janet Clark.
Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
b. TBID financial statements for October, 2017:
Action: Motion was made by Janet Clark to approve the financial statements. Motion seconded by
Zac Ford. Discussion: none. Board approved unanimously.
Action: Motion was made by Lisa Brown to open a savings account at Whitefish Credit Union to hold
contingency funds. Motion seconded by Janet Clark.
Discussion: Diane Medler proposed to open interest -bearing account for TBID rollover contingency
funds. Balance will be kept at 10% of approved projected revenue each fiscal year. For FY18 that
amount is $56K. Board approved unanimously.
c. CVB Event Grant Requests:
Glacier Half Marathon — event is planned for June, 2018 at the same location near East Glacier.
Very few room nights were generated by the race last year due to the distance to the venue. The
board agreed to offer an in -kind promotion package valued up to $1,500 in lieu of a cash sponsorship
for the 2018 event. In return, Glacier Half Marathon will be asked to add a link to the lodging
directory and travel guide on the Discover Kalispell website and allow Discover Kalispell to place a
booth at the Race Expo.
AMA (American Motorcyclist Association) Championship Snow Bike Series — the event is scheduled
for February 24 at the Flathead County Fairgrounds. Organizers expect to attract about 60
participants (from out of the area) and 1,000 spectators. Since the event is expected to garner a
modest number of room nights, the board agreed to offer in -kind support instead of a cash grant.
Action: Motion was made by Lisa Brown to offer an in -kind promotion package valued at $750. In
exchange, CVB will ask organizers to link to the Discover Kalispell lodging directory. Motion seconded
by Janet Clark. Board approved unanimously.
3. Board Discussion
a. Events
Pond Hockey — 66 teams have registered, may need more parking if more than 80 teams sign up.
Registration closes January 5 and the race schedule will be released January 10. Plans for the event are
coming together well.
Indoor Soccer — 4 teams have registered, 60 days is the normal sign-up window so sign-ups are expected
to pick up starting in January. The tournament will be sanctioned by U.S. Soccer, documentation is
expected in the next few days. A promotion to boost registration will take place after January 1.
Dragon Boat — registration for 2018 is open. Returning RMC teams have until 12/31/17 to register and
claim their deferred free entry from 2017. CVB has talked to two different promoters, one in Toronto
and one in Vancouver, B.C., and is putting feelers out for other possible candidates.
b. Event Grant Updates
Elite Professional Bullriders - inaugural event was well -run and had good out -of -market participation and
local spectator attendance. Room night reports are requested from TBID members. Craft Brewers Cup -
also well -attended, organizers distributed Pond Hockey flyers and stickers to their participants. Pond
Hockey promotional materials will be displayed at other tournaments also. Skijoring - CVB social media
drive market campaign starts December 7, more lodging packages are needed for the event.
c. Marketing Updates
Some properties have not yet completed the Hotel Visit Survey. The survey for the new Discover Kalispell
website also needs to be completed by several board and TBID members. A photo shoot is underway to
add iconic winter images of Kalispell to the CVB winter photo library. First quarter TBID collections were
up 2% from last year. City Council approved the Downtown Plan which outlines a vision for the future to
guide planning decisions and allow the City to have a seat at the table with Montana Department of
Transportation in discussions about the Courthouse Couplet and other issues. The TBID letter of support
for the Downtown Plan is available with the board packets on the Kalispell Chamber website. Fall
Campaign — CVB applied and received a Tourism Emergency Marketing Grant offered to communities and
organizations impacted by wildfire smoke. The $5,000 grant was used on a social media ad campaign to
increase visitation from our drive market in late fall and early winter. The campaign featured a game
called "Live like a local" that garnered more than 138,000 impressions, nearly 6,000 clicks to the website
and 60% completion of the game quiz. Winter Campaign - running in San Francisco and Los Angeles
markets and includes Facebook display and canvas ads featuring Skijoring at Rebecca Farm, Pond Hockey
and GNP winter activities. The San Francisco campaign features a wall billboard in SOMA that promotes
winter outdoor travel to Kalispell. STIR Report — October was down 6.4% similar to results experienced by
other locations in our comp market. Montana occupancy was down 6.3% during October also. Winter
consumer enews (12,009 subscribers) and M&C enewsletter (927 subscribers) were sent out in
November. TBID members are asked to make sure they're on the list for those as well as the monthly
CVB enews.
d. Group, M&C Updates
An RFP was submitted to host the Montana Association of Chamber Executives Conference in October,
2018. Notification of site selection is expected in about two weeks. A decision is expected in the next
few weeks for a proposal that was submitted for the Montana Soccer State Cup in June, 2018. The event
will yield up to 1,000 room nights. Site tours will be conducted in preparation for the Montana
Association of Young Professionals Conference to be held in Kalispell in June or September of 2019.
Rooms have been secured for the Young Riders program, an ancillary program that takes place at The
Event at Rebecca Farm. Dawn coordinated lodging packages for Montana Department of Labor's Safety
Fest which will be held in Kalispell in January. TBID members are encouraged to take advantage of
classes being offered. Dawn attended the Connect Conference in Renton, WA in November. The
conference attracted 45 qualified planners and 53 suppliers from around the Pacific Northwest and
provided opportunities for attendees to meet with planners and network with other CVB's and hotels.
TBID members are reminded to "like" the Discover Kalispell page on Linked In. IRU takes place April 9 —
11 at the Red Lion and will be attended by CVB's, hotels, state tourism offices and activity vendors. One
of the two Marketplace opportunities is full, the other has only three openings left. MOTBD and Glacier
Country are helping to organize the event and recruit sponsors. Sponsorships are available to local
businesses and organizations. CVB staff hotel visits have offered opportunities to communicate and
learn. All visits except one have been completed. A new manager will be taking over at Motel 6.
All TBID members are invited to the CVB annual meeting Thursday, January 11, 3:00 pm at the Red Lion.
There will be a short business meeting followed by a year -in -review presentation and social hour.
Meeting was adjourned at 4:05 PM
Respectfully Submitted: Diane Medler
For Further Information, please contact:
Diane Medler, CVB Director, diane@discoverkalispell.com or 406-758-2808