Transient Lodging Tax Committee Minutes
March 16, 2023
Baker County Chamber of Commerce
Tyler called the meeting to order at 9:00 am.
Members Present: Tyler Brown, Mandy Clark, Buell Gonzales, Beverly Calder and Brian Vegter.
Guests Present: Mike Raney, Becky Kaaen, Matthew Koppenhaver, Bryan Tweit, Jessica Hobson, Devon Colton, Shane Alderson and Shelly Christensen
Approve Agenda: Buell moved to approve the agenda as presented. Beverly seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Approve Minutes: Meeting minutes from February 16, 2023 were reviewed. Mandy moved to approve the minutes as presented. Buell seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Grant Requests:
Huntington Lions Catfish Derby: Mike Raney
Huntington Lions Catfish Derby is requesting $1,000 for their event, to be held May 27th – 29th. Grant funds will be used for prize money. This is the 37th anniversary of the derby. They are expecting 200-250 entries. Entry fee is $10. This year they will be adding a category for channel catfish. Participants come from Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Jessica will get information from Baker City Herald in order to promote the event on Travel Baker County’s Facebook page and website. Beverly moved to approve the requested $1,000. Buell seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Tourism Marketing: Jessica Hobson
Jessica provided her Travel Baker County March report which lists events she has boosted on social media including; Halfway Lions Crab Feed, Churchill Concerts, Night at Old Auburn, Sumpter Snowmobile Poker Run and Vintage Races, OSAA 1A Basketball Tournaments, Anthony Lakes Spring Break, BELLA BCCC Training Camp, Corner Brink live music, and Micro Chautauqua. The impact a video has on advertising was discussed. Facebook likes are 14,761. Upcoming events were shared and additions offered. Jessica presented the Committee with the opportunity to lease a billboard at the South entrance to Baker City. The annual cost is $9,000 and a contract will need to be signed with Meadow Outdoor. Design of the billboard was discussed. Shane recommended Jessica contact the Commissioners individually via email in order to get their approval to have the County’s legal counsel review the contract. The Committee discussed the need to have a Commissioner sign the contract and meeting the deadline to submit the signed contract. Tyler asked each member for their opinion of Travel Baker County leasing the billboard. Consensus approved leasing the billboard. Beverly moved to give Jessica approval to explore lease options and get a contract signed. Mandy seconded the motion. Motion carried. County Counsel, Kim Mosier, joined the meeting and explained the process of soliciting bids prior to presenting the contract to the Commissioners/Contract Review Board for a Special Commission meeting. Jessica will be attending the Governor’s conference April 3rd – 5th and asked Committee members if they would like to donate items for an Eastern Oregon gift basket, which will be auctioned as a fundraiser. A letter of support was written for a grant from Oregon Main Street Revitalization for the Pythian Castle Rehabilitation project. March 27th is opening day of the Baker Heritage Museum’s season. Jessica got pictures of the new exhibit and will be boosting the grand reopening. The ski chair that will be placed at the Visitors Center is being fabricated and powder coated. The chair should be installed this summer. Beverly suggested additional chairs be placed downtown as public art. Jessica updated the website to include a shopping area and shared a mock-up of Travel Baker County pages of the Baker County Visitors Guide. Advertising is now open for the Guide. Jessica encouraged business members to contact Eastern Oregon Media to purchase ads.
Visitor Services Update – Devon Colton
Devon presented the Committee with her February report. The Center has received 52 phone calls regarding this years’ motorcycle rally. The Visit Baker County website will be updated in about 45 days. The new sign, that has been waiting to be hung, will be hung by the Chamber Board when weather allows. In order to boost merchandise in the gift shop Devon is holding a t-shirt design contest through the month of April. Once winners are announced, the winning t-shirts will be made and be added to the gift shop. She is also sending out applications to local vendors/artist requesting they sell their merchandise in the gift shop. Visitor Center staff has also been reaching out to other visitor centers in the area for a supply of guides.
The Committee commended Jessica and Devon for the partnership they have developed.
Baker City Downtown:
Ariel Riker, Executive Director of Baker City Downtown will be attending TLT meetings to keep the Committee informed of projects. Beverly said BCD is a very important asset for Baker City tourism, with limited funding, and TLT may need to put some funding toward that position. Shane cautioned the Committee to review the ORS, which outlines how lodging tax funds can be used.
EDC Update: Bryan Tweit
Bryan updated the Committee on the recently purchased property’s progress. The plan from PARC was unbelievably positive. The completion of an event center could bring millions of tourism dollars into Baker County. There is a pending request sent to the legislature for road development, property acquisition and utility installation. Bryan has been working on the job fair that will be held March 23rd. There will be over 100 business people in attendance seeking employees. Bryan has been working with high school students on how to present themselves to prospective employers. An industrial park development grant in the amount of $2.5 million was discussed. Beverly stressed the ODOT North Baker Transportation project needs to happen for the event center to be a success. Funding for this project has been cut back drastically from the original plan.
Hells Canyon Update: Becky Kaaen
There will be a Downtown Halfway meeting on March 22nd. Becky shared a flyer of other events happening in the Hells Canyon area. She provided Committee members with a copy of the Hells Canyon Journal and directed members to the live webcam on the hellscanyonchamber.com website.
Grant Request Planning: This agenda item will be addressed in a work session.
Heritage Event Grant Guidelines: This agenda item will be addressed in a work session. There was some discussion around qualifications for an event to be considered a heritage event. Economic impact and sustainability of an event were suggested qualifications. Brian stressed the importance that event organizers utilize the services of the Baker County Marketing Director for advertising.
Strategic Plan Review: This agenda time will be addressed in a work session.
Financial Reports: Shelly Christensen
Most of all fourth quarter reports are in. Shelly sent out past due notices to the few lodging establishments who have not submitted fourth quarter reports. First quarter reports are due April 15, 2023. Shelly has been working with Jessica and Sheryl to send welcome packets to lodging partners who are not registered with Baker County. Seven welcome packets were mailed this week to the Sumpter area. The Committee received an invitation to the grand opening reception of the Baker Heritage Museum on March 24th and a thank you letter from the Halfway Lions Club.
Citizen Participation:
Matthew reported it was good to see small groups of kids from the basketball tournaments in the late evenings. He indicated both locations are experiencing a shortage of employees.
Staff Comments: None
Committee Comments:
Mandy said they are looking forward to spring travelers.
Beverly said they have seen day-trippers but not a lot of overnight visitors.
Brian showed the Committee an article and cover picture of an artist who will be performing at Churchill. They have seen higher attendance numbers this year. Baker Art Guild has been working with rural organizing partners and has been awarded an FM broadcasting license.
Tyler has been working on posters and a new logo for their 25th anniversary celebration.
Buell has been busy with the State and District tournaments. The biggest complaint is the lack of an extra gym. The Shrine game date has been changed to the end of July. This change will bring better players because the game will be played before college football camps begin. He is working on football/all sports clinic, soccer tournament, wood bat baseball tournament, and a tennis tournament during Miner’s Jubilee.
Beverly shared she believes downtown has shaken off the pandemic. As Mayor, she has begun reviewing submissions for the “If I were Mayor” state competition. She also brought up the need for additional Main Street parking and suggested angle parking, turn lane with crosswalk bump-outs.
Next Meeting:
April 20, 2023 @ 9:00 am
Meeting adjourned at 11:57
Respectfully Submitted: Shelly Christensen