December 2024 Board Meeting Minutes and Recording

The audio recording and the director's presentation of the October 2024 Board Meeting can be accessed below:

December 2024 Board Meeting Recording.mp3

December 2024 Director's Report Presentation

Please find the meeting minutes below:
Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau
Board of Director's Meeting
December 16, 2024 – 2:00 p.m.
CACVB Administrative Office

PRESENT: Russ Cronberg, Athena Eastwood, Chris Engel, Emily Kilroy, Bea LaPisto-Kirtley, Jaruchan Palakawongs, Danny Shea, Amber Smith, Brad Uhl, Juandiego Wade, Darcie Weigand, John Wharton (Presence of Jaruchan Palakawongs and Danny Shea not reflected in roll call performed on recording)

ABSENT: Francois Abadie, Andrea Copeland, Jennifer Lyon

ALSO ATTENDING: Courtney Cacatian, Lauren Bohdan, Roy Van Doorn, Olivia Branch and Phil Riese

1. CALL TO ORDER

Chair Bea LaPisto-Kirtley called the meeting to order at 2:03 p.m.

a. Roll Call: Bea invited Lauren Bohdan to perform the roll call.

b. Industry Presentation: Bea introduced Phil Riese of Unlocked History Escape Rooms as the industry presenter. Phil presented on the daily operations of his business, how he utilizes history for all room themes, and also the opening of his newest room, "Da Vinci's Discovery." Phil also spoke on his close work with the CACVB and taking advantage of opportunities provided, as well as additional opportunities he sees for tourism in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Phil then answered a number of questions from the board members on his business.

c. Consent Agenda: Bea asked for input on the consent agenda including previous meeting's minutes and the financial statement. A motion was made to approve. The motion was passed, all items were approved and the consent agenda was passed.

d. Director's Report: Courtney presented the Director's Report with highlights including the Virginia Tourism Corporation Welcome Center familiarization tour, Tourism for All tour guide training, attending the VA-1 Governor's Tourism Summit, as well as attendance at a joint meeting of the Charlottesville Albemarle Airport Authority and the Charlottesville Albemarle Airport Commission, and the PRSA RVA presentation on LGBT marketing. A discussion was had on what would be necessary to be able to provide a larger terminal, including a new location. Upcoming items for the CACVB include the Tourism for All conference and cohort graduation on February 11th, Chamber of Commerce State of the Community on February 21st, and future CACVB board meeting where the budget will be presented.

1. Hotel performance metrics were presented including the highlight of the highest Revenue Per Available Room for a single month in recent memory during the month of October. Russ spoke on current visitation for the Boar's Head as well as how this has been affected by Winter Wander during the holiday season.

2. Marketing and PR updates included the launch of a new accessible travel landing page, the award of being named a Top Adventure Town for a mid-size destination by Blue Ridge Outdoors, a runner-up in Local Palate's Top Culinary Towns in the South contest, an increase in the average engagement time per active user of 26%, as well as the attendance of multiple press events. Charlottesville was also featured in USA Today's Go Escape: Winter 2024 edition, highlighting nearly 25 partners.

3. Sales updates included attending the CVENT Data Driven Decisions meeting, American Friends of Lafayette discussion at UVA and the Defense Affairs Committee Military Awards Luncheon. 10 RFP's were distributed, as well as 170 Welcome Bags to local events and associations. An on-the-spot site visit and tour of UVA was provided for Pied a Terre, a tour company from Holland.

4. Visitor Services has seen a significant spike in Mobile Visitor Center visitation, up 14% over calendar year 2023. The MVC's will shutdown from normal operations for the winter on Sunday, December 15th, but worked a number of events including the Grand Illumination and Boar's Head Winter Wander. The Visitor Services team has distributed over 63,000 brochures, as well as fielded 13,000 requests for information in 2024. The Visitor Services team also welcomed 31 staff from Virginia Welcome Centers for a familiarization tour in Charlottesville and Albemarle County, and brought the Mobile Visitor Centers to three Virginia Welcome Centers.

5. Destination Development continued to work on on-going projects in the space of accessibility, history and VA250, outdoor recreation, and Tourism for All. They also provided multiple letters of support, attended professional development opportunities, and convened stakeholder meetings. Director of Engagement, Cassie Ivey, was presented with the 2024 Superstar Award at the TravelAbility Emerging Markets Summit in San Francisco.

e. Public Comment: No Public Comment

f. Board Announcements: Chris Engel spoke on the 4th of July celebration within the city, specifically the possibility of a fireworks display for the community. A group has come together to have discussions on this aspect of the celebration and also to fundraise. These would likely take place on Carter's Mountain for a display that would be visible from many locations in the city and county. Support from the CACVB was discussed, with Courtney recommending giving a one-time sponsorship of $15,000 to support the display. The board had a consensus to follow this approach and continue to receive updates on the progress of the discussions. John Wharton spoke on his term as a board member for the CACVB, how welcomed he felt, and also extended his appreciation and a thank you.

Chair Bea LaPisto-Kirtley adjourned the meeting at 3:08 p.m.