Putting the “C” Back in the CVB: Another Leaderless Year is Not Acceptable

The Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau has dominated local news for the better part of a year now with literally one controversy after another. From the January “administrative leave” that former Executive Director Marilee Fowler was “asked” to take, to becoming the respondent in a lawsuit, to the Roberts Stadium Ballfields effort championed by board members being blunted by public opinion and financial reality, it is safe to say that the ECVB has not had a good year. To complicate matters the convention business in Evansville has been handicapped by the Executive Inn Dilemma.

The Executive Inn Dilemma through the end of summer had been documented by the ECVB’s own “Lost Business Report” to have lost the City of Evansville 9,985 room nights and 9 conventions. We are certain that the count is climbing and will continue to climb until a first class Downtown Convention Hotel opens its doors for business.

It could be said that the Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau appears to be drifting in the wind. That is what organizations without a strong leader do and this floundering will continue until a replacement for Marilee Fowler is hired and allowed to do this formidable job without petty politics ruling the day. So why has 2010 passed us by with no end in sight to yet another national search for a top shelf mover and shaker?

It was recently disclosed that the salary budget is being increased from a maximum of $88,000 to $98,000. As much as that may sound like to local political leaders, this salary will not attract a national mover and shaker to relocate to a place that is the subject of a lawsuit from the predecessor, has no hotel, and has been all over the news for the $18 Million Ball Fields project. The financial reality is that to attract the resumes of capable and qualified nationally recognized movers and shakers the salary for this position will have to be in the $150,000 range. The ECVB’s board of directors needs to either pony up the cash or focus on local candidates.

If the board will not pony up the cash, perhaps a third party can be found that is interested in promoting sporting events that may be willing to offer some future Executive Director a supplemental salary increase to bring the budget up to minimal national levels. There is local precedent for such an arrangement in the two paycheck scheme that Mayor Weinzapfel implemented to attract Tom Barnett to DMD when the City of Evansville salary brackets were not sufficient.

This job will be difficult given the fact that the Executive Inn Dilemma has neutered the “C” in Convention and Visitors Bureau. The effort of attracting conventions will not be stabilized until a Convention Hotel is running with the bugs worked out of it. The most recent information is that a hotel should be running in 2012 just in time to start recruiting conventions for 2013.

In view of this situation the next Executive Director of the ECVB should be offered no less than a three year contract with a substantial golden parachute for early termination to compensate for the cloud hanging over the organization.

The reality of the situation is that the ECVB thinks it can afford $18 Million for ballfields but either can’t or won’t budget a nationally competitive compensation package for an Executive Director. The only option is to reevaluate local candidates and to hope that the goodwill of many years of devoted service have not been tainted by the public statements by board members that “no local qualified candidates” have been found.

Bob Whitehouse has a military and government service background and has served this organization and other civic organizations for the bulk of his career. Mr. Whitehouse has expressed interest in the Executive Director’s position. He knows the budget for the ECVB because he is responsible for that budget along with the personnel, office, and sales efforts for the ECVB. He is essentially doing the day to day tasks of the job already. The City County Observer promotes the use of local talent. Bob Whitehouse is in Evansville because this is where he wants to be not because an expensive headhunter negotiated an all-star package to entice him to move here.

We believe that given the current situation an Executive Director needs to be hired now, needs to be allowed to do the job without political tampering, and needs to be a part of a planning process to bring Evansville back to competitive prominence in the business of conventions. We support and recommend that Bob Whitehouse be given the chance to do this job and to be hired as the next Executive Director of the ECVB.