Vanderburgh County/Evansville Convention and Visitors Commission

Board Meeting Minutes
3 p.m. December 6^th, 2016
Tropicana Hotel

Evansville Room

421 NW Riverside Drive

Evansville, IN  47708

Mr. John Chaszar, Vice-President of the Evansville Convention & Visitors Bureau Commission, called the meeting to order.  Six Commissioners were present, one absent:

Ms. Donna Leader (joined mtg@3:18p.m.)Mr. Daniel Zeller

Mr. John ChaszarMr. Tracy Wiley

Mr. Joe Kiefer, IIMr. Dale McCuiston

The following professionals from the Evansville Convention & Visitors Bureau were in attendance:  Mr. Bob Warren, Executive Director; Ms. Ashley Vezzoso, Director of Sales; Ms. Brooke Harmening, Sales Manager; Ms. Alexandria Cochenour, Housing Bureau and Convention Services Coordinator; Ms. Laura Libs, Director of Marketing and Communications; Ms. Julia Pillow, Director of Administration; Ms. Angela Statz, Visitors Center Manager; Mr. Tim Fulton, Director of Sports Facilities; Mr. Clayton Dame, Turf Manager.  Mr. G. Michael Schopmeyer from Kahn, Dees, Donovan & Kahn was present as Legal Counsel.  Guests in the audience included: Mr. Josh Armstrong, Downtown Alliance; and Ms. McKenzie Dunn and Ms. Heather Garrison, Dunn Hospitality; Ms. Ashley McReynolds, Ms. Natalie Wade, Mr. Fred Emory, Mr. Brad Gilbert, Mr. Seth Essling, Ms. Stephanie Terry, Mr. Kevin Koch, Mr. Chris Traylor, Mr. Brian Hicks, Ms. Pat Bateman and Ms. Patricia Weinzapfel, cMoe Children’s Museum; Dr. John Scott Foster, Wesselman Woods Nature Society; Mr. Jason Sands and Ms. Marie Barnes, Evansville Sports Corp; and Ms. Megan Heronemous, SMG Evansville. There was no media present.

Mr. Joe Kiefer, II made the motion to remove the Action Items from the Agenda for the Commission Meeting.  Mr. Kiefer stated that no decisions had been made, therefore, there was no action to be taken.  Mr. Chaszar asked for any discussion.  Hearing none, he asked for a second, which was provided by Mr. Daniel Zeller.  All in favor, none opposed.  Action Items removed from the Agenda.

Meeting Minutes

Mr. Chaszar called attention to the Minutes dated October 25^th, 2016.  He asked for any corrections.  Hearing none, he asked for a motion to approve the minutes.  Mr. Tracy Wiley provided the motion and Mr. Dale McCuiston provided the second. All in favor, none opposed.  The Minutes are approved as submitted.

Financials

Mr. Chaszar asked for Mr. Warren and Mr. Kiefer to present the Financials dated October 31^st, 2016.  Mr. Kiefer deferred to Mr. Warren.  Mr. Warren reported that he had the chance to review the Financials with Mr. Kiefer before the meeting.  He proceeded to go over the assets, liabilities, revenues, and balances for the various accounts.  He then went over the TCDF Account and Investment Accounts.  Mr. Chaszar asked for any questions, concerns, or comments regarding the Financials.  Hearing none, he asked for a motion to approve.  Mr. McCuiston provided the motion with Mr. Wiley providing the second.  All in favor, none opposed.  The Financials are approved as submitted.

Grants Funding Presentation

Mr. Chaszar and Mr. Warren presented a Matching Funds Grant to Ms. Stephanie Terry, Executive Director of cMoe Children’s Museum of Evansville.  Ms. Terry, along with several employees and board members, came forward to accept the check and thank the Commission for their support.

Ms. Donna Leader arrived just after the presentation to cMoe, and Mr. Chaszar deferred the meeting to her.

Ms. Leader presented the Grant for Wesselman Woods Nature Society.  Dr. John Scott Foster came forward to accept the check and thank the Commission for their support.

The audience members that were present from both cMoe Children’s Museum and Wesselman Woods Nature Society left after the Grant Presentations.

Committee Reports

Administration Committee – No Report.

Grants Committee – No Report.

Marketing Committee – No Report.

Action Items

Action Items were previously removed from the Agenda via motion at the beginning of the meeting.

Discussion Items

Update on the 2016 ISAE Star Awards – Ms. Leader asked Ms. Vezzoso to provide an update on the ISAE Star Awards.  She reported that she has been working on the presentation with the Mayor.  Ms. Vezzoso, Ms. Brooke Harmening, and several others will be headed up early to make sales calls before the event.

Executive Directors Report

STR Report – Ms. Leader asked Mr. Warren to present that STR Report.  Mr. Warren went over the Occupancy, ADR, RevPar, and Demand.  Mr. Warren asked if there was anything that Mr. Daniel Zeller wished to add.  Mr. Zeller declined.

Tax Collections – Mr. Warren reported on the current Tax Collection numbers.  Collections are still up overall for the year.

Department Reports – 

Sales: Mr. Warren stated that the Sales Department has been busy preparing for upcoming tradeshows.

Marketing: Ms. Laura Libs is currently working on the new Visitors Guide and Meeting Planner Guide.  She expects both to be done in the next few weeks, but noted that the Profile Sheets for the properties may be staggered, as the properties are reviewing and confirming their information.

Deaconess Sports Park: Ms. Leader called on Mr. Tim Fulton to report on Deaconess Sports Park.  Mr. Fulton reported that the Park is in complete shut down, and went over the various activities that have been completed and what he plans on accomplishing during the off-season.

Mr. Josh Armstrong, Downtown Alliance – Ms. Leader called on Mr. Josh Armstrong of the Downtown Alliance for an update.  Mr. Armstrong reported that Small Business Saturday was well attended, and one business reported over 3x’s their normal sales for a ‘good’ Saturday.  He went over several projects, new restaurant and business opening timeframes, and upcoming plans.

Mr. Jason Sands, Evansville Sports Corporation – Mr. Sands went over the numbers for the year from the Evansville Sports Corporation.  He reported on the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic Induction Banquet, the Cross-Country Coaches National Youth Championships at Angel Mounds, and the NCAA DII Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Mid-West Regional.  There were good reviews from all events, especially the Cross-Country Coach’s National Youth Championships regarding how well the event flowed.  There was some discussion about events that Mr. Sands may consider courting, and upcoming events for 2017.

Board Announcements

Ms. Leader asked Mr. Wiley for an update regarding the Hilton Doubletree.  Mr. Wiley commented that they have had several job fairs, that officials were coming in for a tour, and that lit signage would be going up soon.  Ms. Leader asked how bookings were going, and Mr. Wiley said well, but he did not have any specific numbers.

Ms. Leader asked Mr. Chaszar about the progress at Tropicana.  He responded that they are moving forward, steel should be going up after the first of the year, and they were on schedule to be open by the end of 2017.

Ms. Leader asked for any further announcements.  Hearing none, she moved to adjourn the meeting.

Adjournment

Ms. Leader adjourned the meeting.

Minutes Approved By: _________________________________________________________

Secretary