City of Centralia Tourism Commission met Oct. 18.
Here are the minutes provided by the Commission:
I. CALL TO ORDER- Roach, Chair – Meeting called to order at 5:09PM.
II. ROLL CALL
_ X_ Jessiycka Nix Coleman ____ Mary Davis
_ X_ Shannon Cooney ____ Rob Jackson
_ X_ Rachel Wallace _ X_ Melissa Ray Roach
____ (Vacant) ____ Terri Finn
_ X_ Tom Walsh
Ex-Officio Members
____ William Smith, City Manager
_ X_ Marcus Holland, Chamber of Commerce Director
_ X_ Advisory Staff -Derek Sherman, Economic Development Director
Others Present:
III. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION – Greg Sutton, Owner of Castle Ridge: Castle Ridge was a vendor at Celebrate Centralia and wanted to provide some feedback on the event. A big thanks to all the volunteers who helped make the event possible. It was great to see the event grow, and the new location was a good decision. If possible we need to avoid the Cardinals baseball game or figure out a way to display the game downtown. The flow was difficult for vendors to get into the event and out of the event, and the flow of people wasn’t the best. Mr. Sutton suggested making a layout of the entire event for visitors to view. Sutton suggested improving marketing as people did not know that the event was happening that day. He suggested acquiring sponsors for the marketing. Vendors were spaced out more than normal and that made it less intimate. The city needs more trashcans for the event in strategic locations (around food & alcohol vendors). The band was in such a public place people did not want to engage and dance to the music. A larger effort to incorporate businesses in downtown and the city at large into the event would be nice as well. Finally, the foot traffic bottlenecks du to vendor placement and tables, caused most people to move East to West and lounge on the picnic tables. Overall, the event was a big improvement from years past and Castle Ridge was happy to participate as a vendor.
IV. MINUTES – A motion was made to approve both minutes for the September 20, 2022 meeting and the special meeting on October 4, 2022. 1st Nix-Coleman 2nd Wallace All members present voted in favor of approving both minutes with none opposed.
V. TREASURER’S REPORT – Walsh – A motion to approve 1st Cooney 2nd Coleman. All members present voted in favor of approving the Treasurer’s Report as reported.
VI. ONGOING BUSINESS
1. Celebrate Centralia - Review
i. Strengths
1. Art Exhibition was well attended and the Tourism Commission could get out of towners here with art students from other regional high schools and colleges.
2. For RAIL Coffee Room, the event worked better this year with the new event and a business decision to just open rather than be a vendor on the street.
3. We had great help from the Tourism Commission and Christy Kuder and MiMi Hawkins.
ii. Weaknesses
1. We should create a vendor map to help people see all the various vendors in attendance to help visitors navigate the event.
2. Food and alcohol vendor placement created bottlenecks that hinder visitor movement through the event.
3. We didn’t have enough time to appropriately plan this year.
4. Pickup for art exhibition was difficult and disorganized.
5. We should put some flyers up in different locations to help market the event.
6. It was tough to keep people from not touching the art.
7. People wanted to know more about the theatre and see inside of it.
8. People wanted details about the art (what type of medium, if it was for sale, and how to show art next year).
9. Beer sales weren’t the best, so we need to look at the structure of it.
10. Better communication between volunteers and staff
iii. Opportunities
1. Maybe place multiple bands at different locations instead of a central stage.
2. Clean up logistics of vendors leaving the event.
3. People always leave the event around 8PM, so we should consider moving the event up in time to end at 8PM.
4. Make multiple art viewing locations with focus on type of medium.
5. We should continue to grow the event to cover Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
6. Using the same location/space will allow us to grow and improve infrastructure for this event and all other downtown city events.
7. Historic photos of Centralia and buildings explaining the history of Centralia.
8. Send marketing flyers out with water bills, so that most citizens are aware of the upcoming event.
iv. Threats
1. Other events happening on the same weekend with the same focus on art and music, so we may want to consider a different date next year.
2. Get dates set for next year before the end of 2022.
VII. NEW BUSINESS
1. Tourism Infrastructure
i. Existing
1. Need to update volunteer list and possibly gather more volunteers for events.
ii. Needs
1. Interstate Signage at both interstate exits.
2. Wayfinding Signs around town and in rural areas near the state highways that lead into Centralia.
iii. Wants
1. Marketing/Tourism Strategic Plan
2. Branding for Cohesive Marketing Purposes
3. Contract/Personnel to handle marketing for Tourism
4. Billboard Marketing could be useful as well.
VIII. DISCUSSION
1. Sherman asked the Tourism Commission if they would like to assist the Downtown Christmas Stroll with marketing the event. A motion was made to assist the Downtown Christmas Stroll with marketing expenses 1st Coleman 2nd Wallace. All members present voted yes with none opposed, so the motion carries. Additionally, it was suggested by the Chamber of Commerce Director to contact Dave Agee regarding set up of the Nutcracker Stroll in Carillon Park.
IX. ADJOURNMENT – A motion to adjourn the meeting 1st Walsh 2nd Wallace. All members present voted in favor of adjourn the meeting with none opposed. The meeting adjourned at 6:10PM.
https://cityofcentralia.org/vertical/sites/%7BFC680FE7-BE5C-4903-A103-67AF5EF51655%7D/uploads/10-_October_18_2022_Minutes.pdf
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