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From YouTube: Richmond Region Tourism and Sports Backers Annual Update - BOS Meeting - November 16, 2022
Description
Richmond Region Tourism and Sports Backers staff provided the Board with an update on recent activities, successes and future initiatives.
A
B
Very
good,
Mr,
chairman
good,
to
see
you
good
to
see
you,
members
of
the
board,
Dr
Casey
I'm,
to
get
I'm
with
J.C,
vahoma
and
Catherine
O'donnell
today
for
our
annual
presentation.
Welcome,
thank
you
and
more
good
news
that
you've
been
hearing
all
day.
Tourism
is
back,
I
know,
you've
all
been
traveling,
but
going
right
into
the
holiday
season.
We
are
on
fire,
we're
at
record
levels.
B
B
This
shows
you
that
we
have
now
6.4
million
visitors
overnight.
These
are
the
numbers
from
Virginia
tourism
and
that
what
will
happen
is
that
the
travel
expenditure
for
Chesterfield
is
an
all-time
high.
These
numbers
just
came
out
last
month,
and
this
is
of
course,
significantly
higher
than
last
year,
but
it's
the
best
we've
ever
done
here.
B
This
is
just
a
reminder
of
our
three
parts
of
our
tourism
master
plan.
Mr
Holland
sits
on
our
board
the
headquarters.
Hotel
that
is
assisted
by
the
chairman
of
the
Greater
Richmond
Convention
Center,
Authority,
Dr,
Casey,
Regional,
inspiration,
campaign
with
the
chamber
and
Richmond
great
Richmond
partnership,
and
also
the
hospitality,
Workforce
Development.
B
And
then
this
is
to
just
remind
you.
These
are
the
secret
of
our
success.
These
are
the
four
pillars
of
travel,
tourists
and
Leisure
at
an
all-time
high
family
and
friends,
of
course,
with
the
holidays,
we're
just
killing
it
business
Travelers,
that's
where
we're
still
hurting,
but
not
as
bad
as
Northern
Virginia
or
the
major
cities,
and
then
meetings
conventions
and
sports
and
JC
will
touch
on
that.
C
Winslow
members
of
the
board,
Dr
Casey-
it's
great
to
be
here,
enjoying
our
friends
in
Parker,
Parks
and
Recreation
and
Sports
Backers
to
talk
about
sports
tourism,
but
also
I,
think
we'd
be
remiss
if
we
didn't
quickly
mention
the
profile
you
guys
have
with
the
Sheraton
the
Doubletree,
the
rising
shameen
Stonebridge
complex,
because
all
this
plays
A
Part,
Not,
Just,
Sports
tourism,
but
meetings
conventions
that
all
add
to
this
visitor
profile.
But
it's
been
a
record
year
for
our
meetings,
events
and
conventions,
including
Sports
tourism,
with
over
63
percent
increase.
Since
last
fiscal
year.
C
But
looking
at
Chesterfield,
County,
specifically
and
thanks
to
Mr
Luther
and
his
team
for
putting
together
these
numbers,
but
you'll
you'll
again
see
we're
trending
up
from
where
we
were
the
last
two
fiscal
years
and
and
big
impact
here
in
Chesterfield,
County,
but
I.
Think
if
you
look
at
that
direct
tax
revenue
number
1.28
million
Direct
in
tax
revenue
to
the
county,
that,
with
all
those
projects,
Mr
Harris,
talked
about
and
again
it
is
visitors
who
are
helping
us,
raise
our
profile
and
create
facilities
that
are
constituents
and
visitors
can
enjoy
alike
and
I.
C
Think
when
you
look
at
these
numbers,
we
must
remind
those
listening
and
those
in
front
of
us
here.
That's
what
Chesterfield
County
has
at
their
facilities
if
there's
an
event
in
other
parts
of
the
region,
whether
it's
you
know:
West
Creek,
Soccer,
Complex,
right
there
on
288.
Where
do
those
visitors
stay
right
here
in
Chesterfield
County
as
well?
So
again,
these
numbers
represent
what
you
see
here
in
Chesterfield
County
directly,
and
it's
been
a
great
year
thanks
to
Mr
Luther
and
his
team
and
everyone
here
in
the
county.
C
A
couple
weeks
ago
you
saw
this
Richmond
Times
Dispatch,
article
and
I.
Think
one
of
the
the
big
quotes
in
there
that
I'd
like
to
highlight-
and
this
is
thanks
to
you
as
Board
of
supervisor
members-
but
that
investment-
we
don't
do
what
we
do
without
the
investment
into
facilities
like
River,
City
Sportsplex,
without
a
new
investments
into
facilities
like
Horner,
Park
and
Ironbridge.
Again,
it's
investment
and
it's
the
team
you
have
in
here
in
Chesterfield
that
helps
us
win
these
bids
that
helps
bring
people
to
the
region
and
mostly
helps
fill
your
restaurants.
C
C
You
look
at
our
foundation
because
of
the
success
that
our
local
groups
have
had
here
in
Chesterfield
County
in
the
region.
It's
what
makes
our
Sports
tourism
profile
nationally,
extremely
well
known
when
you
create
that
local
base
and
operators
can
come
to
the
Richmond
region,
come
to
Chesterfield
County
and
know
that
they're
going
to
have
local
registration.
That's
what
helps
us
win
these
bids,
and
so
our
foundation
continues
to
give
back
to
these
local
groups
through
events
like
the
RVA
sports
awards
that
Mr
Holland
I
know
you
had
your
moment
there
with
Tiki.
C
How
can
you
guys,
as
Board
of
supervisor
members,
continue
to
help
Mr
Holland
I
know
you've
been
through
this,
but
continue
to
recommend
your
constituents,
your
employees
and
your
partners
to
become
IM
tourism
ambassadors
invite
your
friends
and
family
not
just
over
the
holidays.
We
have
so
much
to
see,
see
and
do
here
in
the
Richmond
region,
but
also
thinks
about
those
conferences,
those
associations,
you're
members
of,
and
also
thanks
to
all
of
you.
I
know
you
see
our
monthly
advocacy
emails,
but
help
us
continue
to
tell
that
story.
D
You
have
some
of
this
in
your
packets
and
your
economic
impact
brochure,
but
we're
seeing
some
interesting
changes
that
now,
since
the
first
time
since
the
pandemic,
more
than
more
visitors
are
coming
from
out
of
state
than
in
state,
which
is
a
great
shift,
and
you
can
see
some
of
the
markets
here.
New
York
has
become
a
great
market
for
us
for
leisure
travel,
which
is
new,
and
so
we're
able
to
tell
where
to
invest
our
marketing.
D
When
we
look
at
our
demographics,
they're
holding
pretty
steady
and
again,
this
is
in
the
impact
brochure
in
your
packet.
So
I
won't
spend
too
much
time
here,
but
part
of
what
we
need
to
do
is
to
get
the
Richmond
region
in
Chesterfield
County
on
The
Travelers
radar.
So
we
do
that
through
marketing
advertising
and
public
relations.
This
is
some
sample
articles
that
have
run
that
have
featured
places
in
Chesterfield
County.
That's
really
important,
because
we
can
only
do
so
much
with
the
advertising.
D
We
need
the
media
to
tell
the
story
and
convince
people
to
choose
our
region
as
a
destination
for
travel.
Similarly,
we
want
to
do
the
same
on
social
media,
so
our
our
social
media
has
a
great
following
and
we're
constantly
promoting
assets
all
over
the
region,
including
some
examples
here
from
Chesterfield
and
getting
activities
inspiring
folks,
both
locally
and
from
out
of
town
of
things
to
see
and
do
in
our
region.
D
We
have
a
very
brief
video
about
positioning
the
region
as
a
pet
friendly
destination.
However,
I
think
we're
going
to
skip
it
due
to
time,
but
we'd
be
happy
to
email
it
to
you
all,
but
we
know
that
folks
adopted
pets
during
the
pandemic,
so
we're
really
riding
that
Trend
and
doing
a
whole
marketing
campaign
for
people
to
bring
their
furry
friends
to
the
Richmond
region
on
vacation.
D
So,
look
for
that
in
your
email
later,
thanks
there,
it
is
I
want
to
skip
it
and
now
I
want
to
spend
the
shift
gears
away
from
marketing
and
talk
about
the
tourism
improvement
district
possibility
that
we've
been
working
on
I
believe
you
all
have
mostly
been
briefed
on
this
so
far,
but
the
purpose
of
the
Richmond
region,
tourism,
improvement
district,
is
to
create
additional
funding
that
will
drive,
Hotel,
visitation
and
and
room
night
generation
for
the
hotels
in
our
region
through
marketing
and
sales
activities.
D
D
We
have
also
been
socializing
it
with
hotels
across
the
region
for
the
better
part
of
six
to
eight
months,
so
we've
gotten
a
lot
of
buy-in
and
a
lot
of
support
on
on
this
concept,
and
so
the
way
this
would
work
is
that
in
the
funding
jurisdictions
that
we
represent,
I'm
sure
Chesterfield,
Hanover,
Henrico,
Ashland,
the
city
of
Richmond
and
Colonial
Heights.
All
Hotel
businesses
with
41
rooms
or
more
would
add
a
two
percent
fee
to
their
overnight
Bill
and
then
the
fee
goes
into
a
fund
that
is
managed
and
executed
by
Richmond
region.
D
Tourism,
in
partnership
with
a
governing
committee,
made
up
of
hoteliers
that
would
be
put
into
programming
specifically
and
legally
designed
to
benefit
the
hotels,
the
code
of
Virginia,
which
was
enacted
in
2021,
to
allow
these
mandates
that
the
pay
or
the
hotels
must
benefit
from
the
way
that
the
funds
are
spent
and
the
term
of
the
tid.
The
tourism
improvement
district
would
be
10
years.
D
So
examples
of
how
the
money
would
be
spent
would
be
Financial
incentives
to
secure
large-scale,
high-profile
sporting
events
and
conventions.
Leisure
marketing,
like
we
were
just
talking
about
just
to
take
that
message
even
further
and
drive
hotel
room
night
stays.
We
can
add
additional
market
segments.
We
can
only
reach
so
far
with
our
dollars
now,
but
if
we
have
more
investment,
we
can
go
to
different
markets
such
as
some
of
the
places
that
we're
seeing
direct
flights
just
recently
announced
from
the
airport.
D
So
there
would
be
an
annual
work
plan
that
we
would
put
forward
in
partnership
with
this
governance
committee
made
up
of
the
hoteliers
that
would
be
approved
by
them
with
a
budget
and
key
performance
indicators.
So
the
the
legal
document
that
you
will
see
and
we'll
be
asking
you
to
consider
later,
it's
sort
of
broad
on
how
you
can
spend
the
money,
because
we
want
to
be
flexible
since
it
is
a
10-year
plan
and
then
each
year
the
annual
budget
and
work
plan
will
be
very
specific
based
on
market
conditions.
D
So
the
estimation
for
the
first
year
of
collections
would
be
just
over
8
million
dollars,
and
you
can
see
here
the
draft
budget
spend.
This
is
the
again
at
the
direction
of
the
steering
committee.
The
bulk
of
the
money
would
go
towards
again
sales
and
marketing
initiatives
to
drive
business
there's
a
significant
contingency
in
reserve,
because
we
know
that
we
need
to
be
able
to
save
up
large
pots
of
money
to
use
as
incentives.
So
as
we
see
facilities
come
on
across
the
region,
places
like
green
City
places
like
River
City
Sportsplex.
D
D
So
the
process
for
this
is
that
we've
again
had
the
steering
committee
sort
of
leading
the
way
we've
been
socializing
this
with
the
hotels
for
the
last
several
months
and
with
government
leaders
and
the
entire
Richmond
region
and
we've
got
the
plan
approved.
We've
worked
with
your
county
attorney
and
the
attorneys
from
the
other
jurisdictions
to
have
the
legal
document
ready
and
we
launched
the
petition
process
just
two
weeks
ago.
D
So
after
that
process
wraps
up,
which
is
what
we're
now,
hopefully,
by
the
end
of
the
year,
we'll
get
all
the
petitions
signed
and
ready
for
each
jurisdiction.
Then
it
would
come
to
you
all
for
considering
an
ordinance
that
would
enact
the
tid
for
Chesterfield
that
we
would
do
in
tandem
with
all
the
other
jurisdictions
with
it
taking
place.
Beginning
July
1
2023.
D
So
before
I'll
just
wrap
up
quickly
and
then
take
tid
questions
or
others,
if
you
have
it,
but
I
just
want
to
reiterate
that
you
know
our
team
at
Richmond
region.
Tourism
loves
this
community,
we're
experts
in
our
destination
and
we
have
a
passion
and
a
commitment.
That's
unmatched
and
every
day
we
work
to
bring
visitors
here
and
we're
very
proud
to
do
that
on
your
behalf
and
thank
you
for
your
time
and
we
look
forward
to
answering
any
of
your
questions.
Questions.
E
Mr
chair
just
to
comment,
you
know
we
sit
on
other
committees
in
the
region.
Capital
Region
airport
committee
is,
is
one
that
we
commission.
We
sit
on
and
we've
seen
through
our
reports.
There,
the
increase
in
flights
coming
in
to
the
Richmond
area
and
then
sitting
under
cbta,
looking
at
the
the
fuel
sales
tax
and
the
sales
tax
numbers
that
are
coming
in
that
are
actually
above
what
the
state's
projections
were.
A
I
would
just
say
you
know
we
rely
on
Richmond
region
tourism.
We
had
a
vaco
conference
course
this
week
and
we
had
a
panel
on
Sports
tourism
that
was
well
attended
and
had
Dennis
Bick
Meyer
and
Michael
Rojas
from
Prince
William
on
this
panel
with
me,
and
there
was
a
lot
of
interest
Statewide
from
localities.
Looking
to
start
this,
and
some
of
them
are
just
thinking
about
it
now,
and
so
we
had
a
really
good
discussion.
I
think
we
planted
some
seeds
and
I
just
want
to.
Thank
you
all,
because
you
all
are
the
backbone.
A
Behind
this
conversation
with
all
of
your
great
analytics
and
letting
us
know
year
over
year,
how
we're
doing
I
looked
back
in
time
and
in
2012
we
had
a
14.5
million
dollar
impact
from
Sports
tourism
in
Chesterfield.
Now
it's
34.5,
so
you
look
at
that
progress
just
in
10
years
and
I
think
your
progress
reports
help
us,
you
know
achieve
a
the
next
level
so
anyway,
we
appreciate
you
all
so
much
and
Jack.
Thank
you
and
JC
as
well.
Thank
you.
So
much.
F
I
just
want
to
say
thank
you
all
for
being
here
Jack.
We
greatly
appreciate
your
leadership
for
Richmond
region
tourism.
As
you
know,
we,
as
you
see
in
those
numbers,
families
travel,
that's
Mom,
Dad
and
the
children,
and
that
accounts
for
hotels,
restaurants
and
the
spending
in
our
location.
That's
very
important,
as
noted
vaco
was
here
this
past
week
and
that
impacts
again
hotels
or
restaurants
and
regard
to
tid
I.
F
Think
it's
well
planned
out
and
the
hotels
are
involved
in
that
and
that's
and
and
I
share
it
with
some
others
the
other
day
that
the
money
is
structured,
so
there's
not
spent
anywhere
and
everywhere.
It
has
a
focus
on
increasing
tourism
and
spending
on
tourism
in
this
area,
and
there
is
a
need,
I
know
from
my
service
on
the
board
for
a
number
of
years.
F
How
much
we
need
to
increase
that
so
I'm,
very
supportive
of
that
Ted
and
I
know
you're
going
to
spend
it
well
and
wisely,
and
that's
the
thing
I
can
assure
you
as
a
board
member
for
Richmond
Virginia
tourism.
Thank
you,
Dr
Miller.
G
Just
a
quick
question:
thank
you.
Mr
chairman
this
week,
Carnival
Cruise
Lines
announced
that
they're
going
to
be
coming
out
of
Norfolk,
which
is
a
really
big
deal.
I
was
curious
to
know.
If
you
already
been
thinking
about
I
know
it's
initial,
but
it's
just
how
we
could
benefit
from
that.
D
We
will
be
we
just
heard
about
it
too,
so
yeah,
it's
news
to
us
and
it's
very
exciting,
to
see
how
we
could
Market
folks
coming
to
this
region
on
their
way
there
or
on
the
way
back
if
they're
going
to
be
leaving
from
Norfolk.
So
we'll
come
back
to
you
with
some
some
ideas
on
that
yeah.
H
Right,
Mr,
chairman
you're,
doing
great
members
of
the
Board
of
Supervisors
Dr
Casey,
really
providing
a
really
quick
overview
here
on
on
some
different
sports
tourism
activities
that
are
really
driving
home.
H
The
point
I
think
you've
had
a
wonderful
presentation
from
Richmond
region,
tourism,
on
on
where
we
are
and
and
how
far
we've
gone,
but
we
I
want
to
give
some
overview
on
some
facilities,
but
also
why
it's
so
important
for
attracting
people
to
come
here
to
live
in
Chesterfield
to
move
their
businesses
here
and
how,
in
instead
of
having
to
pay
people
to
come
here
and
check
out
Chesterfield
County
they're
paying
to
come
here
and
check
out
Chesterfield
County.
So
we
have
our
tacky
light
run.
H
We
had
a
wonderful
turnout
during
the
pandemic
and
we're
going
to
have
the
event
again
this
year,
December
10th,
believe
it
or
not.
It's
going
to
be
our
10th
year.
Walton
Park
goes
all
out.
We
don't
always
get
to
pick
what
our
community
is
great
at
Chesterfield
County's
great
at
tacky
lights.
So
we
got
to
keep
this
going.
H
So
in
Delaware,
you're
you're
talking
about
12,
Synthetic,
Turf,
Fields,
all
lighted
very
similar
to
River
City.
They
used
to
have
Wi-Fi
restaurant
quality
concessions.
You
know
public
meeting
rooms
they
did
charge
for
parking,
but
but
it
really
was
a
wonderful
facility
is
a
wonderful
facility
through
a
sports
park.
Down
in
Winston-Salem
is
is
really
a
very
nice
facility,
13
full-size
soccer
fields,
11
grass,
four,
with
Turf
playground,
picnic,
shelter,
very
much,
Park
amenities.
It
is
a
very
well
planned
facility.
H
But
then,
if
you
look
at
the
future
of
of
River
City
and
how
you
all
of
a
sudden
jump
to
16
turf
fields,
instead
of
the
12
that
you
have
now
adding
the
the
walking
paths,
the
playground,
the
additional
bathrooms,
really
making
it
a
place
where
you
spend
the
day,
this
is
leaping
ahead
of
your
competition.
So
I
just
want
to
say:
congratulations
well
done!
You
know
too
often,
we've
been
telling
you
got
work
to
do
here.
We're
saying
you're
going
to
be
one
of
the
leaders
in
the
east
coast.
H
So
don't
think
of
this
as
competition
in
Virginia
I
think
this
is
how
we're
beating
Delaware
North
Carolina
Pocahontas
State
Park
throughout
the
pandemic.
Pocahontas
has
seen
just
use
goes
skyrocketing.
They
have
separated
their
mountain
bike
trails
from
their
hiking
trails,
they've
added
significant
miles
of
trails.
There
is
a
huge
opportunity
here
for
this
even
to
continue
to
grow.
So
so
we
look
forward
to
working
with
the
county.
We
think
there's
going
to
be
a
lot
of
activity
related
to
Pocahontas.
H
We
did
have
the
Ragnar
Trail
relay
return
this
past
year.
That
brings
about
2
000
people.
They
spend
the
night
out
there
running
and
camping
in
Pocahontas
State
Park.
They
had
a
two-year
Hiatus
because
of
the
pandemic,
but
they're
back
the
fall
line.
Trail
just
brief,
update,
43
miles
17
miles
in
Chesterfield
County
design,
build
sections
in
Chesterfield,
County
will
be
starting
in
2023.
23
miles
of
the
trail
should
be
going
out
to
bid
in
2023,
so
we
are
seeing
all
sorts
of
action.
H
This
was
a
recent
field
trip.
We
took
we
had
a
great
turnout
of
staff
from
throughout
all
seven
jurisdictions,
but
Chesterfield
was
well
represented.
We
went
up
to
the
DC
area
and
checked
out
the
trails
there
and
bringing
the
best
practices
back
here.
So
we
look
forward
to
working
with
you
all
on
that.
H
A
You
questions
from
this
light
bill.
Sports
Backers,
you
know
one
of
the
things
you
met
you
touched
on
with
Pocahontas
I
mean
we
can
get
so
much
more
use
out
of
that
that
State
Park,
it's
still
a
Hidden,
Gem
and
people
just
don't
know
it's
there.
It's
amazing
and
so
I
really
appreciate
your
effort,
your
organization's
efforts
to
make
that
happen
again,
providing
good
data
for
us
to
be
able
to
go
off
of,
and
how
do
we
make
this
better?
How
do
we
make
this
experience
more
attractive
and
more
engaging
for
everyone.
H
Yeah
and
I
think
the
fact
that
the
state
park
and
the
state
forest
have
merged
into
one
8.
000
acre
Park
really
opens
up
a
lot
of
the
park
for
additional
recreational
amenities,
whereas
before
it
was
largely
kept
for
a
state
forest,
so
so
I
think
that's
a
change
that
it
happened
10
years
ago,
but
it
takes
a
while
for
some
of
that
to
change
into
what's
actually
on
the
ground.
E
Don't
forget
they
have
campgrounds
there.
They
have
some
beautiful
house
structures
that
they
built
in
the
last
couple
years.
Joe
I
think
you've
actually
stayed
in
one
of
them.
I
think
Jesse
did
too,
and
they
also
have
equine
events
that
they
hold
there
with
all
the
horse
trails
on
the
southern
part
of
so
there's
a
lot
more
than
just
biking
and
hiking
at
Pocahontas
and
the
water
facilities.