Travel and Tourism report

The Hot Springs County Travel and Tourism board met for its January meeting and addressed several marketing decisions and received an overview of their strategic plan from a consultant.

In the financial report, treasurer Matt Hughes said that the lodging tax spending showed receipts for December at $18,625.92. For spending related to COVID, expenses from March 20, 2020, until December 20, 2020, totaled at $59,554.23.

In Jackie Dorothy’s director’s report, she said that December saw low occupancy which is average for the area during this time of year. They will continue to change the narrative so that visitors will see them as a year-round destination.

Dorothy formally presented the slogan “Find Yourself in Hot Water” and asked if the board would vote to make it their official slogan. After some discussion, the board voted and approved the slogan as official.

The Signage Program was also addressed. Dorothy said this is big problem they need to tackle by getting proper signage set up in the county. Board chair Carl Leyba will be putting together two subcommittees with community members to deal with employment issues and proper signage.  

Wrapping up her director’s report, Dorothy said they are working on their new website and “plunging into the world of sitemaps and creative verbiage.”

In old business, the board finalized their termination letter to AdBay. They also discussed getting the proper language for their investment strategy for their compliance matters. 

Bob Roos brought up the need of getting the funds acquired for testing the hot springs waters and see if they can prove that the hot springs mineral water kills the COVID virus. State Park’s Kevin Skates pulled back on getting money and is looking for grants. The cost of the test is $9,000. After much discussion, the board considered a proposal to partner with Saratoga Hot Springs, the Hot Springs State Park and the tourism board and approach the governor’s office as a whole seeking money for the testing. Not only could they test the hot springs here, but also in Saratoga. Board members said it would be worth asking. Leyba said they will send a letter to the Wyoming Office of Tourism and the Governor’s office and seek $20,000 to get the test over and done with. Leyba said that if they can prove the hot springs mineral water can successfully kill the COVID virus and even other diseases, it would increase visitations to the Hot Springs State Park.

The board spent some time looking over billboard locations in Wyoming. The board is receiving a buy one, get one free billboard placement for one year from the company Lamar. After much discussion, they decided to place a billboard in Gillette and another in Cheyenne.

The board reviewed the Strategic Report from Berkely Young which was presented by Darren Rudloff. Rudloff spoke with the board via Zoom and said that they interviewed 34 people for the study. He said that Hot Springs County is the top iconic attraction for the area because it has the hot springs, the Wind River Canyon, the state park and the dinosaur museum.

The Strategic Plan stated, “Hot Springs County is a unique and remarkable corner of the world shaped by nature.… In 2019, travel generated $27.1 million in visitor spending in Hot Springs County, ranking 20th in travel impact among Wyoming’s 23 counties. Travel spending has grown at an annual rate of 1.7% from 207 to 2019 compared to the statewide average of 3.7%. About 250 jobs were attributed to travel and tourism in the county.” The Mission of the board is to promote and develop the county travel industry as a vibrant, year-round industry benefiting local residents and the economy. 

The meeting ended with the board accepting the resignation of Bob Spain, who was entering retirement. Leyba thanked Spain for his time and patience and for keeping them on track. Spain served for three years from 2017 to 2020.