Tourism Commission

Tourism Commission Minutes City of Bellingham, Washington Tuesday 3:30 PM Mayor’s Boardroom, City Hall 210 Lottie St Bellingham, May 27, 2025 WA 98225 https://meetings.cob.org Call to Order The Tourism Commission meeting (no video) was called to order by the Chair, Peter Fraizer, at 3:32 PM. Members: Council Representative: ☒ Peter Frazier (Tourism Commission Chair) ☒ Hollie Huthman, LTAC Chair ☐ Christine Jenkins, LTAC ☒ Craig Jewell Ex-Officio: ☒ Kevin Coleman, LTAC ☒ Dylan Deane-Boyle, BWCT ☒ Marc Blake, LTAC ☒ Maria Coltharp, Whatcom Museum ☒ Matt Lesinski ☒ John Purdie, Mt Baker Theater ☒ Nick Kelly, LTAC ☒ Sara Holliday, LTAC Staff/ Other Panelists: ☒ Stephanie Morrell, LTAC ☒ Tara Sundin, PCDD ☒ Todd Elsworth ☒ Taylor Webb, PCDD ☒ Darby Galligan, PCDD Approve Meeting Minutes Motion to approve the meeting minutes from the April meeting with small edit by Todd Elsworth, seconded by Kevin Coleman. All in favor, motion passes. Minutes approved. Edit is to remove “LTAC” next to Matt Lesinski’s name and put instead by Kevin Coleman’s name. This change was voted on at the beginning of 2025 and was misrepresented in the minutes to date. Agenda Items Tourism Commission 1. 2026 Tourism Grant Application Updates To ensure equitable access to grant funding, the City is working toward shifting all application processes online – including the annual Tourism Grants. Staff gave a demonstration of the new web-based Tourism Grant Application by explaining the functionality and answering questions. The application itself was not changed from the previous year, it was only updated to an online format. A few Commissioners reviewed the application ahead of time and requested minor revisions to the application. Through the meeting discussion, a few additional revisions were requested including adding data entry fields related to the previous history section and ensuring the applicants will receive proper receipt upon application submission. It was also recommended that the Hotel Collaboration form be updated to ensure hoteliers are able to provide post- event reporting metrics on room nights. Then, Staff proposed the Tourism Grant evaluation criteria be updated to reflect the guiding principles stated in the newly adopted 2025-2030 Bellingham Tourism Strategic Plan. The changes included added language from the Plan into the criteria descriptions and adding a new category that awards points to events in the off- peak season. It also shifted associated point values to more appropriately weight the different components of the application. Motion to approve the online tourism grant application with the agreed upon revisions by Marc Blake, second by Sara Holliday. All in favor, motion passes. Tourism online grant application approved. Motion to approve the revisions to the tourism grant evaluation criteria with the agreed upon revisions by Matt Lesinski, seconded by Kevin Coleman. All in favor, motion passes. Evaluation criteria approved. Other Business For the Good of the Order, Legislative Issues, and Announcements • Darby shared an update on Downtown Activation & Beautification funded projects o The immersive art experiences are still open with free access upcoming during the June Art Walk. o The Windows Alive! projects have been well-received. BTV created a video about the project: A New Mural Is in the Works at the Whatcom Museum o The final design for the Lakeway underpass mural was shared. The design was well-received by Commissioners. o Staff will be working with Happy Cities and WWU students to study the impacts of the Setting Sun Alley activations by collecting data before and after the alley activations have been installed. The study will help us determine project success with measurable data which is more difficult for tourism projects that intend create long-term activation and beautification of a space compared to events. o Other projects not funded by Tourism – Trike Trak mural placed on the Rite Aid building, Procession of the Species, Find Billy sculptures, and bike polo in the Commercial Street Parking Garage. • Tara shared that the June Tourism Commission will be focused on the budget and will likely include a 2025 budget request for World Cup. • BWCT new video: What Does Local Tourism Do For You? - YouTube • Peter shared that the current phot exhibit at the Whatcom Museum is spectacular! • Folks shared anecdotes about Ski to Sea’s success and large tourism draw. Public Comment No public comment was given. Upcoming Meetings • June meeting 6/24 Meeting adjourned at 4:58pm. Minutes prepared by: Taylor Webb, Development Specialist II Minutes edited by both staff and Tourism Commission members.