HomeMy Public PortalAbout06-06-2016 Minutes Tourism Board Regular MeetingPage 1 of 7
TOURISM BOARD
June 6, 2016
Town Barn
6:30pm
MINUTES
Present: Steven Burke, Kate Carroll, Kathleen Ferguson, Sean Garrett, Libbie Hough, Vice
Chair Mary Catherine McKee, Chair Erik Myers, Kim Tesoro, Carolyn Twesten
Staff: Shannan Campbell (Town of Hillsborough), Sarah DeGennaro (Alliance for
Historic Hillsborough)
I. Call Meeting to Order
Chair Myers called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
II. Agenda Adoption
Member Burke requested adding on rules/discussion for special partnership
funding.
Motion: Member Burke moved to adopt the agenda as amended.
Second: Member Hough seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
Member Hough proposed moving monthly reports later in the meeting.
Motion: Member Hough made a motion to move the monthly reports to after Old Business
items.
Second: Vice Chair McKee seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
Motion: Member Ferguson moved to adopt the agenda as amended.
Second: Member Hough seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
III. Consideration of minutes of May 2, 2016, Regular Meeting
Ms. Campbell pointed out a typo that she had fixed. Member Burke suggested a
change to page 6, third paragraph.
Member Hough suggested adding “Orange County Board of County
Commissioners” on page 2.
Motion: Member Ferguson moved approval of the minutes with changes.
Second: Member Hough seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
IV. General Public Comment
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There was no one to speak.
V. New Business Items
a. RFP Responses Review and Discussion
i. Arts Council- Last Fridays
Member Hough wants to make sure that as a marketing team, we set a
clear expectation of the role of the Alliance.
Ms. Campbell agreed and added that the Alliance for Historic
Hillsborough and the Alliance as contracted by the Tourism Board as the
Visitor Center Staff are not the same thing. She said that referring to ‘the
Alliance’ is misleading. She said that The Alliance is a non-profit
preservation organization not a marketing firm, however the Hillsborough
Visitors Center does have marketing dollars and can assist with marketing
tourism related events.
Member Burke pointed out the three response proposals total added up to
more than what’s allotted in the draft budget. There was discussion about
flexibility in funding for these proposals. There was agreement to look at
all three.
Ms. Campbell pointed out there is the option to negotiate as well as move
money around the draft budget line items.
Motion: Member Burke moved that the Arts Council application and sum are acceptable,
pending further budget discussion.
Second: Member Hough seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
ii. Historic Hillsborough Commission- Burwell School Historic Site
Motion: Member Hough moved that the Historic Hillsborough Commission application is
provisionally acceptable, pending further budget discussion.
Second: Member Ferguson seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
iii. Historical Foundation of Hillsborough- Orange County Museum
Member Burke pointed out that he would like sums of money and the
proposed budget in the proposal tied to the specific projects and tasks in
the proposal.
Member Ferguson said we can require that specificity next year.
Chair Myers said he’d like to see the budget more specific as it was for the
Burwell School and the Arts Council. He said that it more clearly
articulates that the contract/proposal is for visitor services/operations.
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Member Burke said that he would like the proposal name to reflect that
also so that it’s clear that the Tourism Board is paying for the facility to be
open and free to the public during the hours outlined.
Motion: Member Hough moved that the Orange County Museum application is
provisionally acceptable, pending further budget discussion.
Member Burke requested to add to the motion that the Orange County Museum
revise their proposed budget with similar specificity and format to the Burwell
school and indicate in their proposal that the proposed work is for visitor
services/operations.
Member Hough agreed to the revised motion.
Second: Member Ferguson seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
The board recognized that $42,182 was being requested (total of the three
proposal budgets) and that $33,000 was budgeted in the draft budget. The
board then discussed how to address the $9,182 overage.
Board members agreed that next year this board will let the applicants
know how much money the board has budgeted for such proposals and
decided that since the RFPs did not have a maximum budget for each
proposal to fully fund them all.
Motion: Member Ferguson motioned to re-allocate the $9,000 from the proposed Holiday
Decorations item and move the additional $172 needed from unassigned Special
Projects and Partnerships item to line items for each of the three proposals in the
draft budget, leaving $6,318 in Special Projects and Partnerships.
Second: Chair Myers seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
b. FY 2017 Tourism Board Budget
i. Public Hearing
Chair Myers opened the public hearing.
Kate Faherty, executive director of the Burwell School Historic Site,
thanked the board for approval of the proposal for visitor
services/operations and explained that one figure was this year’s budget
and the other number was the proposed budget. She expressed
appreciation for the new RFP and contracting process.
Bartow Culp, Hillsborough resident for about 6 years, said he wanted to
thank this board for approving the Historic Hillsborough Commission
proposal.
Neil Stutzer thanked the board for the work on the grant and
RFP/contracting process. He said the Arts Councils has been discussing
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expanding to West Hillsborough and there has been recognition that
there’s opportunity to expand to other areas of Hillsborough, too. What
needs to be resolved is transportation not just for events but to get people
around in general.
Robin Jacobs, chair of the finance committee for the Burwell School, said
she appreciates the changes in procedure. She asked that the applicants be
included in the process if the board considers changes to the procedure for
next year.
Gail Cooley, Hillsborough Arts Council, thanked the board for its work
and emphasized that everyone wants to work together and appreciates the
board going forward gently.
Chair Myers closed the public hearing.
ii. Discussion
Member Burke noted that the speakers all remarked that this board is
working to improve. Member Burke emphasized greater efficiency and the
Tourism Board has particular responsibility for partnership and to engage.
Chair Myers said he has an idea for moving people around town for Last
Fridays that he is willing to discuss offline.
Ms. Campbell went through the budget in general and said the budget is
right around $312,000 for projected Food and Beverage Tax this year.
Economists are expecting a slowdown in 2017. She pointed out rollover
monies for the logo and Web site projects that brought the total budget
amounts up to a little over $333,000. She noted other slight changes in the
budget compared with last year.
There was brief discussion on how the line items are laid out in the budget
and how it is confusing based on the new funding structure that the Board
created.
Member Hough explained that this was a finance budget that was
organized for record keeping and that it wasn’t a communications budget
that had been cleaned up for consumption by the general public.
Ms. Campbell concurred explaining that the way that the Town Finance
department has the accounts set up is necessary for accounting purposes
but is confusing for a lay person just looking it over.
Member Burke expressed discomfort with creating the illusion that there
are two budgets.
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Chair Myers advised that the board could explain it when someone asks.
Member Ferguson noted that she needed to slip out for another meeting at
7:46 p.m.
Member Burke asked if we approve this very tight budget, can we be
assured that we can use fund balance if needed.
Ms. Campbell said that dipping into fund balance is not ideal, but that if it
really had to be done with no other option then there is some available.
She said that ideally the revenues and expenditures will match very
closely at year end of FY 17.
Motion: Member Hough moved to approve the FY2017 budget.
Second: Member Burke seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
c. FY 2016 Audit Contract
Motion: Member Hough moved approval of the FY 2016 audit contract.
Second: Member Carroll seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
d. FY 2016 Budget Amendments
Motion: Vice Chair McKee moved to approve the amendments.
Second: Member Caroll seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
e. FY 2016 Q3 & Q4 Staff Support Invoices
Motion: Member Hough moved approval.
Second: Member Carroll seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
f. Board Membership
- Reappointments
- Term Expirations
Motion: Member Hough moved to reappoint Erik Myers as chair.
Second: Vice Chair McKee seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
Member Burke announced that he would seek another term on the board
and that his ‘at large’ seat would be vacant.
Ms. Campbell reviewed which terms are expiring soon and let members
know that she would be asking whether or not individuals were willing to
serve again. She said that she would advertise Mr. Burke’s vacancy on the
board and have applicants for the next meeting.
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g. Discussion: Requirements for Special Projects/Partnerships Funding
Member Burke said that this funding type was to be for requests that are urgent or
totally unexpected. He said that it was not laid out to secure funds for things not
funded during the grant process. He expressed concern that this funding type
would become a sort of grant work-around that would devalue the grant process.
Chair Myers agreed but said some of the requests may become urgent and he
would hate to see funding for those projects immediately taken off the table.
Others agreed.
It was agreed to put this as a discussion item at the beginning of the new business
items at the next meeting.
The Board discussed and decided to hold any Special Project/Partnership funding
requests to the August meeting.
VI. Monthly Reports
a. Alliance Director’s Report and Alliance Presentation
Ms. DeGennaro said there was nothing unusual in the monthly reports. She noted
on the director’s report that Orange County has taken plants out around the
visitor’s center building in preparation for some work and to remove moisture that
was building up. Penny Rand has been raising money to replace plantings when
the work is done.
Ms. DeGennaro gave a brief presentation on the Alliance which included
reviewing the new mission statement, vision statement and logo of the Alliance.
b. Visitor’s Center Communications Report
c. Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitor’s Bureau Update
Ms. Campbell said that the Visitor’s Bureau had Bernie Mann of Our State
magazine speak about current trends in NC Tourism. Also, the bureau is
researching ways to respond to HB2 and how their marketing firm can still
express to people that our area is a friendly and inclusive place. She said that
Helen Hernandez from NATJA came to town and met with both Chapel Hill and
Hillsborough Officials for dinner and to work out additional conference details.
VII. Old Business Items
a. Tourism Logo Review
Ms. Campbell displayed the most recent round of logos from the graphic designer.
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There was general discussion and recognition among the board members that
there isn’t consensus regarding the logo and that the designs previewed to date
were not what the board was looking for in a tourism logo.
Motion: Member Hough moved to cut ties with the current designer and work with a new
designer who is local.
Second: Member Burke seconded.
Vote: Unanimous
VIII. Staff/Board Comments and Discussion Items
Various board members expressed a hardship with the next meeting date on July
5th. Ms. Campbell said that she would send out a doodle poll to find a date and
time that worked better for everyone so that the board would have a quorum to
meet.
Ms. Campbell said that the Tourism Plan would be an item on the next agenda
and that the board should be thinking about that on the horizon and setting a date
for a kick-off meeting to get that project under way.
IX. Adjourn
Motion: Chair Myers moved to adjourn at 8:47 p.m.
Second: Member Burke seconded.
Vote: Unanimous