City of Pekin Tourism Committee met Feb. 7.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
Members present: Lelonie Luft, Amy McCoy, Tom Veatch, Matt Fick, Mark Rothert, Dori Smith
1.0 Meeting called to order with a quorum present.
2.0 Approval of Minutes from January 10, 2022 Meeting - Motion to approve by Tom Veatch, second by Dori Smith. Minutes approved.
3.0 Old Business
3.1 Hospitality Map - No update.
3.2 2022 Calendar of Events
3.2.1 Downtown Event Dates -
Friday, June 17- Stone Cold Cowboys
Friday/Saturday July 29 & 30 – SuperCruise
Saturday, August 20 – Revel in Red
Saturday, October 15 – Matt Miller Band
Friday, December 2 – Christmas on Court
Lelonie Luft suggested that Tourism Committee Members each sign up to work one of the Downtown events.
3.2.2 Other Community Events –
June 11 – Heart of the Dragon Firefighters Union Golf Outing
Date TBD – DA Points Tournament
Date TBD – Park Foundation Funky Monkey
November 26 – Small Business Saturday
Tom Veatch suggested a 5K Run be established.
3.2.3 Marketing – Discussion surrounding EnjoyPekin.com website, newsletter, podcast, tourism guide, radio ads, and promotional video are all being considered. A full proposal will be prepared seeking bids from McDaniels and Deverman. This information will be forwarded to City Manager and Mayor with a request to present to City Council. Tom Veatch also recommended a slogan for Pekin and there was a suggestion that the slogan be a community or high school contest.
3.3 Request from Grace Unted Methodist Church – Committee determined that this request meets the conditions of the current Tourism Ordinance for the Community Event Grant. Per the original request, $279.44 is payable based on the grant conditions. Motion to approve by Tom Veatch, second by Amy McCoy. Motion approved.
4.0 New Business
4.1 Request from Pekin Farmer’s Market - $10,000 is being requested for 2022 Market. Consensus of the Tourism Committee is to support this endeavor and understand the need for additional marketing dollars. Committee recommends providing specific pricing and allocations for the marketing plan. This matter will need to go before City Council for approval. Slated for the February 28 council meeting provided the details are submitted to City Manager Rothert. Some discussion of an Intergovernmental Agreement to support this event in future years. This will be addressed later this year. Motion of the Tourism Committee to support this request at the $10,000 level by Tom Veatch, second by Amy McCoy. Motion approved.
4.2 Ordinance Amendments – 1. Relative to the latest version of the ordinance excluding language from previous Tourism ordinance, Mark Rothert is checking the original document. 2. Relative to the Community Event Grant vs. the Overnight Stay Grant – much discussion of the direction and methodology of the funding of smaller grants.
5.0 Updates from Community Partners – Amy McCoy reported that Feb 7-11 is Chamber Restaurant Week.
6.0 Other items for discussion – 2024 will be Pekin’s Bicentennial. Suggestion made that the Tourism Committee be involved in planning committee.
7.0 Public Input - None
8.0 Motion to adjourn by Tom Veatch with a second by Amy McCoy. Meeting adjourned.
http://pekinil.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=12&ID=1755&Inline=True
Alerts Sign-up