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Home My WebLink About2024-04-22 - Agendas - FinalFayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission April 22, 2024 Location: Fayetteville Town Center, 15 W. Mountain Street Commissioners: Staff: Chrissy Sanderson, Chair, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Katherine Kinney, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Todd Martin, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Elvis Moya, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Andrew Prysby, Commissioner at-large Sarah Bunch, City Council Representative Mike Wiederkehr, City Council Representative Molly Rawn, CEO I. Call to order at 2:00 p.m. II. Old Business Agenda A. Review and approval of March minutes. III. New Business A. CEO Report. Molly Rawn. An executive overview of the previous month. B. Financial Report. Jennifer Walker, Vice President of Finance. Memo attached. C. Vote. Fayetteville Town Center Chair Purchase. Staff is recommending approval of a quote from Mity Lite for $141,228 for this capital expenditure. Memo Attached. D. Marketing Updates. Sarah King. Outright Agency is launching its first advertising campaign for Experience Fayetteville. E. Downtown Fayetteville Coalition Presentation, Kelly Rich. A presentation of DFC’s accomplishments to date. F. Additions to the agenda may be added upon request from a majority of the commissioners. IV. Adjourn Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission Minutes March 25th, 2024 Fayetteville Town Center Commissioners Present: Commissioners Absent: Staff: Chair Chrissy Sanderson, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Mike Wiederkehr, City Council Representative Katherine Kinney, Tourism & Hospitality Representative *Virtual Sarah Bunch, City Council Representative Elvis Moya, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Todd Martin, Tourism & Hospitality Representative Andrew Prysby, Commissioner at-large Molly Rawn, CEO; Jennifer Walker, VP of Finance, Sarah King, VP of Marketing and Communications I. Chair Sanderson called the meeting to order at 2:00 pm and declared a quorum. II. Old Business A. Chair Sanderson presented the February minutes and hearing no additions or corrections, she stated that the minutes stood approved as presented. B. Roll call attendance reflected that Commissioner Kinney is attending virtually and all other commissioners are present in person. III. New Business A. CEO Report CEO Rawn began by updating the commission on the Master Tourism Plan, stating that the Resident Survey is ongoing until April 8th, asking everyone to take it. In regard to our renovation work at Experience Fayetteville, we now anticipate work to begin in July. We wrapped up a terrific Fayetteville Restaurant Week with 80 participating restaurants. We will have a more detailed presentation of FRW (Fayetteville Restaurant Week) at the end of this meeting. Experience Fayetteville branded Solar Eclipse glasses have arrived – all hotels have them and we are distributing them free of charge in the Visitors Center. We should see newly designed light pole banners on Dickson this spring and damaged light poles have been repaired. The Visitors Center attendance and income for February were both down compared to last year. Rawn then shared that Sales has secured a two-year Women’s Conference to take place this summer and summer of 2025, in partnership with the town center. She also shared a listing of incentive funds we’ve distributed thus far in 2024. In marketing updates, Rawn shared that we are seeing the most web visitors from arkansasrazorbacks.com, but they are staying on our website for the shortest amount of time, so Ashley Cane and Outright are redesigning a landing page for those viewers. We have implemented Wista, a new video platform that delivers a superior experience over YouTube. We are currenting pursuing these earned media stories: the Eclipse, Women in the outdoor and International Puppy Day as Fayetteville is seen as very dog friendly. Commissioner Prysby asked that with all the success Tina Archer Cope is having with Experience Fayetteville’s LinkedIn posts, do we want to create a strategy around LinkedIn to ensure we are featuring all we need? Rawn said she would ask team to talk about this. Rawn stated that the town center has hosted 21 events since the last commission meeting and that the roof replacement project has been kicked off. She then stated that Downtown Fayetteville Coalition will host its State of Downtown and Annual Meeting April 29th 2-4pm at the town center and all are welcome. The First Thursday season kicks off May 2nd and we will be hosting 5 events this season; we will not be hosting First Thursday on Thursday, July 4th. Downtown Fayetteville Coalition will host a Strawberry Festival on Sunday, May 19th with local restaurants participating and perhaps also the brewers guild will be there in addition to vendors. Kelly Rich is still seeking sponsors for this event, if you know of anyone, please pass them on to either Molly or Kelly. B. Financials VP of Finance Jennifer Walker presented February financial statement. At the end of February our target is 17% for both revenue and expenses. We show revenue at 13% and expenses at 15%. Our Year to Date HMR is $732,325, almost 4% below seasonally adjusted budget. Our net operating loss is approximately $120,000 with cash and investments holding steady at $4.9 Million. Unearned revenue is approximately $300,000 with the town center bookings looking really good. C. Vote. Recommendation to appoint Chrissy Sanderson for a second full term. Rawn stated that we don’t have to do this vote as the city council has already ratified it. The commissioners decided to not vote and Rawn congratulated Chair Sanderson and stated that while we did receive several applicants, Sanderson was the only applicant who met the qualification for this open position of being an owner/manager of a hotel, motel or restaurant. D. Vote. Forge Production Contract for First Thursday. Rawn stated that the First Thursday team contracts with several vendors to produce First Thursday. Forge Production is the vendor we utilized last year with great results. Rawn asked if there were any questions. Commissioner Moya asked if the Crowne Group supplied a quote. While Rawn wasn’t able to confirm if we had secured a quote from Crowne, she did state that Forge Production was the preferred vendor due to its hydraulics system. Commissioner Martin asked if our sponsorship dollars would cover this expense and it was stated that sponsorship dollars would cover almost all of the expense but that First Thursday never makes money or pays for itself entirely. Rawn also stated that Community Engagement Manager Chloe Bell will now transition to serve on the Downtown Fayetteville Coalition’s team and be working with Kelly Rich. With no more questions, Chair Sanderson asked for a motion to approve the Forge Production agreement totaling $30,000 with the motion was made by Commissioner Martin and seconded by Commissioner Moya. It passed unanimously via roll call vote. E. Vote. Copier Lease Renewal. Rawn stated that Amy Stockton secured four proposals and is recommending that we continue with TDSIT due to favorable experience and excellent pricing. With no questions, Commissioner Wiederkehr made the motion for the commission to authorize the CEO to sign the two lease agreements with TDSIT via GreatAmerica Financial Services Corporation for a total of $23,407.80 for 60 months. Both Commissioners Moya and Prysby seconded and it was approved unanimously via a roll call vote. F. Fayetteville Restaurant Week A wrap up of this successful week was presented by Molly Rawn and Ashley Cane. Rawn noted that while Sarah King and Julie Pennington were not available to be present, they both did a great job with this project, as well as several members of the team. We were proud that we had 80 restaurants this year and our social media interactions doubled during Fayetteville Restaurant Week. We had some new and enhanced connections with the University of Arkansas with this project. A survey has been distributed to the participants which will help guide next year’s event. Ashley spoke about the ads developed by Outright; she was must excited because we introduced motion with these ads. She also stated that this is just a taste of the bigger projects that Outright is working on. Some of the stats from the project include 1.6 million impressions. Rawn gave a special shout out to Radio Station personalities Jon and Deek for creating a song that included every single restaurant in FRW. We concluded by sharing a video from the U of A students featuring Rymelone’s Pies, whose owner was very appreciative of Fayetteville Restaurant Week and the advertising that it gives her as a small business owner. The video ends with the official jingle and was produced by U of A’s School of Journalism. After this presentation, Commissioner Moya asked Rawn for her thoughts on what the postponement of the Joe Martin Stage Race would mean for Fayetteville and the race. Much discussion ensued, with Rawn clarifying that Experience Fayetteville had served as a sponsor and was hopeful for a 2025 event. With no further business, Chair Sanderson asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting and Commissioner Martin made a motion with Commissioner Wiederkehr seconding it to adjourn the meeting Minutes submitted by Amy Stockton, Director of Operations, Experience Fayetteville $382,586 Monthly A&P Tax Collections 2024** 0.24% -1.99% -3.15% % change from 2023 Previous YTD (Mar) HMR A&P Tax Collection Totals 2020 $837,651 2021 $781,283 2022 $ 974,831 2023 $1,152,677 2024 $1,133,413 $24,407 Prior Dues Collected $401,088 Total HMR Collected March Collection (February Activity) $49,653 Lodging $327,028 Restaurant + 1.50%-6.73%24.77%18.24%-1.67% % change over previous year ** This represents one half of the total HMR collections. The other half supports the Parks and Recreation department. $349,739 $401,088 Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission CEO Updates April 2024 Executive Summary • Forvis has completed their fieldwork as part of our annual audit. We expect a financial report to be issued in May or June. • We plan to bring a budget revision at the May Commission meeting. o We are adjusting our personnel budget to reflect personnel changes o We are decreasing spending in some areas to account for a slower first quarter • The initial “Get Clear” discovery phase of the Tourism Master Plan is winding down. o We have hosted three listening sessions, a stakeholder survey and a resident sentiment survive. o The next phase “Get Moving,” is more intense for our staff as we review what we have learned and begin to set goals. You may hear less about it as it is less public. Tourism Activity Hotel Occupancy Week 2024 vs 2023 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Mar 31 April 1 April 2 April 3 April 4 April 5 April 6 33.6 48.1 68.4 74.9 87.6 94.4 93.5 43.2 58.8 66.7 66.7 56.1 58.8 46.3 -22.3 -18.2 2.6 12.4 56.3 60.5 102.0 • Our visitors center welcomed 1,349 visitors in March, hailing from Germany, Argentina, England, Russia, Belgium, Sri Lanka, Scotland and Mexico o 18% increase from March 2023 (1,138) • The US Pro Cup was held April 3 -7 at Centennial Park. We provided this group an incentive of $15,000. o 14 nations and 41 states represented o 783 unique racers and over 1500 race starts for the four days of racing • Sarah King led a press tour for international travel journalists from UK, Germany, and Italy on Saturday, April 6. o Stops included Farmers Market, Visitors Center, Fayetteville Public Library, Jammin Java, a scooter tour of The Ramble, Dickson Street Books, City Park, Wilson Park, Clinton House Museum, US Pro Cup at Centennial Park, Rick’s Bakery, Mt. Sequoyah, Fenix Art Gallery, Arkansas Whiskey Festival, and Mockingbird Kitchen. • Also the weekend of April 5 – 7 Fayetteville hosted NCAA Gymnastics Regionals, Razorback Baseball, NCAA Track tournament, adaptive pickleball, FHS High School track meet, Whiskey Fest and the opening day of the Fayetteville Farmer’s Market. • We hosted “Good Time Travel,” a motorcoach of 48 in town from California to enjoy the eclipse. • The sales team attended Southeast Tourism Societies STS showcase last month and since then we are seeing an increase of calls for overnight and day trip tours. o EF Destination Services and Sales assisted Good Time Tours (group of 46 from California) who stayed in Fayetteville for three nights during the total eclipse, with a tour of the Clinton House Museum on Tuesday, April 11 th. o We will welcome another tour group of Horticulturalists on Wednesday, April 24th for a day long tour in Fayetteville. • We have secured the return of the Arkansas Youth Expo at the Washington County Fair Grounds this fall. o A total of $5,000.00 was awarded to this group with an estimated economic impact last year of $1,582,019. • Tina is attending the Sports ETA Tradeshow in Portland this week and is slated to meet with 40+ potential buyers and is attending along with other city partners NWA including Bentonville and Rogers. • We distributed 10,000 eclipse glasses to local hotels, guests in the visitors center, as well as events at the Botanical Gardens and the Air and Military Museum Marketing • Website traffic for March was up 40% YOY. A little of this traffic was related to the Resident Tourism Survey and the tail end of FRW, but the dominant traffic source – 76% - was organic search traffic. This affirms our decision to drop SEM, which was a $70K spend in 2023. • We are updating much of our printed collateral o In partnership with Washington County Historical Society, we have reissued the Fayetteville Historical Tour brochure o Downtown Fayetteville map is in design and expected in May. • Fayetteville attractions light pole banners are in production you will soon see them on Dickson Street and near the Library o Connecting with a company that recycles banners into tote bags as we retire our “district” light pole banners. o This year Pride banners will be on Dickson Street only, a budget friendly decision • New Hootboard for the Visitors Center, a digital visitor kiosk. Please be patient with us as we learn this new software. o Somewhat of a beta test for an outdoor unit that could be accessed when the VC is closed or even used in places like the Ramble. Fayetteville Town Center and Facilities • The Fayetteville Town Center has successfully hosted twenty-nine events since our last meeting. • FTC has successfully completed the interior AV upgrade for the event room and will next begin preparations for the exterior upgrades. • The roof repair is almost complete, thank you to the facilities team at the city. o The solar panel install has yet to be scheduled, but we expect that will be soon. • The Walker Stone House gutter replacement project is complete. The new section of the house now has new guttering and the failing sections have been removed. Community Event Incentives • Year to date, we’ve had 59 requests for funding. We have provided funding to 41, awarding a total of $51,100 in event incentives. These are the events that have been funded since last month: o NWA Fiber Festival o Bee Balm Arkansas Summer Literary Series o Black Music Month Celebration – Film screening on black influence in Country Music o Songwriter Showcase at Fenix Arts o NWA Pride Festival o StarCharger Music Series o May the Fourth - Frozen Drink Festival & Star Wars Costume Party o Enchanted! Metaphysics & Mystics Market o Anvil Fest 2024 o Let's Talk NWA Juneteenth Celebration o Fayetteville Movement Festival o Curious Shows o NWA Book Fest Looking Forward • Downtown Fayetteville Coalition Annual Meeting Monday, April 29th • The return of First Thursday, May 2nd • UA Graduation Saturday, May 11th • DFC presents the inaugural Strawberry Festival Sunday, May 19th on the square from 12-6pm. • Walmart Shareholders June 5-7 Memo To: Molly Rawn, CEO, Experience Fayetteville Fayetteville Advertising & Promotion Commissioners From: Jennifer Walker, VP Finance, Experience Fayetteville Date: April 10, 2024 Re: Financial Statements – March 2024 This packet contains Experience Fayetteville Financial Statements for the month ended March 31, 2024. The following reports are included in the packet:  Summary P&L Financials for month ended March 31, 2024  Balance Sheet for month ended March 31, 2024 Target Budget March – 25% Revenue target 25% of budget or higher by the end of March 2024. Expenditures target 25% or lower at March 2024. Total Revenue YTD: $1,285,727 or 21%; We are 4% below target. Tax Receipts - $1,133,413 (3% below budget ytd) Town Center - $ 129,548 (4% below budget ytd) Other - $22,763 Total Operating Expenditure YTD: $1,340,007 or 22%; this is 3% under budget. EF Main - $1,097,941 Town Center - $242,066 HMR tax – YTD March Collections (February activity) are 3% below the seasonally adjusted budget. Operating Net Loss is ($54,281) year to date. Modified Accrual Fayetteville A and P Commission Statement of Budget, Revenue and Expense Year-to-Date @ March 31, 2024 Actual Budget Over/(Under) Budget % of Budget Revenue Hotel, Motel, Restaurant Taxes Revenue 1,133,413 5,208,000 (4,074,587) 21.8% Rental Revenue 126,568 578,340 (451,772) 21.9% Event Revenue 2,950 69,000 (66,050) 4.3% Visitor Center Store Revenue 6,108 46,500 (40,392) 13.1% Parking Revenue - 27,000 (27,000) 0.0% Advertising Revenue 1,000 3,500 (2,500) 28.6% Grant/Other Revenue - 210,000 (210,000) 0.0% Interest and Investment Revenue 15,688 25,100 (9,412) 62.5% Total Revenue 1,285,727 6,167,440 (4,881,713) 20.8% Expenses Operating Expenses Rental Expenses 18,076 231,500 (213,424) 7.8% Event Expenses 5,509 124,550 (119,041) 4.4% Visitor Center & Museum Store 6,672 53,619 (46,947) 12.4% Personnel 441,557 2,085,144 (1,643,587) 21.2% Sales & Marketing 446,609 1,530,042 (1,083,433) 29.2% Office and Administrative 180,014 862,617 (682,603) 20.9% Bond Payments 174,450 700,000 (525,550) 24.9% Contribution to Capital Reserves - 100,000 (100,000) 0.0% Other Tourism Support - Community, Art Court, DFC 67,119 311,500 (244,381) 21.5% TheatreSquared Contribution - 200,000 (200,000) 0.0% Total Operating Expenses 1,340,007 6,198,972 (4,858,965) 21.6% Net Operating Income/(Loss) (54,281) (31,532) (22,749) 172.1% Other Income Unrealized Gain/(Loss) on Investments 15,348 0.0% Other Expenses FFE & Improvements 22,406 971,000 (948,594) 2.3% Depreciation Expense 55,584 0.0% Cost of Goods Sold (730) 0.0% Net Income/(Loss) (without CX Grants)(116,193) (1,002,532) 870,992 11.6% CONSOLIDATED Year-to-Date Modified Accrual Fayetteville A and P Commission Statement of Budget, Revenue and Expense Year-to-Date @ March 31, 2024 Actual Budget Over/(Under) Budget % of Budget Revenue Hotel, Motel, Restaurant Taxes Revenue 1,133,413 5,208,000 (4,074,587) 21.8% Rental and Event Revenue - 55,350 (55,350) 0.0% Visitor Center Store Revenue 6,108 46,500 (40,392) 13.1% Advertising Revenue 1,000 3,500 (2,500) 28.6% Grant & Other Revenue - 210,000 (210,000) 0.0% Interest and Investment Revenue 15,658 25,000 (9,342) 62.6% Total Revenue 1,156,179 5,548,350 (4,392,171) 20.8% Expenses Operating Expenses Event Expenses 661 89,550 (88,889) 0.7% Visitor Center & Museum Store 6,672 53,619 (46,947) 12.4% Personnel 297,244 1,412,532 (1,115,288) 21.0% Sales & Marketing 445,510 1,494,392 (1,048,882) 29.8% Office and Administrative 106,284 489,312 (383,028) 21.7% Bond Payments 174,450 700,000 (525,550) 24.9% Contribution to Capital Reserve - 100,000 (100,000) 0.0% Other Tourism Support - Community, Art Court, DFC 67,119 311,500 (244,381) 21.5% TheatreSquared Contribution - 200,000 (200,000) 0.0% Total Operating Expenses 1,097,941 4,850,905 (3,752,964) 22.6% Net Income/(Loss) Before Other Revenue and Expenses 58,238 697,445 (639,207) 8.4% Other Income Unrealized Gain/(Loss) on Investments 15,348 - 15,348 0.0% Other Expenses FFE & Improvements 22,406 511,000 (488,594) 4.4% Depreciation Expense 25,783 Cost of Goods Sold (730) Net Income/(Loss) 26,126 186,445 (175,667) 14.0% Experience Fayetteville Year-to-Date Modified Accrual Fayetteville A and P Commission Statement of Budget, Revenue and Expense Year-to-Date @ March 31, 2024 Actual Budget Over/(Under) Budget % of Budget Revenue Rental Revenue 126,568 578,340 (451,772) 21.9% Event Revenue 2,950 13,650 (10,700) 21.6% Parking Revenue - 27,000 (27,000) 0.0% Interest and Investment Revenue 30 100 (70) 29.6% Total Revenue 129,548 619,090 (489,542) 20.9% Expenses Operating Expenses Rental Expenses 18,076 231,500 (213,424) 7.8% Event Expenses 4,848 35,000 (30,152) 13.9% Personnel 144,312 672,612 (528,300) 21.5% Sales & Marketing 1,099 35,650 (34,551) 3.1% Office and Administrative 73,731 373,305 (299,574) 19.8% Total Operating Expenses 242,066 1,348,067 (1,106,001) 18.0% Net Income/(Loss) Before Other Revenue and Expenses (112,518) (728,977) 616,459 15.4% Other Expenses FFE & Improvements - 460,000 (460,000) 100.0% Depreciation Expense 29,800 0.0% Net Income/(Loss) (142,319) (1,188,977) 1,046,658 12.0% Town Center Year-to-Date ASSETS Current Assets Cash 3,709,443 Investments 1,230,632 Accounts Receivable 663,648 Prepaid Expenses 30,720 Deposits 28,369 Inventory Asset 24,559 Total Current Assets 5,687,371 Other Assets Capital Assets Furniture & Fixtures 169,248 Equipment 756,009 EF/CVB Building 940,410 EF/CVB Land 198,621 Building Additions 1,451,322 Walker-Stone House 1,174,064 Vehicles 122,860 Construction in Progress 19,205 Accumulated Depreciation (1,746,517) Total Other Assets 3,085,222 TOTAL ASSETS 8,772,594 LIABILITIES AND EQUITY Current Liabilities Accounts Payable 113,678 Unearned Revenue 371,777 Total Liabilities 485,456 Equity Unreserved Fund Balance 6,158,051 Operating Reserve 1,000,000 Capital Reserve 1,100,000 Temporarily Restricted Funds 126,817 Net Revenue Gain/(Loss) on Investments 15,348 Net Revenue without Cyclocross (131,538) Net Revenue for Cyclocross 18,460 (97,730) Total Equity 8,287,138 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY 8,772,594 Fayetteville A&P Commission Balance Sheet As of March 31, 2024 Memo To: Molly Rawn, CEO, Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission; Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commissioners From: Tyler Wilson, Executive Director, Fayetteville Town Center Date: April 17, 2024 Re: Fayetteville Town Center Chair Purchase Background: The Fayetteville Town Center’s event chairs are in disrepair, resulting in customer impact and complaints. The current chairs are damaged and are beyond their life cycle. The Executive Director and FTC staff recommend the purchase of new event chairs for Fayetteville Town Center. Three quotes were sought. Due to the current equipment for the event space, and the availability of repair parts for the new chairs, it is our recommendation that we utilize Mity Lite. Budgetary Impact: The cost of 1200 chairs from Mity Lite is $141,228.50 with all taxes, freight, and fees included. This expense comes from our capital budget and was presented to the commission as part of the 2024 budget presentation. This quote comes in lower than the $155,000 initially projected. Recommendation: We recommend the commission accept the quote from Mity Lite for the replacement of event chairs and authorize the CEO to spend up to $155,351.35, the cost of the quote plus a ten percent contingency. Fayetteville A&P Commission QUOTE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THIS IS NOT AN INVOICE Created On: 4/10/2024 Sales Quote Number: SQ55250-2 Mity Customer Number: 570987 Page: 1 Of 1 Deposit required. Amount subject to credit approval. This quote contains generic items for budget purposes. The product details must be completed prior to your order being placed. Sell Ship Bill To: FAYETTEVILLE TOWN CENTER FAYETTEVILLE TOWN CENTER To: FAYETTEVILLE TOWN CENTER To: Tyler Wilson Tyler Wilson Tyler Wilson P.O. Box 4157 15 West Mountain 15 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72702 Fayetteville, AR 72702 Fayetteville, AR 72702 United States United States United States Ship Via Payment Terms Sales Person ORIGIN, Freight Prepaid Net 30 Days Jeremy Spencer Subtotal $128,682.00 Sales Tax $12,546.50 THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING MITY! Quote Total $141,228.50 Signature: Date: * NET Pricing Applied. * Quotes are valid for 30-days. * Delivery is Dock-to-Dock. * Sales Tax may be applicable. * Customer is responsible for offloading order at delivery time unless otherwise prearranged. *Freight Quotes are estimates. The Freight charge on your order, will reflect the current freight cost the day the order is placed. * Mity, Inc. charges a 3% processing fee for all credit card payments. MityLite Inc. P.O. BOX 732698, Dallas, TX, 75373-2698 US | PHONE 801-224-0589 ext 4200 FAX 801-224- 6191 Item No. Description UOM QTY Unit Price Total Price CLCR CLASSIC CROWN Each 1200 $101.60 $121,920.00 Black Sand Frame Back: Fixed Seam Style: Waterfall Leg: Standard Chair Upholstery: Addison Ash Fabric Freight #145330 1 $6,762.00 $6,762.00 True