HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-09-22 Regular MeetingCITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS
GRAPEVINE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
Thursday, September 22, 2016 — 8:00 a.m.
CVB Headquarters
636 S. Main Street
Grapevine, Texas
AGENDA
CALL TO ORDER
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
3. LIAISON UPDATES
A. HERITAGE FOUNDATION ACTIVITIES
B. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ACTIVITIES
4. SALES & MARKETING REPORT
5. OLD BUSINESS
A. DON BIGBIE AWARD NOMINATIONS
B. GVRR UPDATE
C. TRAVEL MEDIA SHOWCASE UPDATE
D. CONNECT MARKETPLACE UPDATE
E. GRAPEFEST UPDATE
6. NEW BUSINESS
A. GRANTS IN AID REQUESTS
7. HOTELS / ATTRACTIONS ACTIVITIES
8. ADJOURNMENT
IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND THIS SPECIAL PUBLIC MEETING AND YOU 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 16TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2016
BY 5:00 P.M.
Lin4 Sell
Assistant to th xecutive Director
State of Texas
County of Tarrant
City of Grapevine
MINUTES
The Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors met in Regular Session
on Thursday, September 22, 2016 at 8:00 a.m. at the Grapevine Convention and
Visitors Bureau, 636 South Main Street, Grapevine, Texas with the following persons in
attendance:
Joe Szymaszek
Keith Spinden
Mark Terpening
Dan Weinberger
Iain Scouller
Cynthia Blankenship
Debi Meek
Board Member - Chair
Board Member
Board Member
Board Member
Board Member
Board Member
Alternate Board Member
Constituting a quorum, with the following liaisons and staff members present:
Sharron Spencer
Council Liaison
Theresa Mason
Chamber of Commerce Liaison
Paul W. McCallum
Executive Director
Paula Newman
Managing Director, Administration/Operations
Brady Closson
Director of Sales
Kimber Foster
Director of Marketing
Lindy Bell
Assistant to the Executive Director
Absent: Jim Quinn Board Member
Pat Stinson Heritage Foundation Liaison
CALL TO ORDER
Chair Joe Szymaszek called the meeting to order at 8:01 a.m.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Motion was made by Dan Weinberger, seconded by Mark Terpening to approve
minutes from the August 18, 2016 meeting. Motion prevailed by the following vote:
Ayes: Szymaszek, Terpening, Spinden, Weinberger, Scouller, Meek and Blankenship
Nays: None
Board of Directors Meeting
September 22, 2016
Page 2 of 6
LIAISON UPDATES
Heritage Foundation Activities
Paula Newman reported on behalf of Heritage Foundation Liaison, Pat Stinson, The
Foundation is currently working on the 2017 Grapevine Heritage Foundation calendar
which will be ready for distribution at November's Annual Meeting. The Candlelight
Tour of Homes currently has six homes with potential for a seventh. The Tour is
November Stn
Nash Farm
The Nash Farm Barn Dance is scheduled for Friday, October 141h at 6:30 p.m. Tickets
are $20 per person. The Fag Round -UP! Is scheduled for the next day at the Farm from
10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. held in conjunction with Butterfly Flutterby.
The Palace Arts Center
"3 IDIOTS" movie will be shown Friday, September 23rd. "Dr. Strangelove: or How
Learned to Stop Worrying & Love the Bomb" will be shown Friday, September 24tH
Ticket price for both movies is $6.00 per person.
"Johnny Rogers: Buddy and Beyond with a Splash of Purple" is scheduled for Sunday,
September 251h at 3:00 p.m. Tickets range from $20 to $30 with $35 for VIP seating.
Chamber of Commerce
Chamber liaison, Theresa Mason, reported that the Chamber's Casino night was very
successful. The Young Professionals group organized within the Chamber is growing
through networking meetings and are in the process of planning service oriented
projects. A job fair is planned for October 19tH
SALES & MARKETING REPORT
Mr. Closson reported the convention sales team had 75 sales leads with 111,000
potential room nights and a potential economic impact of $51,000,000. They assisted
with 15 definite group meetings representing 35,000 room nights and a potential
economic impact of $19,000,000. The team had 12 site inspections and 45 sales
appointments.
Leisure sales conducted a site inspection with Lotsofhotels.com (COO) showcasing
Grapevine attractions and assisted with Travel Media Showcase and Connect
Marketplace.
Board of Directors Meeting
September 22, 2016
Page 3 of 6
Eight delegates participated in a very successful Sister City mission to Parras de la
Fuente, Mexico August 7th -11th. Preparations have been made in the ensuing weeks for
the arrival of the Sister City delegates from West Lothian, Scotland and Parras de la
Fuenta, Mexico for GrapeFest. Artwork was received for the Sister City Art exhibit held
in the Tower Gallery during GrapeFest.
The Festivals Division supported the TEX Rail groundbreaking event August 241H
GrapeFest pre -events began August 30th at Mac's on Main featuring wines from
Australia's Barossa Valley and a second event at Cross Timbers Winery featured
gourmet cheeses from Mozzarella Company.
The Visitor Information Center welcomed over 16,000 guests in August and distributed
over 133,000 brochures.
Destination Services assisted nine groups representing over 13,500 attendees with
information and a potential economic impact of over $11,000,000. Shuttle ridership
year to date is 6.3% higher than at this time in 2015. August ridership was over 4,000.
The Convention Center booked 14 future groups representing 4,500 attendees and had
an economic impact of $163,000. The Palace Arts Center booked 15 future groups
representing 1,900 attendees with an economic impact of $68,000. The Concourse
booked nine future groups representing 1,200 attendees with an economic impact of
$44,000. Total ridership for the Grapevine Vintage Railroad for the month of April was
2,900 passengers.
The web site had 85,000 unique visitors with over 37,000 reaching the site through a
mobile device.
For marketing, there were nine print trade publications, all group related. There were 25
print consumer publications such as Fort Worth Star Telegram, DFW Child and Texas
Events Calendar. On-line advertising had a spend of $40,000 with over 6,000,000
impressions on FaceBook, Tripo Advisor and Dallas Morning News.com. TV/Radio had
138 spots including KDMX, KLUV and KJKK for radio. Public relations print value was
more than $502,000 representing over 5,300,000 circulation impressions and electronic
ad value was $352,000 generating 1,800,000 audience impressions. Highlights include
Weinberger's Deli on Channel 8 August 2"d, Stand Rock Hospitality covered on all
stations August 2nd— 6th. TEX Rail groundbreaking featured on all stations August 241h
and Dr. Sue's Chocolates featured August 31St on WFAA TV.
No action taken by the Board
Board of Directors Meeting
September 22, 2016
Page 4 of 6
OLD BUSINESS
Don Bigbie Award Nominations
Mr. McCallum reported on several nominations received for this year's Don Bigbie
award. After discussion of nominees and award qualifications, it was determined the
2017 award recipient would be John Imaizumi. Motion was made by Mark Terpening,
seconded by Cynthia Blankenship to approve the nominee. Motion prevailed by the
following vote:
Ayes: Szymaszek, Terpening, Spinden, Weinberger, Scouller, Meek and Blankenship
Nays: None
Grapevine Vintage Railroad
Mr. McCallum reported that Puffy, the steam engine, is undergoing its 15 -year safety
inspection by inspectors from the Federal Railroad Administration. Necessary repairs
have been identified to bring the steam engine back to optimum running condition.
Completion of work is anticipated for the first of March 2017 for Texas Independence
Day. Motion was made by Cynthia Blankenship and seconded by Mark Terpening to
apportion up to $250,000 for the needed repairs. Motion prevailed by the following
vote:
Ayes: Szymaszek, Terpening, Spinden, Weinberger, Scouller, Meek and Blankenship
Nays: None
Travel Media Showcase
Leigh Lyons reported on Travel Media Showcase and thanked Board Members for their
participation in the event. 14 Media Showcase -related articles have been written and
published so far by various travel writers including an impressive article in The
Huffington Post with a readership of over 38 million. Responding article comments
have been very positive.
Alternate Board Member Debi Meek left at this time
Connect Marketplace
Brady Closson reported on Connect Marketplace stating that 1,074 meeting planners
have been confirmed as attending the event. Six RFP's have been received by the
CVB as a result of Connect. These RFP's are those sourced through the CVB with
others are expected to be sourced directly to Grapevine hotels.
Board of Directors Meeting
September 22, 2016
Page 5 of 6
GrapeFest
Kimber Foster provided an overview of the Festival. In spite of extreme heat, the
Festival attracted more than 260,000 attendees. Thanks was extended to Board
members for their support and participation, especially those who were also sponsors.
California Central Coast wineries as well as Australia's Barossa Valley were well
received and were well promoted with significant media coverage. Grape Stomp
participation had a record 18 teams with prizes given to all participants. An in-depth
up -date will be provided at the October Board meeting.
No action taken by the Board.
NEW BUSINESS
Grants In Aid Requests
Two Grants In Aid requests were presented to the Board: A request for $2,500 from
Grapevine High School Ex -Students was considered for the Grapevine High School
homecoming parade and a request from End of the Runway Players for $20,000 was
considered by the Board. Funds requested by End of the Runway Theater would be
used for publicity, promotion and production costs.
Following a brief discussion by the Board, both requests were approved. Motion was
made by Keith Spinden and seconded by Iain Scouller. Motion prevailed by the
following vote:
Ayes: Szymaszek, Terpening, Spinden, Weinberger, Scouller, and Blankenship
Nays: None
HOTELS/ATTRACTIONS ACTIVITES
Brady Closson announced that eight development permits had been issued for
Grapevine Mills merchants for a $1.6 million dollar reinvestment. Merchants included
Legoland Discovery Center, Sea Life Center Aquarium, Carter's and Forever 21.
Proposed Marriott Delta Hotel and Hotel Indigo in Southlake have been tabled until the
October 20th Southlake City Council meeting.
No action taken by the Board.
ADJOURNMENT
Next meeting to be held October 20th. There being no further business to come before
the Board, a motion by Cynthia Blankenship and seconded by Dan Weinberger to
adjourn the meeting at 9:14 a.m. prevailed by the following vote:
Ayes: Szymaszek, Terpening, Spinden, Scouller, Weinberger and Blankenship.
Nays: None
PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE GRAPEVINE CONVENTION & VISITORS
BUREAU BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS ON THIS
20TH DAY OF OCTOBER, 2016.