Tourism board, PACC to share director

by Rhonda Swain

The Sublette County Joint Tourism Board and Pinedale Area Chamber of Commerce board members met Monday night to discuss the possibility of sharing a co-director.

In an interview Tuesday morning, tourism board member John Godfrey said the two entities agreed, in principle, to sharing a co-director, effective Dec. 11. Kathy and Eric Seechrist of Cutting Edge Marketing will serve as the director of both the PACC and the JTPB.

The two boards will negotiate a common contract to cover the relationship with the co-director and the arrangement between the respective boards.

In the past, there have been three contracts, which led to confusion and sometimes misunderstandings. Godfrey said with the new plan, the two organizations will closely cooperate in the development of marketing plans and joint efforts to promote tourism throughout Sublette County.

Godfrey said it is likely that an executive committee, made up of members from both boards, will be formed to interface with the new director on the behalf of both boards and to maintain open lines of communication which have plagued the respective boards in the past.

"Both parties look forward to quickly moving forward and eliminating the controversies that have troubled the process in the past," Godfrey said.

The lodging tax is expected to generate $110,000 in annual funding, of which 10 percent will be returned directly to the participating communities and the county. In a proportionate amount to the taxes collected, Pinedale will receive 70 percent of the rebate, the county 20 percent, with the remaining 10 percent going to Marbleton and Big Piney, Godfrey said.

In the last year, the lodging tax has been used to help local groups throughout the county promote their events. $22,000 was used for this purpose, with $4,250 of that amount going to youth groups in Sublette County.

Godfrey said the tourism board has budgeted $15,000 for continued grants for this fiscal year and nearly $70,0000 for general advertising. The monies are also used to underwrite the Sublette County Travelers' Guide which is distributed throughout the state at visitors' centers.

Despite the board's past problems, Godfrey said: "We are confident that a new spirit of cooperation has been found and we will work for the benefit of the entire county in promoting tourism.

"We have turned a corner and did some very positive things, I think," he concluded.