Mammoth Lakes Tourism Board

Minutes of Regular Meeting

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437 Old Mammoth Road, Suite Z, Mammoth Lakes
Members Present:
  • Chair Jeremy Goico, 
  • Vice Chair Pat Foster, 
  • Treasurer John Morris, 
  • Secretary John Mendel, 
  • Board Member Eric Clark, 
  • Board Member Larry Crabb, 
  • Board Member Deb Radcliff, 
  • and Board Member Bill Sauser
Members Absent:
  • Board Member Darlene Magner

Vice Chair Pat Foster called the meeting to order at 1:04 p.m. in the Council Chambers located at 437 Old Mammoth Road. 

Vice Chair Pat Foster reported that summer service with Advanced Airlines had wrapped up and that he was prepping for winter service. Mr. Foster gave kudos to staff for the fall colors information they were promoting on VisitMammoth.com and said that he along with members of his family that were visiting used it to go out leaf peeping.

Treasurer John Morris announced that the Snowcreek Golf Course and the Sierra Star Golf Course would both close on Sunday. Mr. Morris encouraged everyone to register to vote and said there were important local issues on the ballot.

Secretary John Mendel reported that he had spoken with constituents recently and had come to the conclusion that MLT needed to work on reporting what they did and did not do and what did and did not work, possibly in the form of a Annual Report distributed to the community. 

Board Member Larry Crabb said that he had noticed an uptick in international visitations as well as an increase in families with school age kids in town even though school was back in session.

Board Member Bill Sauser said that he had gone on a ride recently with a group of locals including Mr. Foster and had enjoyed the fall colors. Ms. Sauser encouraged everyone to vote and advised everyone to pay close attention to the Town Council Candidate Forums and to educate themselves on the candidates. He agreed that MLT had to educate our locals including the workforce about what MLT did and how it affects all of us.

Chair Jeremy Goico congratulated MLT staff on a successful and informative open house last week and for the videos they had produced and presented with locals talking about sustainability and tourism in Mammoth Lakes. Chair Goico also complimented the staff on the new marketing program.

There was discussion between Executive Director John Urdi and members of the Board.

There were no comments given at this time.

  • Moved byBoard Member Bill Sauser
    Seconded byBoard Member Deb Radcliff

    Approve the Consent Agenda

    For (8)Board Member Bill Sauser, Treasurer John Morris, Chair Jeremy Goico, Board Member Eric Clark, Vice Chair Pat Foster, Secretary John Mendel, Board Member Larry Crabb, and Board Member Deb Radcliff
    Absent (1)Board Member Darlene Magner
    Carried (8 to 0)

Executive Director John Urdi announced that there was a joint meeting scheduled between MLT and the Town Council on November 2nd and urged members of the Board to attend.

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

Senior Manager of Marketing and Events Dakota Snider outlined the information in the Special Events Summer Recap Report.

Secretary John Mendel announced that the Rotary Club was holding an Oktoberfest at The EATery at Mammoth Brewing Company on October 13th.

There was discussion between staff and members of the Board.

Senior Manager of Marketing and Events Dakota Snider outlined the information in the Mammoth Lakes Facelift 2022 Recap Report. Mr. Snider thanked all of the volunteers and sponsors of the event.

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

Executive Director John Urdi and Director of Marketing Brian Wright outlined the information in the Real Unreal Marketing Campaign Presentation.

There was discussion between staff and members of the Board.

Request the MLT Board appoint a three-member ad hoc TBID appeal committee for a restaurant and a retail business appeal – Board to select three members to hear appeal.

Executive Director John Urdi outlined the information in the Financial Reports and requested that three members of the Board be appointed to an Ad Hoc TBID Appeal Committee for an upcoming restaurant and a retail business appeal.

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

Vice Chair Pat Foster, Treasurer John Morris and Board Member Deb Radcliff volunteered to be on the Ad Hoc TBID Appeal Committee.

Director Of Sales and International Marketing Michael Vanderhurst gave an update on international sales activities. Mr. Vanderhurst reported that MLT had hosted several members of the media from around the globe over the past month or so, including an influencer from France in partnership with the High Sierra Visitor Counsel and Visit California, and a writer from Mexico which MLT had hosted in partnership with Alterra and Mammoth Resorts. He said that MLT had a big media placement from the U.K. in the Sunday Times. He said that their push with international travelers was  midweek visitation. Mr. Vanderhurst recently attended the Brand USA Travel Week conference and promoted multi-night stays in Mammoth Lakes for the summer of 2023 in addition to winter visitation, and reported that there was a huge demand to travel internationally and specifically to California.

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

This reported was tabled until the next meeting.

This item was taken out of order.

Director of Marketing Brian Wright gave an update on marketing events and activities. Mr. Wright said that he and Executive Director John Urdi recently attended the Cal Travel Summit and reported that the Mammoth Mountain travel package that they had provided was the highest bid package at the event and had raised for $14,000 for Cal Travel.

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

Senior Manager of Marketing and Events Dakota Snider gave an update on recent special events and social media activity. Mr. Snider announced that there would be an end of season social hour for event producers on November 14th and said that they would announce the details for next year's special event funding during that event.

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

Marketing Manager Emily Bryant gave an update on recent local marketing activities. Ms. Bryant thanked the locals that part in the sustainability and tourism video, and announced that she would appear in a Visit California video to talk about tourism. She said that she was available to meet with new staff members in Town to talk about the new campaign and any other information about Mammoth that may be helpful, and requested updates from local businesses regarding seasonal changes to their hours of operation.

Executive Director John Urdi promoted the Yiftee Gift Card and urged businesses to join the program

There was discussion between staff and members of the Board.

Digital Marketing Coordinator Patrick Griley gave an update on social media activities. Mr. Griley spoke about the popularity of fall colors on social media and reported that he had been out taking photos in the area to update the Fall Colors webpage on the Visit Mammoth website.

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

Board Member Eric Clark gave an update on Mammoth Mountain Ski Area (MMSA) news, activities and operations. Mr. Clark provided an update on capital improvement projects at the Mountain and announced that opening day this year was set for November 11th, or sooner if we get early snow. He reported that Woolly's tubing lanes would be expanded and realigned to create safer conditions and said that they would build a lodge at Woolly's and run their snowmobile operations and other some other components out of that location in the future.

There was discussion among members of the Board.

Chair Jeremy Goico gave an update on the Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce news, activities and operations. Chair Goico reported that there was a good turnout for the Town Council Candidate Forum on Tuesday and thanked Councilmember Kirk Stapp and Mayor Lynda Salcido for their assistance with the event, and Mammoth Lakes Chambers of Commerce Executive Director Ken Brengle for moderating. He said that a recording of the Forum would be available on the Chamber's YouTube page by Monday. He reported that the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) event last week was a success. Chair Goico said that the Business Excellence Gala would take place on November 3rd at 5:00 p.m. at Canyon Lodge, and said that voting would be open until Monday, tickets were available online and that they were looking for volunteers. Chair Goico announced the following events: Business After Hours October 18th hosted by Mammoth Prestige Properties Services, Sierra Jewelry and Mammoth Holistics, Customer Service Training November 15th at noon for management and 4:00 p.m. for frontline staff, and a second session for frontline staff November 16th at 9:00 a.m.

There was discussion between Executive Director John Urdi and members of the Board.

Board Member Bill Sauser gave an update on Town Council news, activities and operations. Mr. Sauser gave an update on the Community Recreation Center (CRC) and said that it could potentially open in February, and said that the old Ice Rink was scheduled to open the Friday after Thanksgiving. He spoke about the Town's partnership with the Los Angeles Kings and said that this months "Did You Know?" piece from the Town focused on Housing. 

There was discussion among members of the Board.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:02 p.m. to the next regular meeting scheduled to be held on Wednesday, November 2, 2022.