Transient Lodging Tax Committee Minutes
February 16, 2023
Baker County Chamber of Commerce
Tyler called the meeting to order at 9:02 am.
Members Present: Tyler Brown, Mandy Clark, Alysia Bowers, Beverly Calder and Brian Vegter.
Guests Present: Matthew Koppenhaver, Bryan Tweit, Jessica Hobson, Devon Colton, Ariel and Shelly Christensen
Tyler welcomed Beverly Calder to the Committee as the City of Baker City appointed representative. Beverly has served on the Committee in the past for eleven years.
Approve Agenda: Agenda items removed included Grant Presentations and Hell Canyon Update. Mandy moved to approve the agenda with corrections. Brian seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Approve Minutes: Meeting minutes from January 19, 2023 were reviewed. Brian moved to approve the minutes as presented. Alysia seconded the motion. Motion carried. Meeting minutes from February 6, 2023 work session were reviewed. Mandy moved to approve the minutes as presented. Brian seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Grant Requests:
Tyler directed the Committee to the FY 2022-23 grant award chart and explained the temporary boost to grant funds in FY 2021-22. There was some discussion around event grant awards and Beverly suggested the Committee be more proactive in soliciting applicants and develop a scoring system to measure event success. Grant request planning will be added to the March agenda.
Chautauqua Music Festival – Sara Artley:
Chautauqua Music Festival is requesting $5,000 for their event to be held May 19th – 21st. Grant funds will be used for radio advertising, direct mail marketing and printing inserts. Sara shared the feedback that she received from attendees, talent and volunteers was excellent. This year they will be adding more performers and a workshop element, A percentage of net profits will be donated to local charities. The area of focus for marketing the event will again be in the Treasure Valley, Tri Cities and Eastern Oregon areas. The Micro Chautauqua will be held on March 18th at the Eagle Valley Grange. Committee suggestions included expand marketing to the Portland area, on-line ticket sales through Eventbrite or Bands in Town for better demographic tracking and to submit an application to the Cultural Coalition. Tyler asked Brian to develop instructions on how to use Eventbrite to provide to grant requesters. Beverly moved to approve the requested $5,000. Brian seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Brownlee Crappie Shootout 8 – Jared Rivera
Jared is requesting $700 for the Brownlee Crappie Shootout 8, which will be held May 20th. This event is a fundraiser for CASA, $30 of each entry fee of $40 goes to CASA. Grant funds will be used to purchase insurance, the prize buckle, advertising costs and purchase of event shirts. Brian moved to approve the requested $700. Mandy seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Grant Presentation: None
Tourism Marketing: Jessica Hobson
Jessica provided her Travel Baker County February report which lists events she has boosted on social media including; Churchill Concerts, Ison House Escape Room, and the Halfway Crab Feed. Jessica has almost reached her goal of 15,000 Facebook likes at 14,702. Boosting an event with Eventbrite was discussed. Upcoming events include Night at Old Auburn, District and State Basketball Tournaments, Sumpter and Halfway Snowmobile Poker Runs, Baker City Downtown Wine Walks, Geiser Grand Ghost Hunter Tours, Cornhole Tournament in the Queen City Room and Mother’s Day High Tea. Meetings Jessica has attended this past month included community partners, Oregon Tourism and Travel Association (OTTA) in Wilsonville, update of the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway (HCSB) map which will be available this Spring, planning for the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center reopening in 2024 and an Oregon Live video of Quail Ridge Golf Course. Jessica has been working on universal Travel Baker County Sub branding logos that is unique to each community. The logos will be downloadable and available to each community and local partner to use.
Jessica shared the costs for ads in the Baker County Visitors Guide. She recommended a 50% buy down of ads for tourism related ads (outdoor recreation, cycling, winter activities, arts, ag and culinary, museums, and lodging) utilizing $2,000 from each category’s budget line. The Baker County Visitor Guide budget is $15,000, which includes purchasing the overrun, and the distribution budget is $8,000. After some discussion Brian moved to allocate a $200 buy down per business according to listed areas coming from specific budget categories up to $2,000 each. Beverly seconded the motion. Motion carried. Jessica asked the Committee for their opinion for a front cover photo.
Jessica compiled total expenditures for the past five fiscal years for the Committee’s review and offered Committee members copies of the revenue & expenditure reports upon request.
On March 15th, Jessica asked the commissioners to approve a $7,500 expenditure for Eastern Oregon Visitor Guide buy downs. Approval was granted.
Reallocations of funds within the 2022-23 budget were discussed. Beverly moved to accept the reallocation changes as presented. Mandy seconded the motion. Motion carried. The 2023-24 budget will have three additional expense lines; Heritage Event Grant, Special Projects Unrepeatable and Coop Lodging Advertising. The Special Projects Unrepeatable line will possibly be used to install a kiosk on County owned property near the armory or use in a matching grant fund opportunity. Jessica provided a list of budget expenditure lines with a description of how funds will be used. Ideas for additional kiosks were shared.
2024 will be Baker City’s 150th birthday. Celebration ideas and promotion were discussed.
Visitor Services Update – Devon Colton
Devon presented the January Visitors Center report; 38 travelers passing through, 4 seeking lodging, 61 County residents visited the Center, 12 requesting County information, 156 Vehicle at the charging center, and 4 visitor/relocation packets were mailed. Devon polled Visitor Center staff and found their number one focus is to update the website.
EDC Update: Bryan Tweit
Bryan updated the committee on the status of the event center property. Bryan is currently working on the summit at Churchill for eutropenuership, industrial park improvements. He reported the fabric store held a grant opening to celebrate their new location on Main Street. The transportation plan for 10th Street and Hughes Lane has changed and is not as big as originally planned due to rising costs of supplies. Bryan was encouraged by a recent meeting with Baker City and Baker County officials and wants to see that happen on a regular basis.
Hells Canyon Update: Becky – None
2023-24 Draft Budget: Jessica Hobson
Jessica presented a draft budget to the Committee for review. Beverly moved to approve the draft budget with added detail. Brian seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Heritage Event Grant Application: This agenda item was moved to the next meeting.
Strategic Plan Review: This agenda item was moved to the next meeting.
Financial Reports: Shelly Christensen
Fourth quarter reports are in. Shelly will be sending out past due notices to the few lodging establishments who have not submitted fourth quarter reports. .
Citizen Participation:
Matthew reported gas prices in Baker City are slowing coming down. He expressed his concern on the effect Love’s will have on local stations.
Staff Comments: None
Committee Comments:
Mandy reported lodging is down from last year at this time due to the reduction of traveling nurses.
Brian shared upcoming dates and talent performing at Churchill.
Tyler shared dates for Barley Brown’s 25th Anniversary celebration.
Alysia said January has been slow but they are busy for February. The remodel is continuing and bookings are up 45% compared to last year.
Beverly indicated she has the opportunity to purchase a billboard on Highway 7. She offered this marketing opportunity to Jessica for Travel Baker County.
Next Meeting:
March 16, 2023 @ 9:00 am
Meeting adjourned at 12:09
Respectfully Submitted: Shelly Christensen