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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002/01/15-Minutes-HEDC City of Fort Worth City Council Economic Development Committee Highlights of the Meeting Held Tuesday,January 15, 2002 Committee Members Present: Jeff Wentworth, Becky Haskin, Jim Lane, and Frank Moss City Staff Present: Teresa Carreon, Bette Chapman, Elizabeth Dierdorf, Sarah Fullenwider, Kristin Glass, Mike Groomer, Tom Higgins, Gary Jackson, Jim Keyes, Joe Paniagua, Harold Pitchford, Kirk Slaughter, Clint Spruill, Robert Sturns, Peter Vaky, Ardina Washington, Richard Zavala. Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by Chairman Wentworth at 1:11 p.m. Approval of the Minutes from the Meeting held December 18, 2001: Chairman Wentworth said that if there was no opposition, the minutes of the meeting held December 18, 2001, would stand as presented. There was no opposition. Discussion of Marketing the City of Fort Worth: Mr. John Stevenson, chairman of the board of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, began the presentation, which was an overview of the CVB and what its staff is trying to accomplish. After his introductory remarks, he introduced Mr. Doug Harman,president of the CVB. Mr. Harman recognized the CVB board members who were present, gave the mission statement of the CVB, and then summarized the 2001 results and future opportunities and challenges of the CVB. The major successes of 2001 included exceeding their goal of hotel room bookings and achieving a high rate of Fort Worth Convention Center-only bookings. Mr. Harman also presented notable convention bookings for 2001. Mr. Harman next pointed out the major newspapers and magazines in which articles on Fort Worth had appeared. Among these were the New York Times travel section and Travel Holiday magazine. He also reviewed key tourism opportunities, such as the Stockyards National Historic District, the Texas Motor Speedway and the Museums of the Cultural District. The way the CVB is marketing the city of Fort Worth was Mr. Harman's next point of discussion. These methods include advertising in national trade publications, the new CVB website, and the Visitors Guide Brochure and Magazine. In addition, a sales office for Fort Worth was established in Washington, D.C. in July, 2001, and more recently, an office was opened in Chicago. Mr. Harman then presented the challenges the CVB is facing in 2002-03. These include the revenue reduction caused by the softening economy and the events of 9-11-01. However, the CVB had established a reserve to offset this revenue cutback and has since developed new strategies to deal with the situation, including the use of direct mail and billboards to encourage the drive-in tourist market. Another challenge presented was the hotel situation. Mr. Harman said that many downtown hotels are in need of full renovation in order to be considered desirable by professional associations. Also, he said there are no hotels with recognizable names (such as Hyatt, Westin, Sheraton, or Hilton) near the Fort Worth Convention Center. Page 1 of 4 Finally, he emphasized that committable room blocks offered by Fort Worth hotels are not comparable to those offered by other cities, and that there is intense competition to win convention business. In conclusion, Mr. Harman listed key opportunities coming up in the near future. These include the Phase I and Phase II openings of the Fort Worth Convention Center, the Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame and the Modern Museum of Art. He also pointed out that the Modern was identified in Travel and Leisure magazine as being one of the top 100 places to go and things to see in the world. (Presentation attached.) Chairman Wentworth thanked Mr. Harman for the presentation and asked him to report back to the Committee periodically. Committee Member Haskin commended the CVB and asked how the CVB board was selected. Mr. Harman said that an election committee chaired by the Mayor, who then draws from the City Council and the chambers of commerce, selects the board. Board members serve for two consecutive three-year terms and then must go off the board for at least one term. Each year the City Council receives information from the Mayor as to the new members who are coming on the board. Ms. Haskin then asked how many members were on the board, and Mr. Harman replied that there were 19 members, plus the ex-officio members, creating a total of almost 30 members. Ms. Haskin expressed concern about the diversity of the board. Mr. Harman explained that there were several women on the board, but they were not able to attend the meeting. He said he felt that the board was fairly representative in terms of race, ethnicity and gender. Ms. Haskin then asked about the next opportunity to recommend board members. Mr. Harman said that there was recently a recommended list of appointments presented to the Mayor, and these came forward on a calendar year basis. Chairman Wentworth suggested that a list of board members be given to the Committee. Committee Member Lane asked if there was a plan to help with regional marketing. Mr. Harman said that the Trinity Rail was having an impact in the visitors' centers, and the CVB was working with Amtrak and with radio stations to promote Fort Worth within the region. He added that the CVB was advertising in the Dallas Morning News. Mr. Harman then introduced Segi Desta, who explained that some billboards were slated for the Dallas area, and advertising was scheduled in Dallas to promote the train and other Fort Worth attractions. CVB board chairman John Stevenson commended the CVB and asked the Committee to let the CVB know what other information they(the Committee)would like to have concerning the CVB's work. Ms. Haskin then asked Mr. Stevenson to share the CVB's five-year plan, if they had one. She also asked the CVB to share any other ideas that would enable Fort Worth to be a major attraction. Ms. Haskin expressed her concern about the lack of revenue from the bed tax and those groups that benefit from that revenue. She asked the CVB to keep the Committee informed on the matter. Status Report of the Administration of the Fort Worth Herd: Mr. Richard Zavala, Parks and Community Services Director, made the report concerning the Herd. He discussed the accomplishments of the 30-month-old program and said a promotional video on the Herd has been developed. It is being used both by the Outriders support group for fundraising and for teacher in- service training. Mr. Zavala added that a grant had been received from the Texas Historical Commission to renovate the scale house, which will become an interpretive center. He also presented information on the organization, budget, livestock, staffing, and current issues concerning the program, as well as awards won *'by the Herd. Currently the Herd consists of 8 horses, 18 steers, one cow and one heifer. Mr. Zavala said the cow and the heifer will be bred, and the breeding process will be incorporated into the educational program. Page 2 of 4 Because of current budget constraints, the decision was made to reduce the number of cattle that would be run on a daily basis, although the integrity of the daily cattle drives at 11:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. would be maintained. Finally, Mr. Zavala discussed the advantages and disadvantages of privatization of the Herd. (Presentation attached.) Chairman Wentworth asked if there had been any reduction in crowds lately. Mr. Zavala said that there actually appeared to be an increase in the number of people coming to see the Herd. Committee Member Lane asked about the decision to include the breeding aspect in the Herd program. Mr. Zavala replied that this began as an idea for a fundraiser, but the breeding aspect was now a part of the education program. Mr. Lane then wanted to know who was in charge of the educational program. Mr. Zavala said the person in charge was Harold Pitchford. Mr. Lane asked about the goals of the educational program, and Mr. Zavala said the goals were to depict the history of Fort Worth and the cattle industry. Mr. Lane then expressed his concern about maintaining authenticity and diversity in the program and asked who was responsible to see that diversity was maintained among the staff and that authenticity was taught in the educational program. Mr. Zavala said that Harold Pitchford was in charge of this, but that as director of the department, he himself was ultimately responsible. Committee Member Haskin than asked about the role of Judge Steve King and the Outriders support group in overseeing the Herd. Mr. Zavala said that their role was to provide support through both financial and volunteer efforts. Ms. Haskin then asked what difference the group was going to make in the Herd. Judge King replied that his group was working to help the people of Fort Worth feel they have ownership of the Herd. The Outriders also wanted to assist in raising funds for things that are not covered by the budget. Judge King further explained that it was his vision to have the drovers be interpreters of the history of Fort Worth and to make that history come alive to visitors. Ms. Haskin then asked Judge King if they were incorporating breeding in the program. He said they were trying to show that steers are not the only form of the cattle species. Ms. Haskin expressed her concern that discussion of breeding was not appropriate to present to children visiting the Herd. Chairman Wentworth commented that the breeding idea related to the authenticity aspect. Committee Member Lane said he was not in favor of privatizing the Herd and was concerned that the program had lost sight of its original goals. He expressed strong concern that the Herd was losing its authenticity and urged those responsible to work diligently to correct the problem. Committee Member Haskin suggested Mr. Zavala and Judge King return at a later time to more fully explain the goals of the program and their plans to achieve them. Assistant City Manager Joe Paniagua explained his viewpoint of the problems with the Herd and reviewed some of the steps he has taken toward solving them, including dealing with budget and authenticity issues. Committee Member Lane commended the staff for the success of the Herd, but again emphasized the need to maintain diversity and authenticity. Status Report on the Cultural District and Will Rogers Memorial Center Master Plan: Page 3 of 4 r Public Events Director Kirk Slaughter said that since the stock show was in progress, all construction had stopped and would resume when the stock show was over. Completion of the facility is still on target for Omay 2002. Discussion and Consideration of a Tax Abatement Application from AT&T Wireless Services: Economic Development Director Tom Higgins requested the discussion be delayed until next month's meeting so that additional information can be obtained from the company. Executive Session: There were no items to be discussed in Executive Session. Requests for Future Agenda Items Committee Member Moss requested that a report on land banking, or use of land for commercial development, be put on the agenda for the next meeting. Committee Member Haskin concurred. Chairman Wentworth said that the next Committee meeting would be February 19, 2002. Adjourn: Chairman Wentworth adjourned the meeting at 2:22 p.m. *Approved by: Jeff Wentworth, Chairman Page 4 of 4