Elgin tourism bureau CEO urges city council not to cut funding
Some Elgin City Council members were receptive to setting up a one-year contract with the Elgin Area Convention and Visitors Bureau after the head of the agency pleaded Wednesday for its funding not to be cut.
Kim Bless, the bureau's president and CEO, proposed establishing a one-year purchase-of-service agreement with defined objectives. "Set those goals for us and give us a year to show you the return on investment that we can deliver," Bless told the council Wednesday night.
The 2018 budget proposed by City Manager Rick Kozal includes no money for the bureau, which has received a portion of the city's hotel/motel taxes since the 1980s. This year, that amounted to about $212,500.
Mayor David Kaptain said he's pleased the bureau plans to launch an "Explore Elgin" branding campaign. The bureau's website prominently markets the entire northern Fox Valley, but Elgin accounts for the vast majority of the bureau's local funding.
"(Cutting) $200,000 is not going to balance our budget," Kaptain said of the city's $258 million budget. "I'm willing to look at this for a year."
Council members Corey Dixon and Rose Martinez also said they support the bureau.
Councilwoman Tish Powell said she'd be hesitant to cut funding for the bureau because city staff members haven't presented an alternate plan. "If the convention bureau went away, how do we maintain the amount of work that's being done?" she said.
Powell and Councilman Toby Shaw also said they want to get clear financial and budget information from the bureau.
The bureau needs matching local funding to get a state grant, which this fiscal year amounted to about $200,000, Bless said. The bureau also gets up to $25,000 in revenues from ad sales in the visitors guide, she said.
Out of a total budget of about $435,000, about half goes to salaries for one part-time staff member and three full-timers, including Bless, whose salary last year was $122,000, Bless said. She did not answer a question from the Daily Herald about her current salary.
Bless touted some of the bureau's accomplishments over the years, such as the Sparks Softball tournament, which has brought an estimated $4.4 million in economic impact to the area since 2006. The figure is based on industry estimates about how much attendees spend on hotels, restaurant and shopping, she explained.
A few supporters of the bureau spoke Wednesday, including David Bear of Bear Family Restaurants and a representative from Quality Inn in Elgin.
Marilou Pilman, marketing manager for Grand Victoria Casino, said the bureau has served as an extension of the casino's marketing team. "Kim and her staff have always been quick to proactively offer their support and assistance," she said.
Pilman and Martinez serve on the bureau's board of directors.
The city council will discuss the budget plan again on Dec. 6 and 9 and will take a final vote before Christmas. The city's fiscal year starts Jan. 1.