AGENDA DATE: 6/13/2018
TITLE:
Title
Charlottesville-Albemarle Convention and Visitors’ Bureau Agreement
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Public hearing to consider the approval of a new Agreement to Operate a Joint Convention and Visitors’ Bureau Agreement
ITEM TYPE: Consent Action Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Richardson, Kamptner, Johnson
PRESENTER (S): N/A
LEGAL REVIEW: Yes
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: The City of Charlottesville and the County have jointly funded and undertaken the operation of a joint convention and visitors’ bureau since 1979 for the purpose of promoting the Charlottesville-Albemarle area as a tourist destination and site of convention facilities. The Charlottesville-Albemarle Convention and Visitors’ Bureau is currently funded and operated pursuant to a July 1, 2004 agreement between the City and the County.
In December 2017, the Board and the City Council notified the CACVB to terminate the current agreement, effective June 30, 2018.
STRATEGIC PLAN: Economic Prosperity: Foster an environment that stimulates diversified job creation, capital investments, and tax revenues that support community goals
Quality Government Operations: Ensure County government’s capacity to provide high quality service that achieves community priorities
DISCUSSION: The December 19, 2017 Notice of Termination from the Board to the CACVB not only stated the reasons for terminating the current agreement, but also established the framework for the new CACVB that would be established by the proposed Agreement to Operate a Joint Convention and Visitors’ Bureau (the “Proposed Agreement”) (Attachment A).
The significant provisions in the Proposed Agreement are:
1. Organization: The organization of the CACVB would be changed so that would be led by an Executive Board composed of County and City representatives (3 representatives each), a representative from the University of Virginia, and two representatives from the local tourism industry. The Executive Board also would have four non-voting members. The current Management Board, which currently leads the CACVB and whose membership are primarily representatives from the local tourism industry, would become the Advisory Board. The Advisory Board would act in an advisory capacity to the Executive Board. Those persons currently serving on the Management Board would continue to serve on the Advisory Board until their term expires. Reappointments and vacancies would be filled by the Executive Board.
2. Services and Performance Measures: The current agreement delineates the services to be provided by the CACVB and the performance measures to be applied. The Board believed that the services provided under the current agreement, and how they were implemented by the CACVB, had not kept up with the ongoing evolution in tourism, and that new tourism markets were not being explored. In addition, the Board was concerned that the performance measures in the current agreement were no longer the correct metrics to measure the success and value of the CACVB. The Proposed Agreement will continue those identified services and performance measures, but only until the Executive Board adopts a new range of services and performance measures.
3. Employees: Under the current agreement, employees of the CACVB are City employees. The Proposed Agreement would make CACVB employees employees of the County beginning on or before January 1, 2019. County and City staff are working on the employment and benefits issues related to the transfer for the remaining CAVB employees to continue to serve on the Board until a successor is appointed. Any persons hired on and after July 1, 2018 to serve the CACVB would be County employees.
4. Fiscal Agent: The City is the fiscal agent under the current agreement. The County would become the fiscal agent under the Proposed Agreement on or before January 1, 2019. As fiscal agent, the County will assume a range of services for the CACVB, including accounting, human resources and payroll, information technology, procurement, and legal services. The County will also provide insurance to the CACVB.
The final language for the terms pertaining to employees and fiscal agency is still being worked on at the time this executive summary is being written. A final draft agreement will be provided before the Board meeting.
The City Council is expected to consider approval of the agreement on June 18, 2018.
BUDGET IMPACT: The County, as the CACVB’s fiscal agent, will be entitled to 2% of the CACVB’s funding level, the rate of which is unchanged from the current agreement. Based on the CACVB’s FY19 Budget, that amount is estimated to be $37,551 in FY19 (per the Office of Management and Budget). Staff estimates that the provision of insurance coverage to the CACVB will cost approximately $1,500 per year, and that the additional legal services and support of other County staff can be provided with the existing staffing levels.
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Board adopt the attached Ordinance (Attachment B) approving the final draft Agreement to Operate a Joint Convention and Visitors’ Bureau.
ATTACHMENTS:
A - Draft Agreement
B - Ordinance