Mammoth Lakes Tourism Board

Minutes of Regular Meeting

Monday, January 06, 2025 at 1:00 P.m. - 3:30 P.m.

437 Old Mammoth Road, Suite Z, Mammoth Lakes

Members Present:

• Chair Pat Foster, 
• Vice Chair Eric Clark, 
• Treasurer John Morris, 
• Secretary John Mendel, 
• Board Member John Wentworth, 
• Board Member Kirk Wallace, 
• Board Member Cristi Quesada-Costa, 
• and Board Member Mary Beth Ericson 

Members Absent:

• Board Member Tom Parker 

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1.

CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL

Chair Pat Foster called the meeting to order at 1:02 p.m. in the Council Chambers located at 437 Old Mammoth Road. 

2.

BOARD MEMBER REPORTS

Chair Pat Foster reported that he was part of the new Chief's Advisory Committee which would meet once a month and spoke about the purpose of the Committee. Chair Foster said that he had taken the Resident Sentiment Survey and encouraged the rest of the Board to take it.

Board Member Cristi Quesada-Costa joined the meeting at 1:04 p.m.

Board Member Kirk Wallace said that his restaurant was busy over the past two weeks.

Board Member Cristi Quesada-Costa announced that today was Three Kings Day and explained the significance of the day. Ms. Quesada-Costa reported that her business had been very busy, and that they had a hit and run on the ranch on Thanksgiving involving multiple vehicles, and asked that MLT create an educational video about driving in the snow.

Board Member Mary Beth Ericson reported that the Mammoth High School Booster Club's Christmas Tree Sale in the new location was very successful. Ms. Ericson said that her lodging business had been slammed since Canyon Lodge opened, however, the Average Daily Rate (ADR) had trended lower, and said that she felt the transition to the new Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) would become challenging in June.

Vice Chair Eric Clark reported that the holiday season on the Mountain was not busy early on, but picked up after the Night of Lights. Mr. Clark said that some schools were still off this week and he expected it to stay busy. He said that they had 108 inches of snow at this point which was helped by the last storm. He said that the booking pace picked up over the past month and was ahead of this time last year, with their busiest days being January 3rd and 4th since blackout dates had been put in place. 

Secretary John Mendel reported that his business was open fourteen days straight for the first time and slammed every day and discussed the different age groups of the crowds he saw at his business on blackout versus non-blackout days.

Treasurer John Morris provided an update on lodging over the holidays. Mr. Morris said that not having a big storm over the December holidays made it easier to get around Town this year in the midst of the crowds and said that advanced bookings looked good for the rest of the year.

There was discussion among members of the Board.

3.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Public Comments may be sent via email to the Town of Mammoth Lakes Assistant Clerk before or during the meeting at or may be made via Zoom or in person during the meeting in Suite Z. All comments will be limited to a speaking time of three minutes.

There were no comments given at this time.

4.

CONSENT AGENDA

• Moved by Board Member Mary Beth Ericson
  Seconded by Secretary John Mendel

  Approve the Consent Agenda.

  For (7)	Chair Pat Foster, Vice Chair Eric Clark, Treasurer John Morris, Secretary John Mendel, Board Member Kirk Wallace, Board Member Cristi Quesada-Costa, and Board Member Mary Beth Ericson
  Absent (2)	Board Member John Wentworth, and Board Member Tom Parker

  Carried (7 to 0)

4.1

Approve the minutes of the Regular Meeting of December 9, 2024

5.

POLICY MATTERS

5.1

TOML Parks and Recreation Update from Stuart Brown - Brief update on current happenings with Town Parks and Recreation

Town of Mammoth Lakes (TOML) Parks and Recreation Director Stu Brown outlined the information in the Community Recreation Winter Update.

Board Member John Wentworth joined the meeting at 1:34 p.m.

There was discussion between Mr. Brown, President and CEO John Urdi, and members of the Board.

5.2

Winter Air Service Update - Overview of winter 2024-25 service for both MMH and BIH

President and CEO John Urdi outlined the information in the Air Service Update.

There was discussion between Mr. Urdi and members of the Board.

5.3

Board Meeting Schedule Discussion

Due to increasing conflicts with the first Wednesday of the month, Board to discuss a possible day and time change for the regularly scheduled meetings moving forward. The Board will discuss and may vote to adjust the regular meeting day and time.

President and CEO John Urdi discussed the need to consider changing the monthly meeting schedule due to conflicts with his positions on the Boards of Cal Travel and Visit California. 

There was discussion between Mr. Urdi and members of the Board.

5.4

Financial Reports

Receive an update regarding the financial health of the Mammoth Lakes Tourism and the results of the previous month for Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT), the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) and current account balances.

President and CEO John Urdi outlined the information in the Financial Reports.

There was discussion between Mr. Urdi and members of the Board.

6.

DEPARTMENT UPDATES

A brief recap of past, current, and future efforts of each department.

6.1

Community Engagement

Receive an update on community engagement efforts from Vice President, Community Engagement Betsy Truax.

Vice President, Community Engagement Betsy Truax gave an update on recent community engagement activities. Ms. Truax reported that the Winter Driving and Chain Use videos had launched and that the Resident Sentiment Survey would close Friday, and encouraged everyone to take it. She provided an update on the special event funding process, and said that representatives from Ink, United's Creative Agency, had been in Town December 12th through the 16th and said the content for the piece they would publish would include an interview and time on the Mountain with President and CEO John Urdi as well as time with Vice Chair Eric Clark, and a segment on the Westin and segment about winter off mountain activities. She thanked locals Gabe Taylor and Deena Kastor who were the hosts for their visit.

There was discussion between Ms. Truax, Mr. Urdi, and members of the Board.

6.2

Digital Marketing

Receive an update regarding digital marketing efforts from Digital Marketing Manager Samantha Lindberg.

Board Member John Wentworth left the meeting at 2:14 p.m.

Digital Marketing Manager Samantha Lindberg provided an update on digital marketing and social media efforts and activity.

There was discussion between Ms. Lindberg and members of the Board.

6.3

Local Marketing

Receive an update regarding local marketing efforts from Marketing Manager Emily Bryant. 

Marketing Manager Emily Bryant gave an update on recent local marketing activities. Ms. Bryant said that a Special Events Poster had been created in time to put out in the community for the holidays to advertise upcoming summer events.

There was discussion between Ms. Bryant and members of the Board.

6.4

Content Marketing

Receive an update regarding content marketing efforts from Content Marketing Manager Laura Wattles.

Content Marketing Manager Laura Wattles provided an update regarding content marketing efforts and reported that the printed version of the 2025 Visitor Guide had been stocked in all the racks Town in time for the holiday crowds.

There was discussion between Ms. Wattles and members of the Board.

7.

OTHER STANDING UPDATES

7.1

Mammoth Resorts Update - Eric Clark

Brief update on Mammoth Mountain news, activity, and operations.

Vice Chair Eric Clark gave an update on Mammoth Mountain Ski Area (MMSA) news, activities and operations. Mr. Clark reported that The Village hosted an amazing New Year's Eve celebration, the Après events on the Mountain had been very popular, and the new restaurant, Soaring Pines Cafe, at Woolly's Adventure Summit had opened.

There was discussion among members of the Board.

7.2

Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce Update - Tom Parker

Brief update on Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce news, activity, and operations.

Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Brianna Goico gave an update on recent Chamber events and activities. Ms. Goico announced that this month's Power Lunch would be hosted by Mammoth Hospital on January 21st at Parallax with a presentation from Dr. Karch regarding how he uses Artificial Intelligence in his surgeries. She said the Annual Chamber Ski Hour Plus would take place that morning at 10:00 a.m. She also reported that the Chamber would like to start a Hispanic Business Association and said they would host an all Spanish "Connecting with Hispanic Business Owners" event on January 28th with Chamber Membership Manager Marcy Castro presenting information about the Chamber, staff from MLT discussing Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID), and Town of Mammoth Lakes (TOML) Revenue Specialist Lupita Lopez on hand to speak about TBID remittance. Ms. Goico reported that the Chamber had recently published their 2025-2028 strategic goals and priorities, which could be found on their website and would be posted in the Mammoth Times soon.

There was discussion between Ms. Goico and members of the Board.

7.3

Town Council Update - John Wentworth

Brief update on Town Council news, activity, and operations.

There was no report given.

8.

ADJOURNMENT

The next regular meeting is scheduled to be held on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. Due to scheduling conflicts with President and CEO Urdi's commitments with Visit California and Cal Travel the February and March Board meetings will need to be rescheduled.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:35 p.m.