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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-04-20 Regular MeetingCITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS GRAPEVINE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING Thursday, April 20, 2017 — 8:00 a.m. CVB Headquarters 636 S. Main Street Grapevine, Texas AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3. INTRODUCTION OF NEW STAFF 4. LIAISON UPDATES A. HERITAGE FOUNDATION ACTIVITIES B. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ACTIVITIES 5. SALES & MARKETING REPORT 6. NEW BUSINESS A. ON-LINE RESIDENTIAL ACCOMMODATIONS 7. OLD BUSINESS A. TEXRAIL UPDATE B. COTTON BELT CORRIDOR BRANDING UPDATE 8. HOTELS /ATTRACTIONS /ACTIVITIES 9. 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 at 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 APRIL, 2017 AT 5:00 P.M. dy Bell Assistant tote Executive 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, April 20, 2017 at 8:00 a.m. at the Grapevine Convention and Visitors Bureau, 636 South Main Street, Grapevine, Texas with the following persons in attendance: Mark Terpening Dan Weinberger Cynthia Blankenship Jim Quinn Keith Spinden lain Scouller Debi Meek Board Member 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 Theresa Mason Balla Wright Paul W. McCallum Paula Newman Brady Closson Lindy Bell Absent: Joe Szymaszek Council Liaison Chamber of Commerce Liaison Heritage Foundation Liaison Executive Director Managing Director, Administration/Operations Managing Director, Sales/Marketing Assistant to the Executive Director Board Member - Chair CALL TO ORDER Mark Terpening, filling in for Joe Szymaszek, called the meeting to order at 8:01 a.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion was made by Dan Weinberger, seconded by Keith Spinden to approve minutes from the March 16, 2017 meeting. Motion prevailed by the following vote: Ayes: Terpening, Weinberger, Meek, Blankenship, Quinn, Spinden and Scouller Nays: None Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 2 of 6 NEW STAFF INTRODUCTIONS Mr. McCallum introduced two new staff members. Elizabeth Smith is the new Festivals and Events administrative assistant and Pam Shope is the new part time accounting assistant. LIAISON UPDATES Heritage Foundation Activities Balla Wright reported the Heritage Foundation is pleased with the donation of the 1886 McPherson Farmhouse to the City and its move to the new location at 420 East College Street. It will be protected by Grapevine's Historic Preservation Commission Land Marking. Nash Farm The 16th Annual Spring Into Nash event will be held Saturday, April 22nd, This event will feature many activities including a new adult/child interactive activity of building a tool box. The Farm to Fork Supper Fundraiser on April 28th will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a reception around the farmhouse and dining to be held in the meadow. Chef Fabien of Main Street Bakery will cater and serve a history -inspired menu. Tickets are $100 each. First Friday Crops will be held May 5th and a sold out Cheese Making Heritage Workshop will be held on May 13th. Spring is a busier than usual time at the Farm with three to four school tours each week. Chamber of Commerce Chamber liaison, Theresa Mason, reported that the Chamber's monthly luncheon will feature speaker Robert Early, President and CEO John Peter Smith. The Chamber's concessions trailer has been refurbished and will be located near the main stage at Main Street Fest. The Chamber's 65th anniversary party will be held in July. The Chamber is in the process of setting up new committees to more effectively serve the membership. Some of the new committees include Hotels/ Attractions, Faith -Based Institutions, Top 100 Roundtable with chief executive officers from larger companies located within Grapevine. A quarterly legislative meeting will be scheduled with legislators. The first meeting. Coffee and Questions, is scheduled for June 2nd with guest speaker, Commissioner Fickes. SALES & MARKETING REPORT Mr. Closson reported that for March, the convention and leisure sales team had 75 sales leads with 57,000 potential room nights and a pdtential economic impact of $55,000,000. 18 groups have been booked representing 19,000 room nights with an economic impact of $8,800,000. There were 13 site inspections representing 29,000 room nights and $9,9000,000. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 3of6 The team participated in Destination Management Association International's (DMAI) Destination Showcase in Washington, D.C. The team also attended the 29th Annual St. Patrick's Day Celebration in New York City with two stakeholder hotels participating. The Dallas/Fort Worth Association Executives "A" Day event was held with four stakeholder hotels participating. Staff attended two Association Forum Conversation Circles in Chicago with 12 clients. The Leisure Sales and Service team attended a Mexico Sales Mission in conjunction with Texas Tourism which focused on Mexico City, Leon and Monterrey. Mexico represents 1.6 million travelers deplaning every year at DFW and spending an average of $390 million in Texas. The largest driver is shopping. The Visitor Information Center, Settlement to City and Depot welcomed over 6,600 guests. Over 101,000 brochures were distributed locally, statewide and nationally. Destination Services assisted seven groups representing 13,000 attendees with an economic impact of over $9,000,000. The Convention Center, Palace Arts Center and Concourse booked a combined 73 new definites with an economic impact of $1,118,000. With 88,954 visitors, the website saw an average increase in the number of unique visitors over last year. For marketing, there were 6 print trade publication insertions. Online advertising realized 80,000 impressions. Print consumer publications had 20 insertions representing 3,800,000 circulating impressions; electronic ad value was $5,742 TV spots ran on the Penny Gilley Show on RFD -TV. WFAA interviewed the Texas General Store owner who mentioned both Main Street Fest and GrapeFest with a viewership of 28,000. WFAA Good Morning Texas segment on the Derek Anthony and Holly Tucker concert had a viewership o 35,373. Communications print ad value represented 3,000,000 impressions with an electronic ad value of $17,000 representing 100,000 audience impressions. The New Vintage Wine and Gallery Trail was a success in its new location by the gazebo. Champanel grapevines were distributed to the first 150 registrants. 709 tickets were sold versus 664 from last year. Walk up sales were down while on-line sales were up 24%. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 4 of 6 The New Vintage FAM was held in conjunction with the New Vintage Wine and Gallery Trail. 15 clients attended including meeting planners and airline representatives. Day Out with Thomas revenue was up by $10,000. No discounts were offered this year. Ticket sales were down by 1,100 and ridership was down by 2,700. Inclement weather and changes in the railroad loading platforms and location provided a challenge the first weekend but were resolved by the second weekend. The St. Patrick's Day mission was impacted by the n'oreaster, Stella, but two successful events were still held with meeting planners, representing multiple clients. Site inspections were also held at several venues in planning for the 30th annual event in 2018. No action taken by the Board. NEW BUSINESS On -Line Residential Accommodations Mr. McCallum presented research gathered on Short Term Residential Accommodations locally, statewide and nationally. Discussion followed regarding the increasing presence in Grapevine of AirBnB and Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO) properties. The number of Air BnB rentals was small but have grown significantly over the past 15-18 months and now include multiple VRBO properties. The increase in number corresponds to disturbance complaints received where these accommodations are located. Through affiliations with the Texas Travel Industry Association (TTIA) and the Hotel and Lodging Association, this trend is being tracked statewide as well. Within the last ten days, it has been determined the State of Texas will begin collecting state hotel taxes from Air BnB establishments. This determination, however, does not define collection of local taxes, leaving that up to local governments. In conjunction, State Senator Kelly Hancock is pushing a bill that would prohibit communities from legislating against banning short term rentals. Communities would be able to legislate safety, parking, zoning and develop similar ordinances to protect neighborhoods. An existing Grapevine City ordinance regarding bed and breakfast establishments effectively regulates their activities, including payment of state and community hotel occupancy taxes and fees. Air BnB and VRBO accommodations are not regulated. Violation of zoning standards and a lack of uniform safety, including fire and security, are of paramount concern. It is also of concern to the Convention and Visitors Bureau Board to preserve Grapevine's brand and reputation as a safe destination. In that regard, the Board designated Mr. McCallum to relay their concerns to City Council via workshop discussions. Zoning and regulations will be most debated by the Council as this provides the ultimate control for safety and security so that all accommodations provide the same optimum level. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 5of6 Motion was made that the Board's recommendation to the Grapevine City Council be to study existing on-line short term rental properties and current zoning regulations. Motion to approve was made by Jim Quinn and seconded by Dan Weinberger. Ayes: Terpening, Meek, Quinn, Spinden, Scouller, Blankenship and Weinberger. Nayes: None The Board also expressed concern for Grapevine neighborhoods where the peace and tranquility is violated by these properties and further concern expressed regarding the safety and welfare of renters of these on-line properties. It was further stated by Council Member Spencer that it would be strongly appreciated that as many CVB Board members as possible be in attendance at the Council workshop when these rental properties are discussed. OLD BUSINESS TEX Rail Up -Date Mr. McCallum reported that track work is progressing well. TEX Rail is currently working on the Ball and Dallas Road intersection; The two crossings located close to Wal-Mart will be done next. Work on the tracks on Main Street will be done in the summer with no full closure on Main Street anticipated. Cotton Belt Corridor Branding Up -Date Meetings have been held with Coury Hospitality and MMGY who will be researching and conducting meetings related to the branding of the new boutique hotel and plaza area. A branding study and its approval is required by the Autograph standard of Marriott Hotels before design integration of the hotel can proceed. Final presentation of the data gathered is planned for June 19tH HOTELS/ATTRACTIONS ACTIVITIES Mr. Closson reported that the Grand Hyatt has recently been ranked in the top five airport hotels in the world and Gaylord is ranked number five of the top 100 CVENT hotels in North America and Europe. A new attraction, "Escape Game" is coming to Grapevine Mills with a planned opening mid-May. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 6 of 6 Main Street will be welcoming two new businesses - San Daniel in the 129 building and Mason and Dixie restaurant in the 600 block. Underwood Leather is now open on Main Street offering custom handmade leather products of all types including custom boots. ADJOURNMENT Next meeting of the Board will be held May 18thth. There being no further business to come before the Board, a motion by lain Scouller and seconded by Dan Weinberger to adjourn the meeting at 9:43 a.m. prevailed by the following vote: Ayes: Terpening, Meek, Weinberger. Quinn, Spinden, Blankenship and Scouller. Nays: None PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE GRAPEVINE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS ON THIS 18TH DAY OF MAY, 2017. ATTEST: Lindy Bell Assistant to the 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, April 20, 2017 at 8:00 a.m. at the Grapevine Convention and Visitors Bureau, 636 South Main Street, Grapevine, Texas with the following persons in attendance: Mark Terpening Board Member Dan Weinberger Board Member Cynthia Blankenship Board Member Jim Quinn Board Member Keith Spinden Board Member lain Scouller Board Member Debi Meek Alternate Board Member Constituting a quorum, with the following liaisons and staff members present: Sharron Spencer Council Liaison Theresa Mason Chamber of Commerce Liaison Balla Wright Heritage Foundation Liaison Paul W. McCallum Executive Director Paula Newman Managing Director, Administration/Operations Brady Closson Managing Director, Sales/Marketing Lindy Bell Assistant to the Executive Director Absent: Joe Szymaszek Board Member- Chair CALL TO ORDER Mark Terpening, filling in for Joe Szymaszek, called the meeting to order at 8:01 a.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion was made by Dan Weinberger, seconded by Keith Spinden to approve minutes from the March 16, 2017 meeting. Motion prevailed by the following vote: Ayes: Terpening, Weinberger, Meek, Blankenship, Quinn, Spinden and Scouller Nays: None Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 2 of 6 NEW STAFF INTRODUCTIONS Mr. McCallum introduced two new staff members. Elizabeth Smith is the new Festivals and Events administrative assistant and Pam Shope is the new part time accounting assistant. LIAISON UPDATES Heritage Foundation Activities Balla Wright reported the Heritage Foundation is pleased with the donation of the 1886 McPherson Farmhouse to the City and its move to the new location at 420 East College Street. It will be protected by Grapevine's Historic Preservation Commission Land Marking. Nash Farm The 16th Annual Spring Into Nash event will be held Saturday, April 22nd. This event will feature many activities including a new adult/child interactive activity of building a tool box. The Farm to Fork Supper Fundraiser on April 28th will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a reception around the farmhouse and dining to be held in the meadow. Chef Fabien of Main Street Bakery will cater and serve a history-inspired menu. Tickets are $100 each. First Friday Crops will be held May 5th and a sold out Cheese Making Heritage Workshop will be held on May 13th. Spring is a busier than usual time at the Farm with three to four school tours each week. Chamber of Commerce Chamber liaison, Theresa Mason, reported that the Chamber's monthly luncheon will feature speaker Robert Early, President and CEO John Peter Smith. The Chamber's concessions trailer has been refurbished and will be located near the main stage at Main Street Fest. The Chamber's 65th anniversary party will be held in July. The Chamber is in the process of setting up new committees to more effectively serve the membership. Some of the new committees include Hotels/Attractions, Faith-Based Institutions, Top 100 Roundtable with chief executive officers from larger companies located within Grapevine. A quarterly legislative meeting will be scheduled with legislators. The first meeting. Coffee and Questions, is scheduled for June 2nd with guest speaker, Commissioner Fickes. SALES& MARKETING REPORT Mr. Closson reported that for March, the convention and leisure sales team had 75 sales leads with 57,000 potential room nights and a potential economic impact of $55,000,000. 18 groups have been booked representing 19,000 room nights with an economic impact of$8,800,000. There were 13 site inspections representing 29,000 room nights and $9,9000,000. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 3 of 6 The team participated in Destination Management Association International's (DMAI) Destination Showcase in Washington, D.C. The team also attended the 29th Annual St. Patrick's Day Celebration in New York City with two stakeholder hotels participating. The Dallas/Fort Worth Association Executives "A" Day event was held with four stakeholder hotels participating. Staff attended two Association Forum Conversation Circles in Chicago with 12 clients. The Leisure Sales and Service team attended a Mexico Sales Mission in conjunction with Texas Tourism which focused on Mexico City, Leon and Monterrey. Mexico represents 1.6 million travelers deplaning every year at DFW and spending an average of$390 million in Texas. The largest driver is shopping. The Visitor Information Center, Settlement to City and Depot welcomed over 6,600 guests. Over 101,000 brochures were distributed locally, statewide and nationally. Destination Services assisted seven groups representing 13,000 attendees with an economic impact of over$9,000,000. The Convention Center, Palace Arts Center and Concourse booked a combined 73 new definites with an economic impact of$1,118,000. With 88,954 visitors, the website saw an average increase in the number of unique visitors over last year. For marketing, there were 6 print trade publication insertions. Online advertising realized 80,000 impressions. Print consumer publications had 20 insertions representing 3,800,000 circulating impressions; electronic ad value was $5,742 TV spots ran on the Penny Gilley Show on RFD-TV. WFAA interviewed the Texas General Store owner who mentioned both Main Street Fest and GrapeFest with a viewership of 28,000. WFAA Good Morning Texas segment on the Derek Anthony and Holly Tucker concert had a viewership o 35,373. Communications print ad value represented 3,000,000 impressions with an electronic ad value of$17,000 representing 100,000 audience impressions. The New Vintage Wine and Gallery Trail was a success in its new location by the gazebo. Champanel grapevines were distributed to the first 150 registrants. 709 tickets were sold versus 664 from last year. Walk up sales were down while on-line sales were up 24%. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 4 of 6 The New Vintage FAM was held in conjunction with the New Vintage Wine and Gallery Trail. 15 clients attended including meeting planners and airline representatives. Day Out with Thomas revenue was up by $10,000. No discounts were offered this year. Ticket sales were down by•1,100 and ridership was down by 2,700. Inclement weather and changes in the railroad loading platforms and location provided a challenge the first weekend but were resolved by the second weekend. The St. Patrick's Day mission was impacted by the n'oreaster, Stella, but two successful events were still held with meeting planners, representing multiple clients. Site inspections were also held at several venues in planning for the 30th annual event in 2018. No action taken by the Board. NEW BUSINESS On-Line Residential Accommodations Mr. McCallum presented research gathered on Short Term Residential Accommodations locally, statewide and nationally. Discussion followed regarding the increasing presence in Grapevine of AirBnB and Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO) properties. The number of Air BnB rentals was small but have grown significantly over the past 15-18 months and now include multiple VRBO properties. The increase in number corresponds to disturbance complaints received where these accommodations are located. Through affiliations with the Texas Travel Industry Association (TTIA) and the Hotel and Lodging Association, this trend is being tracked statewide as well. Within the last ten days, it has been determined the State of Texas will begin collecting state hotel taxes from Air BnB establishments. This determination, however, does not define collection of local taxes, leaving that up to local governments. In conjunction, State Senator Kelly Hancock is pushing a bill that would prohibit communities from legislating against banning short term rentals. Communities would be able to legislate safety, parking, zoning and develop similar ordinances to protect neighborhoods. An existing Grapevine City ordinance regarding bed and breakfast establishments effectively regulates their activities, including payment of state and community hotel occupancy taxes and fees. Air BnB and VRBO accommodations are not regulated. Violation of zoning standards and a lack of uniform safety, including fire and security, are of paramount concern. It is also of concern to the Convention and Visitors Bureau Board to preserve Grapevine's brand and reputation as a safe destination. In that regard, the Board designated Mr. McCallum to relay their concerns to City Council via workshop discussions. Zoning and regulations will be most debated by the Council as this provides the ultimate control for safety and security so that all accommodations provide the same optimum level. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 5 of 6 Motion was made that the Board's recommendation to the Grapevine City Council be to study existing on-line short term rental properties and current zoning regulations. Motion to approve was made by Jim Quinn and seconded by Dan Weinberger. Ayes: Terpening, Meek, Quinn, Spinden, Scouller, Blankenship and Weinberger. Nayes: None The Board also expressed concern for Grapevine neighborhoods where the peace and tranquility is violated by these properties and further concern expressed regarding the safety and welfare of renters of these on-line properties. It was further stated by Council Member Spencer that it would be strongly appreciated that as many CVB Board members as possible be in attendance at the Council workshop when these rental properties are discussed. OLD BUSINESS TEX Rail Up-Date Mr. McCallum reported that track work is progressing well. TEX Rail is currently working on the Ball and Dallas Road intersection; The two crossings located close to Wal-Mart will be done next. Work on the tracks on Main Street will be done in the summer with no full closure on Main Street anticipated. Cotton Belt Corridor Branding Up-Date Meetings have been held with Coury Hospitality and MMGY who will be researching and conducting meetings related to the branding of the new boutique hotel and plaza area. A branding study and its approval is required by the Autograph standard of Marriott Hotels before design integration of the hotel can proceed. Final presentation of the data gathered is planned for June 19th HOTELS/ATTRACTIONS ACTIVITIES Mr. Closson reported that the Grand Hyatt has recently been ranked in the top five airport hotels in the world and Gaylord is ranked number five of the top 100 CVENT hotels in North America and Europe. A new attraction, "Escape Game" is coming to Grapevine Mills with a planned opening mid-May. Board of Directors Meeting April 20, 2017 Page 6 of 6 Main Street will be welcoming two new businesses - San Daniel in the 129 building and Mason and Dixie restaurant in the 600 block. Underwood Leather is now open on Main Street offering custom handmade leather products of all types including custom boots. ADJOURNMENT Next meeting of the Board will be held May 18tht". There being no further business to come before the Board, a motion by lain Scouller and seconded by Dan Weinberger to adjourn the meeting at 9:43 a.m. prevailed by the following vote: Ayes: Terpening, Meek, Weinberger. Quinn, Spinden, Blankenship and Scouller. Nays: None PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE GRAPEVINE CONVENTION &VISITORS BUREAU BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS ON THIS 18TH DAY OF MAY, 2017. • -PROVE • Jr e zymas oand Chair ATTEST: Lindy Bell Assistant to the xecutive Director