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Home My WebLink AboutAM 2023-002 Chamber of Commerce Contract City of Seward Action Memorandum 2023-002 Meeting Date: February 27, 2023 To: City Council From: Janette Bower, City Manager Subject: Action Memorandum 2023-002: Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into a Contract with the Seward Chamber of Commerce for the Provision of Marketing and Visitor Services Background and justification: The Seward Chamber of Commerce and the City of Seward have a long history of collaboration which is focused on driving economic growth in the community. Resolution 1997-052 declared the City Council's intent to utilize hotel/motel room tax(bed tax)to compensate the Seward Chamber of Commerce for the provision of marketing services and promoting the location business community and area businesses. In 2013, the City Council approved Resolution 2013-058, which reaffirmed the Seward Chamber of Commerce as the lead marketing entity of the City of Seward. Historically, the City of Seward paid the Seward Chamber of Commerce 50% of the collected bed tax. In the 2023-2024 Operating Budget, the City Council approved a flat fee of $300,000 for the Seward Chamber of Commerce. This Action Memorandum authorizes the City Manager to enter a contract with the Seward Chamber of Commerce for the provision of marketing services and three specific action items: destination management, visitor services, and economic development. Comprehensive and Strategic Plan Consistency Information This legislation is consistent with (citation listed): Comprehensive Plan: 3.1.1 Attract new business Strategic Plan: Page 5 Goals and Objectives, Attract New Industry Other: Certification of Funds Total amount of funds listed in this legislation: $ 0 This legislation (✓): Creates revenue in the amount of: $ Creates expenditure in amount of: $ Creates a savings in the amount of: $ x Has no fiscal impact Funds are (✓): x Budgeted Line item(s): Not budgeted Not applicable Fund Balance Information Affected Fund (✓): General SMIC Electric Wastewater Boat Harbor Parking F1 Wat F1 Healthcare Motor Pool Other Note: amounts are unaudited Fund Balance/Net position — restricted $ Fund Balance/Net position — unrestricted/unassigned $ Available Unrestricted Cash Balance: $ Finance Director Signature: S"Ar- Attorney Review RYes Attorney Signature: Not applicable Comments: Administration Recommendation eAdopt AM Other: DISPOSITION Approved by City Council on consent on February 27, 2023. Seward Chamber of Commerce Marketing and Visitor Services Contract 2022 - 2024 Executive Summary: The Seward Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center is pleased to present the following plan to continue fulfilling the city of Seward's need in the fields of destination marketing, visitor services, and economic development. Our community enjoys a vibrant visitor industry, an ever-growing marine service industry, and an entrepreneurial spirit that imbues our business community. Our non-profit organization works alongside the city of Seward to promote, manage, and encourage this vibrancy. This contract lays out a plan for FY23 and FY24, with a broad scope of work that covers the three sectors mentioned: destination management, visitor services, and economic development. Our small but effective team is excited to continue setting trends in Alaska marketing, growing our community's reach as a marine and business hub, and helping to make Seward a great place to call "home." We look forward to continuing our work in service to the community of Seward. Our Approach: As a non-profit organization, the Seward Chamber can have an intentional focus on serving Seward. Our mission dedicates us to the betterment of Seward as a business community and destination for people looking to live, work, and play. We are community minded, resourceful, transparent, nimble, and authentic in all the work that we do, and the projects we take on. Our work with the city of Seward falls into three main categories. 1. Visitor Services Information 2. Destination Marketing 3. Economic Development Contract Terms: Initiative Ordinance No. 95-1 established a 4 percent hotel/motel room tax on a city-wide basis with the "basic intent to provide for the promotion of tourism and development of visitor infrastructure and to provide for visitor services." As reiterated by Resolution 2019-003, the Chamber is appropriated a percentage of the second previous full year's bed tax revenue to act as the lead marketing entity. 163 We look forward to continuing this relationship on terms for FY23 and FY24 at an allocated funding level of$300,000. These funds will cover the following services. Visitor Services Information: Throughout the year, over 25,000 people interact with our Visitor Center staff in person. These interactions include answering basic visitation questions to assisting in booking lodging or campgrounds. Our small staff is the front line for information about anything and everything to do in Seward. In addition to in-person interactions, we see an average of 1,000 informational phone calls a month all year-long. We also manage an informative email inbox that is a useful tool for those planning trips to Seward. In tangent with our contract with the city, we have leases on the land for both our main Visitor Center and our Derby Booth in the harbor, which acts as an auxiliary visitor center in the summer. The leases allow us to further provide the best experience for visitors. Some other selected deliverables include: • Continued administration of the Visitor Information Center year-round and the auxiliary Derby Booth information center seasonally o Year-round staffing o Building & Grounds maintenance o Utilities & IT support (free public wifi 24/7) • Greeting and being on hand for informational services at the larger cruise ship dockings • Year-round informational source and trip planning • Conference & event planning • Seasonal bathrooms • Free public shuttle stop & lost and found • Seasonal staff • Year-round, full time Visitor Services staff Destination Marketing Organization (DMO)• The Seward Chamber of Commerce has thoughtfully created a brand identity for the community of Seward, while serving as the DMO for the city of Seward. This brand identity has spurred the creation of a suite of printed publications and a breathtaking online presence that is setting trends in marketing styles across the state. Seward is a beautiful place, and we market it beautifully. 164 Some selected activities and deliverables that fall under the DMO • Year-round Communications & Marketing Staff • Web maintenance and development o Seward.com and all visitor-oriented facets including calendar and trip planning o State of the art, well optimized site that attracts and informs visitors and locals • Digital Asset Management System • Visitation Statistics Information • Content Development o Visitor, Marine, and Hometown Guides o Visit Seward social media • Earned media o Continue to prioritize earned media opportunities with travel writers, publications, and other areas that are identified as target audiences • Travel Trade Shows • Wedding & Event Planning • Event Planning o Partner with local entities and industries to create and manage events that attract visitors. Economic Development: While Seward enjoys a profitable and vibrant visitor season, we work with the community to promote a wide variety of industries to make Seward an attractive place to live and work, as well as play. The marine industry plays a large role in our community, as does our town's entrepreneurial spirit. Thanks to our collaboration with the city, we can focus on supporting these other sectors of our community in line with our visitor services industry. Selected activities and deliverables include: • AK Small Business Development Coordinator o In collaboration with the city, we fund a small business development coordinator dedicated to Seward. We also provide a space for them to work and all necessary equipment to guarantee success • Attendance at the Pacific Marine Expo with invitations extended to key collaborators such as the City, AVTEC, and the Alaska Railroad • Growth as a "hometown" resource to effectively market the vast array of resources Seward offers. • Facilitate and organize economic development events like Alaska Start-Up Week • Continually collaborating with community partners • Collaborating with the city of Seward on community surveys, data collection and presentation, and legislative lobbying efforts 165 Outside of the three tenets of our contract with the city of Seward, the Chamber is also open to ad-hoc projects as the Council, administration, and Chamber board see fit. To keep the Council & administration abreast of the Seward Chamber's marketing and economic development efforts, and the success of this contract, the Chamber Executive Director will report quarterly to City Council and PACAB. Jane a Bower Kat Sorensen City Manager Executive Director City of Seward Seward Chamber of Commerce ®® f se �.a e � ® � :SAL R u w � Ff m`\9 %9t.11oGa OF �St0®80®t�9'�Co 166