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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-06-20 Regular MeetingCITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS GRAPEVINE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING Thursday, June 20, 2024 — 8:00 a.m. CVB Headquarters Boardroom 6 36 S. Main Street Grapevine, Texas Any person who is not scheduled on the agenda may address the Convention & Visitors Bureau Board under Citizen Comments or on any other agenda item by completing a Citizen Appearance Request form with staff. A member of the public may address the CV 4&r4BB regardin-9 an item on the—?0ANd ir. %*i01 of the item, upon being recognized by the Board Chair or upon consent of the CVBB. In accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, the CVBB is restricted in discussing or taking action during Citizen Comments. 4. Sales & Marketing Report A. Sales Trade Shows, Conferences and FAMs B. Media Report Ongoing Business A. 40th Annual Main Street Fest Closeout B. Destination Grapevine Texas Women's Open C. Bushong Cabin 6. New Business A. CCOT Heritage Upgrade 7. Liaison / Hotels / Attractions — Updates A. Liaison Updates If you plan to attend this special public meeting and have a disability that requires special arrangements at the meeting, please contact the Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau at (817) 410-3185 at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. Reasonable accommodations will be made to assist your needs. In accordance with Texas Government Code, Chapter 551.001 et seq, Acts of the 1993 Texas Legislature, the Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau Advisory Board Meeting agenda was prepared and posted on this the 14th day of June, 2024 by 5:00 • necky Roberson 1 xecutive Assistant County of Tarrant City of Grapevine State of Texas MINUTES The Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors met in Regular Session on Thursday, June 20, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. at the Stephen W. Stinson Boardroom of the Grapevine Convention and Visitors Bureau, 636 S. Main Street, Grapevine, Texas with the following persons in attendance: Joe Szymaszek Chairman Mark Terpening Vice Chair Dan Weinberger Board Member Cynthia Blankenship Board Member Debi Meek Board Member Mike Oakley Board Member Constituting a quorum, with the following liaisons and staff members present: Leigh Lyons Assistant Executive Director Elizabeth Schrack Director of Communications Josh Hernandez Communications Coordinator Becky Roberson Executive Assistant Leon Leal Council Liaison Absent: Matthew Brink, Chuck Pacioni, lain Scouller and Kelly Schwartz CALL TO ORDER Board Chairman, Joe Szymaszek, called the meeting to order at 8:02 a.m. CITIZEN COMMENTS Adair Foust, 121 E. College St., addressed the designation of the gate at E. College St. for the 40th Annual Main Street Fest from a full access entrance to a service entrance. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Board Chairman Szymaszek called for a motion to approve the minutes from the May 16, 2024 meeting. With a motion from Cynthia Blankenship and seconded by Debi Meek, the minutes from the previous meeting were approved. SALES AND MARKETING REPORT Assistant Executive Director, Leigh Lyons, shared that the Smith Travel Report showed the Grapevine hotel room occupancy for April being 81.1% which is an increase of 5.2% from April of 2021 The average daily rate for April was $228.12 which is an increase of $25.15 from April of 2023. The occupancy rate for May was 78.6% which is an increase of 3.2% from May of 2023. The average daily rate for May was $203.36 which is up $2.20 from May 2023. National Sales Manager, Codi Missimo attended Meeting Professionals International, an educational meeting with reverse tradeshow and networking opportunity with meeting planners from the Association, Corporate, and SMERF market segments May 20 — 22. She hosted 16 one-on-one appointments and 20 rotating appointments. To date, four requests for proposals have come in, ranging from 2024 through 2029. Director of International and Leisure Sales, Heather Egan and Director of Communications, Elizabeth Schrack attended IPW, formerly International Pow Wow, the world's largest North American travel show for international tour operators and media. Mrs. Egan focused on the Travel and Tour Operators. During the three-day show, she partnered with Lubbock and met with 36 travel trade. representatives from around the world. Some of the highlights included developing an NFL tour with a rep firm from Germany, receiving rave reviews from one of her contacts who booked clients for the Eclipse event and developing a partnership with ATI from Los Angeles as well as Travel Oklahoma, Arkansas Tourism and the Memphis CVB on a Music and Outlaws itinerary. Mrs. Schrack participated in the Media Marketplace. She had one on one appointments with 20 journalists. Items that are of upcoming interest to media include the 100th Anniversary of Route 66, World Cup 2026, tax free shopping. and the 250th anniversary of the United States. The Main Street Fest Convention Sales familiarization tour had 11 attendees. Clients came from across the United States representing a wide variety of industries. One attendee had to cancel due to weather, but is now scheduled for a private site inspection. That client has an active lead with 1,065 room nights for September 2027. Heather Egan, hosted three travel agents from Australia during Main Street Fest. These travel agents were winners of the Sell Your Way to the USA campaign, promoted by American Airlines. The familiarization tour was offered to travel agents who were top sellers of American Airlines flights to the USA over the past six months. They had the opportunity to select from five different destinations and they selected the Grapevine/Oklahoma package. Director of Communications, Elizabeth Schrack, presented on recent media coverage that promoted Grapevine as a destination and its many hotels, restaurants and attractions. Community Impact had an ad and calendar listing for the 40th Annual Main Street Festival — a Craft Brew Experience presented by Bank of the West. The Dallas Morning News Events Guide listed the Grapevine Main Live! concert series at Peace Plaza, the 40th Annual Main Street Festival and the Mother's Day Excursion hosted by Grapevine Vintage Railroad. 76092 and 360 West publications highlighted Chef Carla Pellegrino of Teatro, including the cover of 76092. Texas Town and City Magazine's Tourism Issue had an article on Grapevine's decreasing the carbon footprint while increasing tourism through the use of the Grapevine Visitor Shuttle program and Trinity Metro TEXRa!I. The June issue of Texas Highways boasted ads and two calendar placements, showcasing Dairy Day at Nash Farm and Grapevine Vintage Railroad's Father's Day Excursion. Mrs. Schrack reported that multiple television and radio segments throughout the metroplex and the state covered Grapevine events, such as the 40th Annual Main Street Festival, the Lone Star King Festival and the Texas Women's Open. A television segment that was filmed in Austin and covered the 40th Annual Main Street Festival showcasing festival activations, food and artisan vendors and the expanded KidZone was shown. She then reported on digital coverage which included the Grapevine Main Live! concert series at Peace Plaza, Teatro, Dairy Day at historic Nash Farm, the 40th Annual Main Street Festival and Grapevine Vintage Railroad's Mother's Day Excursion. World Atlas, one of the largest digital publishing resources in geography listed Grapevine as one of the best small towns in Texas for a weekend retreat and in another article as a charming town to visit in fall. She then shared that Facebook had 3.7 million impressions for the 31 posts and Instagram had 457,000 impressions for the month's 145 posts. ONGOING BUSINESS Mrs. Lyons reported that the 40th Annual Main Street Fest — a Craft Brew Experience presented by Bank of the West was a great success. The overall attendance was established as 126,700, which was a slight increase over 2023. 900 volunteers worked 5,800 hours and there was enthusiastic participation from local civic and service groups. It was also reported that the PESS payment system worked well for patrons and vendors alike. Destination Grapevine Texas Women's Open, was held May 29, 30 and 31. This was the first year of the 3-year agreement. Due to weather, the pro -am portion of the event was canceled. Tournament Champions were 2024 Champion Madd!e Szeryk, 2024 Low Amateur Thienna Huynh and Legends of LPGA Champion Angela Stanford. The Legends of the PGA tourney featured players such as Laura Davies and Sherri Steinhauer. Media coverage and social media videos were shown. The original plan for the Bushong Cabin to be relocated to Heritage Park has changed. The cabin will instead reside in the North section of Liberty Park, next to the Torian Cabin. This is believed to be a better location due to higher visitor volumes including both residents and tourists. NEW BUSINESS Mrs. Lyons shared that the Christmas Capital of Texas is Grapevine's largest festival and is primarily budgeted from proceeds raised from festival revenue. Between the rainy weather and high foot traffic, the grass surrounding the Torian Cabin was obliterated. After researching different types of grass, Zoisia Grass is believed to be the best grass to address heavy foot traffic. The Torian Cabin is considered a Heritage Property Area so the funds for this grass would be charged to Heritage Property Maintenance budget. We are requesting that the board approve the use of festival proceeds to cover the cost of the Zoisia Grass. The cost of the grass is approximately $28,000. After a board member asked about other materials, such as flagstone, Mrs. Lyons expressed the importance of maintaining a historic aesthetic when it involves historic structures. Board Chairman Szymaszek called for a motion to approve the purchase of Zosia grass. Motion: Cindy Blankenship Second: Debi Meek Approved: 6-0 HOTELS/ATTRACTIONS/ACTIVITIES Mrs. Lyons shared that Grapevine High School's Baseball Team won the UIL 5A State Championship. And, Grapevine High School students Emilia and Sara Gyoergy won the UIL Girls Doubles Tennis State Championship. The sisters, along with their family, moved to Grapevine from Hungary last November, specifically to further their tennis careers. Trudy Cresswell, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Grapevine Mills, reached out to the Sister City Program and shared that in their LOST & FOUND they had cash from lost wallets or purses that had not been claimed. They also had coins that had been thrown into the fountains. Traditionally, these funds are donated to the Simon Youth Foundation but the Mexican coins have never been claimed. Mrs. Cresswell was gracious to remember the orphanage in our Sister City in Parras, Mexico. During Main Street Fest, Carlos Flores, a former Parras Rotary President, received the donated pesos totaling $1,349.87 USD. The Grand Opening for Rock n Brews is scheduled for the evening of July 2, with the band, Texas Flood, playing. Milkshake Factory, specializes in milkshakes made with housemade ice cream and small batch chocolates, will open on Northwest Highway later this year. A new restaurant, Polio Regio, opened at Grapevine Mills on May 10 and serves Mexican -style dishes. Also located at Grapevine Mills, The Soap Tree, opened May 1 and sell soaps, candles, beauty care, aromatherapy oils, bath bombs, scrubs and bath salts. Due to high Lake Grapevine levels, the July 4 fireworks launch location has been moved. A location is currently under discussion. Also due to high Lake levels, Whoa Zone will not return to Lake Grapevine this summer. Breeze Airways is the latest airline to offer flights from DFW International Airport. Breeze Airlines is based in Cottonwood Heights, Utah and is offering twice -weekly flights between DFW Airport and Provo Airport on Mondays and Fridays. The airline started in 2021 and provides service to 56 cities across 29 states. Hampton Inn and Suites DFW Airport North and Comfort Suites DFW North will now be under the Raines Hospitality umbrella. The two properties are part of a joint venture with Atlantic Hotel Groups, part of 16 properties now under the portfolio. Several activations are happening throughout the city this summer which celebrate the 9 significant dinosaur fossil finds and 1 new species which were found in Grapevine. All Tracks Lead to Grapevine Dinosaur Exhibit in the Tower Gallery of the Convention and Visitors Bureau is in operation seven days a week through July 31. The exhibit features an interactive dinosaur dig, photo ops and informative panels about Grapevine's dinosaur history. On Saturdays throughout June, Grapevine Fossil Hunter Murray Cohen will be on site to discuss his findings. He attracted worldwide media attention when he found a dinosaur jawbone at Lake Grapevine last year. Grapevine Main Observation Tower is offering Dino Talks and photo ops. On sunny days, kids of all ages can shadow draw dinosaurs on Peace Plaza. Palace Theatre will be showing dinosaur movies on Thursdays throughout July. Nash Farm is offering a summer lunch & learn program, Paleontology on the Prairie. Grapevine Vintage Railroad is offering All Aboard the Dino Train on Fridays now through July 27. These special excursions include a special recorded narration about different dinosaurs featuring the Perot Museum's paleontologist Dr, Ron Tykoski. Grapevine Public Library is offering a variety of specialized dinosaur programs throughout the summer. More than 30 merchants on Main Street are offering dinosaur themed specials. Participants will have a dinosaur track in front of the business and a dinosaur decals in their window. Vetro Glassblowing is one of the participants. They are offering opportunities to make dinosaur pendants and dinosaur eggs. ADJOURNMENT Board Chairman Szymaszek called for a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:46 a.m. Motion: Mike Oakley Second: Mark Terpening Approved: 6-0 ATTEST: Becky Roberson Executive Assistant APPROVED: Szymaszek Chairman