[00:00:02] I'D LIKE TO CALL TODAY'S TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL MEETING TO ORDER. [Items 1 - 3] LET'S DO THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. DANA. TROY BLEVINS WILL BE ABSENT. CHARLES COX HERE. MICHAEL. GORDON HERE. COMMISSIONER. KRISTA JOSEPH HERE. ERVIN KASS HERE. GAIL PHILLIPS. MAYOR DILLON RUMRILL. PRESENT. MAYOR NANCY SACHSE CLINE. AND MICHAEL WICKS. SO WE HAVE ENOUGH FOR A QUORUM NOW, RIGHT? ONE. TWO. THREE. FOUR. YEP. WE'RE GOOD. OKAY. [4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA] LOOKING FOR APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA. MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES. [5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES] SO MOVED. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. HI. HI. PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANYTHING THAT'S NOT RELATED TO TODAY'S AGENDA. HEARING NONE. WE'LL MOVE ON. TDC MEMBER APPLICATIONS. [7. TDC MEMBER APPLICATION RECOMMENDATIONS] SARAH. GOOD AFTERNOON. SARAH MAXFIELD, DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT. AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS THE TDC MEMBER. APPLICATION RECOMMENDATIONS. THE TERM OF THREE TDC MEMBERS EXPIRED IN FEBRUARY AND TO MAINTAIN COMPLIANCE WITH FLORIDA STATUTE 125 .0104. THESE SEATS SHALL BE FILLED BY ONE ACCOMMODATION REPRESENTATIVE, ONE NON ACCOMMODATION REPRESENTATIVE AND ONE REPRESENTATIVE WHO MAY EITHER BE IN ACCOMMODATION OR NON ACCOMMODATION REPRESENTATIVE AT THE JANUARY MEETING. A RECOMMENDATION WAS MADE TO REAPPOINT TROY BLEVINS AS AN ACCOMMODATION MEMBER AND REAPPOINT MR. CHARLES COX AS A NON ACCOMMODATION MEMBER. THE SOLICITATION FOR APPLICATIONS TO THE TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL WAS RE-ADVERTISED FOR A PERIOD OF 30 DAYS, AS REQUESTED. THE DEADLINE WAS ON FEBRUARY 28TH. THE UPDATED APPLICATION SUMMARY TABLE IS AS FOLLOWS. AND FOR THIS POSITION WE CAN SELECT EITHER A HOTEL OR AN ATTRACTIONS PERSON. THAT IS CORRECT. I'M TAKING NOMINATIONS FOR THE THIRD POSITION ON THE TTC. I'D LIKE TO NOMINATE MICHAEL HICKS. DO I HEAR A SECOND? SECOND. WE HAVE A NOMINATION IN A SECOND. AND SO WE JUST DO A VOTE. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED? AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN. NO. NUMBER EIGHT. [8. MARKETING MANAGEMENT SUB-CONTRACT STATUS UPDATE] I'D LIKE TO INVITE SUSAN TO COME ON UP AND SPEAK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE NEW MARKETING SUBCONTRACT STATUS. THEY HAVE CHOSEN A VENDOR, AND SHE'S GOING TO SPEAK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS. WELL, GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. I'M SUSAN PHILLIPS WITH THE VCB. I AM SO HAPPY TO BE HERE TODAY TO TELL YOU THAT WE HAVE FINALLY MADE IT THROUGH WHAT SEEMS TO BE A LONG, LONG PROCESS TO SELECT A NEW ADVERTISING AGENCY. JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF A SUMMARY, WE LAUNCHED AND SUBMITTED THE RFPS TO FOLKS BACK ON JANUARY 30TH. THEY HAD APPROXIMATELY A TWO WEEK TURN TIME SO THAT THEY HAD TO TURN THEIR THEIR PROPOSALS IN BY THE 14TH OF FEBRUARY. AND I'M JUST GOING TO GO THROUGH A FEW DETAILS BECAUSE I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO HEAR ALL OF IT BEFORE I TELL YOU WHO WAS FINALLY SELECTED. SO AFTER WE WE GOT ALL OF THE PROPOSALS IN, WE HAD 16 PROPOSALS THAT CAME IN. AND I HAVE TO TELL YOU, THESE WERE SOME REALLY WELL QUALIFIED ENTITIES. SOME OF THEM HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY FOR OUR ADVERTISING AGENCY, RFPS IN THE PAST. SOME HAD NOT. MOST OF THEM WERE PREDOMINANTLY ON THE EASTERN SEABOARD OR DOWN IN FLORIDA, AND THE PROPOSALS WERE VERY LENGTHY. THEY PUT A LOT OF THOUGHT INTO IT. MOST OF THE PROPOSALS WERE AROUND 100 PAGES. WE HAD A SELECTION COMMITTEE OF NINE INDIVIDUALS, AND THOSE NINE INDIVIDUALS HAD TO SCORE THESE PROPOSALS WITHIN ABOUT 4 OR 5 DAYS. AND I WILL TELL YOU THAT AFTER THE SCORING PROCESS WAS DONE AND WE DID HAVE A PUBLIC MEETING TO ANNOUNCE IT, WE DID A SHORT LIST OF THE TOP THREE AGENCIES. [00:05:03] THE TOP THREE AGENCIES WERE INVITED TO COME BACK A WEEK LATER IN PERSON. THEY HAD A 45 MINUTE PRESENTATION WITH THE SELECTION COMMITTEE, AND THAT WAS FOLLOWED BY 15 MINUTES OF Q&A. WE IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS SCORED EVERYONE AND AT THE END OF THE MEETING, HAD EVERYONE COME IN SO THAT WE COULD PUBLICLY ANNOUNCE WHO WAS SELECTED. AND I'M HERE TODAY TO TELL YOU THAT WE SELECTED THE TINSLEY ADVERTISING AGENCY OUT OF KEY WEST, FLORIDA OR OUT OF MIAMI, FLORIDA. THEY ACTUALLY HAVE DONE THE KEYS ADVERTISING FOR THE FLORIDA KEYS. THEY HAVE WON MANY, MANY AWARDS. THEY ARE VERY SHARP INDIVIDUALS. THEY GET IT. AND THEY EVEN WENT AHEAD AND WENT THE EXTRA MILE TO SHOW US THREE DIFFERENT COMPS OF WHAT WE COULD BE LOOKING AT FOR SOME NEW ADS. NOW, I DO WANT TO CAUTION YOU, WE'RE PROBABLY LOOKING AT 4 TO 6 MONTHS BEFORE A NEW ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN WILL ROLL OUT. THE PROCESS NOW IS ONCE WE NOTIFIED EVERYONE OF WHO WAS SELECTED, WE STARTED THE PROCESS TO COMPLETE A CONTRACT THAT WAS SENT OVER TO PURCHASING. I JUST RECEIVED IT BACK THIS MORNING WITH PURCHASING APPROVAL FOR THE COUNTY. I'LL BE SUBMITTING THAT TO THE TINSLEY AGENCY. WE'RE TRYING TO GET THIS WRAPPED UP BY THIS FRIDAY THE 14TH, AND THE GOAL IS AT THE END OF THE MONTH. OUR CURRENT ADVERTISING AGENCY, THEIR CONTRACT, EXPIRES. SO WE WILL START WITH TINSLEY ON THE 1ST OF APRIL. THEY WILL BE HERE TO BE ONBOARDED AND TO GET AN IMMERSION TOUR. LUCKILY, THEY ALREADY KNOW A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SAINT JOHN'S COUNTY, AND THEY'LL BE GETTING ONBOARDED IN EARLY APRIL AND IMMEDIATELY STARTING WORK. WE DO HAVE A BRIDGE PLAN AND PROCESS, A BRIDGE ADVERTISING PLAN WITH OUR CURRENT AGENCY, SO THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE DARK FOR A PERIOD OF TIME. IN THE MEANTIME, WE WILL INTRODUCE TINSLEY TO THE PETER MAYER GROUP SO THAT THEY CAN HELP WITH THE TRANSITION. AND AGAIN, I'M JUST VERY, VERY, VERY GLAD TO BE HERE AND VERY THANKFUL TO ALL OF YOU. IT'S BEEN A LONG PROCESS, BUT I THINK YOU'RE GOING TO BE VERY, VERY PLEASED WITH WHAT WE'LL SEE IN THE UPCOMING MONTHS, AND I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. THE FLOOR IS OPEN FOR QUESTIONS. ACTUALLY, I HAVE A COMMENT. OKAY. I'M EXCITED. THEY'RE FROM FLORIDA, SO THEY SHOULD REALLY KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING. AND IT JUST IT'S EXCITING. AND THANK YOU. GOOD JOB. THANK YOU THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. I HAVE ONE COMMENT. I'M THRILLED TO HEAR THERE WERE 16 APPLICATIONS. THAT'S THAT'S WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT A FEW MONTHS BACK THAT DOING THIS IN THIS MANNER WOULD GIVE US THE OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY FIND SOME OF THE BETTER TALENT IN THE COUNTRY. SO CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. AND I WILL SAY THAT THE SELECTION COMMITTEE, OUR EVALUATION COMMITTEE, WORKED VERY HARD. IT WASN'T AN EASY DECISION. I MEAN, WE HAD THREE WE HAD 16 FIRMS THAT WERE QUALIFIED PROBABLY OUT OF THE 16, MAYBE TEN WOULD HAVE HIT THE TOP RADAR. BUT OF THE THREE THAT WE LOOKED AT, THEY WERE VERY CLOSE. CLOSE IN THEIR SCORES. BUT TINSLEY DID HAVE SOME THINGS THAT REALLY PUT THEM AHEAD OF THE OTHERS. SO AGAIN, SUPER EXCITED AND I APPRECIATE ALL THE HELP THAT YOU GUYS AND SUPPORT THAT YOU'VE GIVEN TO US. GREAT JOB. THANK YOU. DIANA. [9. SING OUT LOUD UPDATE] GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS DIANA MARKOWITZ. I AM THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS FOR SJC CULTURAL EVENTS. WE OPERATE THE SAINT AUGUSTINE AMPHITHEATER, PONTE VEDRA CONCERT HALL, AND PRODUCE AND CURATE THE FORT MOSE JAZZ AND BLUES SERIES AND SING OUT LOUD FESTIVAL. I'M SO PLEASED TO BE HERE TODAY TO PRESENT TO YOU A RECAP OF SING OUT LOUD IN A PREVIEW OF SING OUT LOUD 2025. WHAT IS SING OUT LOUD. SING OUT LOUD IS THE ANNUAL MONTH LONG CELEBRATION OF LIVE MUSIC IN SAINT JOHNS COUNTY. IT'S FOUR WEEKENDS EVERY SEPTEMBER, USED TO BOLSTER THE LOCAL ECONOMY DURING THE SLOWEST TIME OF YEAR WE ARE NOW. LAST YEAR WAS ITS EIGHTH YEAR IN EXISTENCE. IT FEATURES PERFORMANCES BY LOCAL, REGIONAL AND NATIONAL ACTS TO SPOTLIGHT AND ENRICH OUR COMMUNITY. OVER 1600 PERFORMERS HAVE PARTICIPATED IN SING OUT LOUD SINCE IT STARTED IN 2016. IT FEATURES UNIQUE PROGRAMING AND AN EXTENSIVE MARKETING CAMPAIGN TO BOOST VISITATION BY OUT OF AREA MUSIC ENTHUSIASTS. TO DATE, OVER 330,000 PEOPLE HAVE ATTENDED SING OUT LOUD FESTIVAL. AND FINALLY, IT IS TO RAISE AWARENESS AND FUNDS TO GIVE BACK TO OUR COMMUNITY. THE LOCAL NONPROFITS AND INITIATIVES THAT MAKE OUR COMMUNITY GREAT. TO DATE, OVER $637,000 HAS BEEN DONATED TO LOCAL NONPROFITS AND INITIATIVES. LET'S TALK BRIEFLY ABOUT SEPTEMBER AND WHY SPECIFICALLY, SING OUT LOUD IS HELD IN SEPTEMBER. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THIS GRAPH, OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS, 2020 HAS TAKEN OUT THE DATA FOR 2020 HAS TAKEN OUT BECAUSE OF COVID, YOU HAVE AN AVERAGE OCCUPANCY RATE OF JUST 54.7%. THAT IS THE LOWEST OCCUPANCY RATE OF THE YEAR. WE KNOW BASED ON A TOURIST ECONOMY. WHEN TOURISM IS LOW, OUR ECONOMY STRUGGLES, RESTAURANTS, [00:10:05] ATTRACTION, ACCOMMODATION REVENUES DROP, STAFFING IS TRIMMED AND IT IS OVERALL A DOWNTURN IN OUR ECONOMY. WHAT IS THE ANSWER? WELL, SING OUT LOUD. ANSWER IS TO HOST EVENTS EVERY SINGLE WEEKEND IN SEPTEMBER. IN FACT, OVER 160 EVENTS WERE HELD THIS PAST SUMMER. THIS PAST SEPTEMBER, BOTH FREE AND TICKETED. WE KICKED IT OFF SEPTEMBER 6TH AND HAD FREE LOCAL ARTIST SHOWCASES AND COMMUNITY EVENTS, PLUS OUR MARQUEE WEEKEND AT FRANCIS FIELD ON SEPTEMBER 21ST AND 22ND AND WRAPPED IT UP WITH THE SAINT AUGUSTINE SONGWRITERS FESTIVAL AT THE END OF THE MONTH. IN ADDITION TO THE PROGRAMING, WE LAUNCHED A MASSIVE MARKETING CAMPAIGN THAT LASTED MARCH THROUGH SEPTEMBER. $1.56 MILLION IN MARKETING WAS SPENT TO THESE TARGET CITIES. AS YOU CAN SEE, UP AND DOWN THE SOUTHEASTERN COASTLINE, 202 MILLION IMPRESSIONS WERE GARNERED AND 5.81 MILLION VISITS TO THE SING OUT LOUD FESTIVAL WEBSITE. QUESTION IS, DID IT WORK? AND I HAVE A BRIEF VIDEO TO SHOW YOU. LET'S SEE. YOU'RE GOING TO WORK? YES. YES, PLEASE. THANK YOU. TILL THE SEAS ROSE IN THE BUILDINGS CAME CRASHING. WE CRIED. EVERYWHERE. EVERYTHING. WHAT A THOUGHT FOR YOU TO BUY FOOD. FOR THE WORMS TO EAT TILL OUR FINGERS DECOMPOSE. KEEP OUR HAND IN GLOVE AS A BRIEF RECAP VIDEO. AND THIS. LET'S SEE IF WE CAN EXIT OUT OF THIS. THERE'S AN EXIT. YEAH. THERE WE GO. LET'S GO BACK. AND THIS IS A PHOTO OF NEARLY 19,000 PEOPLE AT FRANCIS FIELD FOR THE SEPTEMBER 22ND NOAA CON PERFORMANCE AT FRANCIS FIELD. AGAIN, THE RESULTS WERE THAT WE HAD OVER 160 FREE AND TICKETED PERFORMANCES. 168 LOCAL AND REGIONAL PERFORMERS. 13 PARTICIPATING VENUES. A SAINT AUGUSTINE RECORD FAIR. NIGHT MARKET. A PATH OF THE PANTHER DOCUMENTARY SCREENING AND A MUSIC BUSINESS PANEL FEATURING FOUR KEY INDUSTRY LEADERS TO TALK ABOUT MUSIC LICENSING, ROYALTIES AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT. WHERE DID PEOPLE COME FROM WITH THIS MARKETING CAMPAIGN? AGAIN, WE TARGETED ALL ALONG THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. WE FOUND THAT 90% OF TICKET PURCHASERS CAME FROM OUTSIDE OF SAINT JOHNS COUNTY. WE SOLD A TICKET IN EVERY SINGLE STATE EXCEPT MONTANA. THESE ARE THE SALES HEAT MAPS FROM WHERE THE TICKETS WERE PURCHASED. AS YOU CAN SEE, THE ENTIRE STATE OF FLORIDA IS ALSO REPRESENTED IN EVERY MAJOR CITY. DID IT MAKE AN IMPACT IN HOTEL LODGING? WHICH IS EXACTLY WHY WE HOLD IT DURING SEPTEMBER. AGAIN, REMEMBER YOUR AVERAGE OCCUPANCY RATE IS 54.7%. AS YOU CAN SEE, THESE THREE GRAPHS REPRESENT THE PAST THREE YEARS OF 2022, 23, AND 324, 2022 IS THE GREEN LINE. AS YOU CAN SEE. IT'S PRETTY. IT'S IT'S PRETTY SOLID. THERE AREN'T TOO MANY PEAKS AND VALLEYS, BUT THEN 24 AND 23, YOU HAVE LOTS OF PEAKS AND VALLEYS. DURING SING OUT LOUD LIVE WILDLIFE SHOWCASE ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 22ND, YOU HAD AN OCCUPANCY RATE OF 75.5%. THAT'S 21 MORE POINTS THAN YOUR AVERAGE DURING SEPTEMBER. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WORKING AND AS YOU CAN SEE, YES, SUNDAY STARTS TO DROP. WE ARE WORKING TO ADDRESS MULTI NIGHT STAYS AND TARGETING MORE OF A TWO DAY TICKET PURCHASE. IT ALSO RESULTED IN COVERAGE IN NATIONAL, REGIONAL AND LOCAL PRINT, BROADCAST AND ONLINE OUTLETS PLUS ARTIST MENTIONS. AS YOU CAN SEE, THE NOAA CON POST GARNERED 174,000 LIKES WHERE HE CALLS OUT SING OUT LOUD SPECIFICALLY AND POST NUMBER OF PHOTOS FROM HIS TIME AT SING OUT LOUD. WE HAD A 760 NEWS MENTIONS AND 1.6 BILLION IMPRESSIONS. THAT IS ABSOLUTELY UNPAID. WE DID NOT PAY FOR THAT. THAT IS FROM NEWS COVERAGE AND EQUALS NEARLY 40 MILLION IN ADVERTISING VALUE EQUIVALENCY. SO WE WOULD HAVE HAD TO SPEND NEARLY 40 MILLION TO GET THAT MANY IMPRESSIONS. IT ALSO RESULTED IN 35 COMMUNITY PARTNERS AND A STRONGER COMMUNITY BOND. EVERY PARTNER HERE PARTICIPATED IN SING OUT LOUD OFFERED SPECIALTY PROMOTIONS TICKETS, OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATION PACKAGES. [00:15:01] WE ALSO HAD 29 LOCAL ON SITE AND ARTIST VENDORS DURING OUR LIVE SHOWCASE. WE ARE ABSOLUTELY COMMITTED TO THE ECONOMIC BOOSTING OF ALL OF OUR SAINT JOHNS COUNTY BUSINESSES. THIS IS SOME FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED FROM BUSINESSES. I WANT TO POINT OUT TWO OF THEM SPECIFICALLY. THIS WAS DONE FROM A SURVEY THAT WE WE SENT OUT THROUGH THE VCB. OUR BUSINESS IS ON THE BAYFRONT. WE HAD A FEW ROOMS OPEN ON FRIDAY, BUT WERE COMPLETELY FULL ON SATURDAY AND WERE ABLE TO CHARGE FULL PRICE. SING OUT LOUD GAVE US THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHARGE REGULAR RATES AT A TIME OF THE YEAR THAT IS OTHERWISE HEAVILY DISCOUNTED, AND THE OWNER OF SPINSTER ABBOTT REPORTED. THE MONTH OF SING OUT LOUD IS PIVOTAL EVENT FOR US IN UPTOWN. SEPTEMBER IS TRADITIONALLY SLOW MONTH, AND SO MANY BUSINESSES ALONG SAN MARCO RELY ON THE INFLUX OF VISITORS, AND THE EXTRA DRAW FOR LOCALS THAT SING OUT LOUD BRINGS FOR US. AT SPINSTER ABBOTT'S, IT SAVED US FROM FALLING INTO THE RED. THAT'S PRETTY POWERFUL. AND THIS IS JUST A PHOTO OF THE ABC MARQUEE THAT SAID, WHO WANTS TO SING OUT LOUD? THE MOMENTUM IS GROWING AND PEOPLE ARE NOW LOOKING FORWARD TO EVERY SEPTEMBER. SING OUT LOUD. WE ESTIMATE AN ECONOMIC IMPACT OF 9.6 MILLION BETWEEN THE ACCOMMODATION REVENUES, RESTAURANTS, SHOPPING AND TRANSPORTATION, PLUS THE EQUIPMENT RENTALS, JOBS, LOCAL ARTIST PAYMENTS AND LOCAL FUNDRAISING THAT WHAT IT TAKES TO BUILD A CITY ON FRANCIS FIELD FOR A WEEKEND. YOU HAVE TO HAVE TRUCKS, YOU HAVE TO BRING IN A LOT OF STAFF AND YOU HAVE A LOT OF CONCESSIONAIRES THAT COME OUT AND AGAIN WITH THE LOCAL ARTISTS. I'M SORRY. WITH THE LOCAL FOOD TRUCKS, THEY WERE ALL ON SITE AS WELL. SO WE ESTIMATE AN ECONOMIC IMPACT OF 9.6 MILLION THAT WAS CALCULATED BY A DOWNTOWN SAINT GERMAIN ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY THAT WE PAID FOR THIS YEAR. LASTLY, SING OUT LOUD IS MUSIC WITH A MISSION. WE PARTNERED WITH THE LIVE WILDLIFE FOUNDATION TO RAISE AWARENESS AND FUNDS FOR PROTECTING WILD FLORIDA. WILD FLORIDA ENCOMPASSES THE NATURAL LANDS, WATERS, AND WILDLIFE THAT MAKES FLORIDA SO EXCITING TO EXPLORE. MILLIONS WERE WERE EXPOSED TO THE LIVE WILDLY MESSAGE AND JOINED THE MOVEMENT TO PROTECT WILD FLORIDA. OVER $160,000 WAS RAISED THROUGH TICKET SALES TO THE LIVE WILDLIFE SHOWCASE, AND 80 OF IT WAS DONATED TO THE SAINT JOHNS COUNTY LAND ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT PROGRAM. THE OTHER HALF WAS DONATED TO THE CITY OF SAINT AUGUSTINE'S LAND CONSERVATION PROGRAM. NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT 2025. THIS IS OUR LINEUP FOR THE LIVE WILDLIFE SHOWCASE IN 2025, FEATURING FESTIVAL FAVORITE HOZIER, UP AND COMING BEABADOOBEE, VANCE JOY TESKEY BROTHERS, FATHER JOHN MISTY AND MORE. WE WILL ALSO BE ADDING MORE ARTISTS TO THIS LINEUP AND ROUNDING OUT OUR FULL MONTH LONG CELEBRATION OF LIVE ENTERTAINMENT WITH LOCAL ARTIST SHOWCASES. KEY CHANGES FOR THIS YEAR, WE CURATED SPECIFICALLY TO TARGET TWO DAY TICKET PURCHASES LAST YEAR. OUR GENRES WERE A BIT DIFFERENT EACH DAY. THEREFORE YOU HAD PEOPLE COMING IN FOR ONE DAY. THIS TIME, WE HAVE SEEN A TREMENDOUS DIFFERENCE IN THE FACT THAT PEOPLE ARE COMING FOR TWO NIGHTS NOW BECAUSE YOU HAVE A YOU HAVE AN ALIGNMENT BETWEEN BOTH DAYS, BOTH SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. WE ANNOUNCED IN FEBRUARY RATHER THAN MARCH OF LAST YEAR, WHICH WE DID. WE HAVE A LOWER TICKET PRICE AND WE HAVE ALL IN TICKET PRICING. SO WHEN SOMEBODY GOES AND CHECKS OUT, THEY'RE NOT GETTING HIT WITH ANOTHER 100 OR $200 OF FEES. WE'VE WITH THE PRELIMINARY DATA THAT WE HAVE, WE'VE BEEN ON SALE FOR ABOUT 19 DAYS, AND WE'VE ALREADY BEEN TARGETING OUT OF MARKET ALONG THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES AGAIN. NEARLY 60% OF TICKET PURCHASERS ALREADY ARE FROM OUT OF MARKET, AND THAT'S OUTSIDE SAINT JOHNS COUNTY AND DUVAL COUNTY. TICKET TYPES. AGAIN, LAST YEAR WE REALLY DID NOT HAVE A SYNERGIZED LINEUP BETWEEN THE TWO DAYS. SO YOU SAW THAT THE MAJORITY OF THE TICKETS WERE ONE DAY TICKET SALES THIS YEAR. YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE. IT'S NEARLY 60% ARE NOW TWO DAY TICKET SALES. THIS IS WORKING. MOMENTUM IS GROWING. WE'VE GOTTEN SOME OTHER ADDITIONAL PRELIMINARY DATA FROM ACCOMMODATIONS THAT MULTI NIGHTS ARE BEING BOOKED VERSUS JUST THAT ONE NIGHT SATURDAY NIGHT OR SUNDAY NIGHT. TICKETING INSIGHTS. FURTHER, OUR DEMOGRAPHICS IS LOOKING TO BE 18 TO 44 WITH HEALTHY HOUSEHOLD INCOMES. IT'S 60% FEMALE. AND WHAT WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS THAT THIS IS GETTING OUT TO NEW CUSTOMERS. THIS IS BRAND NEW IDEA. THIS IS A BRAND NEW FESTIVAL AND WE'RE STILL GROWING IT. 83% OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE PURCHASED TICKETS HAVE NEVER BEEN TO OUR SITE BEFORE. LASTLY, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT ORGANIC MESSAGING AND COVERAGE AND HOW EXCITING THIS MOMENTUM IS. WE'RE IN OUR THIRD YEAR. IT GENERALLY TAKES ABOUT FIVE YEARS TO REALLY ESTABLISH A FESTIVAL BRAND, BUT FOR OUR THIRD YEAR, WE'RE THRILLED AT THE RESPONSE SO FAR IN 2024, WHEN WE ANNOUNCED IN MARCH, WE HAD ABOUT 14 MENTIONS AND 3 MILLION IMPRESSIONS THAT EQUATED TO ROUGHLY 77,000. IN THAT ADVERTISING VALUE EQUIVALENCY, AGAIN, THAT'S THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE WOULD HAVE PLACED TO GET THAT MANY IMPRESSIONS. THIS YEAR, IT WENT LITERALLY VIRAL. WE HAD 65 MENTIONS, 88 MILLION IMPRESSIONS, AND NEARLY $2.2 MILLION IN ADVERTISING VALUE EQUIVALENCY [00:20:09] IN EARNED MEDIA. WE MADE THE FRONT PAGE OF POLLSTAR NEWS, WHICH IS THE LEADING INDUSTRY MUSIC MAGAZINE. WE ALSO HAD FEATURES IN FLORIDA TIMES UNION, JAX BUSINESS JOURNAL, AND LOCAL OUTLETS. SOCIAL MEDIA INSIGHTS. LAST YEAR WHEN WE ANNOUNCED WE HAD A HEALTHY 17,000 VIEWS. THAT'S GREAT. THAT'S FANTASTIC. FOR THE AMOUNT OF TIME, FOR THE FEW DAYS THAT WE WENT UP, THAT'S HOW MANY. BUT I WANT TO POINT OUT HOW VERY DIFFERENT IT IS THIS YEAR. THIS YEAR AGAIN, WE WENT VIRAL. IT'S 610,000 VIEWS THAT WERE THERE FOR OUR ANNOUNCE, EIGHT OUT OF NINE ARTISTS POSTED ON THEIR CHANNELS, AND IT JUST WENT VIRAL. WE ARE THRILLED THAT THE MOMENTUM IS FINALLY HERE. WE KNOW THAT WE'VE GOT A LONG WAY TO GO. WE'VE GOT ABOUT SEVEN MONTHS UNTIL THE ACTUAL FESTIVAL, SO WE'VE GOT A LONG TIME TO MARKET TO OUT OF OUT OF DESTINATION FESTIVAL ATTENDEES. BUT WE'RE COMMITTED TO IT AND WE'RE THRILLED TO BE ABLE TO COME BACK. I'M HERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS. GREAT. COMMISSIONER. YES, I WAS WONDERING, HAVE THERE BEEN ANY PRE HOTEL SALES YET? THERE HAVE BEEN. SO WE PARTNERED WITH A HOTEL PLATFORM CALLED CRU FAIR AND WE'VE BEEN GETTING SLOWLY BEEN GETTING SOME BOOKINGS THAT ARE SHOWING THOSE TWO AND THREE NIGHT STAYS. YES, MA'AM. OKAY. THE OTHER THING IS CAN YOU GET BACK TO THAT GRAPH, THAT VERY FIRST ONE, OF COURSE. I JUST HAD A QUESTION BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING AT HOW IT WAS GOING WAY DOWN BEFORE IT WENT BACK UP. OKAY. LIKE THE GREEN LINE. WHAT YEAR IS THAT 2022. 2022. THAT WAS A BANNER YEAR FOR TOURISM. THAT WAS THE YEAR AFTER COVID WHERE EVERYONE SAID WE'RE BACK OPEN AGAIN. THAT'S WHAT I WAS WONDERING. AND THEN HOW IT WENT DOWN RIGHT BEFORE THE SING OUT LOUD. ANY WAY TO SORT OF KEEP THAT UP? SO EXACTLY AS WE INVEST IN THIS FESTIVAL AND IT GROWS, WE WANT TO HAVE THAT BE A CONSISTENT LINE AND HAVE MORE PROGRAMING FOR THAT GOES THROUGHOUT THE WEEK. SO YOU DON'T SEE THOSE DROPS SIGNIFICANTLY. I THINK THIS YEAR YOU'LL SEE THAT MORE PEOPLE STAY OVERNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHTS BECAUSE WE HAVE THAT TWO DAY TICKET PRIORITY. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I JUST HAVE A COMMENT. THIS IS A PERFECT MODEL FOR HOW WE SHOULD MARKET THINGS DURING DOWNTIMES. LOOKING FOR THOSE TIMES AND THAT REALLY IT'S BEEN A WIN FOR A LONG TIME. BUT THAT'S SOMETIMES WE HAVE PEOPLE COME BEFORE US ASKING FOR MONEY FOR MARKETING, AND IT'S DURING A PEAK TIME AND IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. THIS IS A PERFECT MODEL FOR THAT. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. YES, THAT IS EXACTLY WHY WE HOLD IT IN SEPTEMBER. SIMILAR TO THE FORT MOSE JAZZ AND BLUES SERIES IN FEBRUARY TO HELP BOOST VISITATION DURING THAT TIME AS WELL. IF THERE AREN'T ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, I'M SUSAN PHILLIPS WITH THE BCB. WAS GOING TO ADD SOME ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THE COMMENTS THAT I WANTED TO ADD IS, FIRST OF ALL, WE ARE SO THRILLED TO BE WORKING WITH GABE, DIANA, AND THE SING OUT LOUD TEAM. WE KNOW IT'S WORKING. WHEN WE LOOK AT SEPTEMBER, IT'S ALWAYS A TOUGH MONTH FOR US. WHEN YOU LOOK BACK LAST YEAR WE WERE DODGING HURRICANES RIGHT AND LEFT, AND THEN OF COURSE WE HAD MILTON IN OCTOBER. IF WE HAD NOT HAD THE HELP FROM THE SING OUT LOUD FOLKS FOR SEPTEMBER, WE WOULD HAVE REALLY BEEN IN TROUBLE. IT HELPED US CLOSE OUT THE YEAR AND WE JUST ARE SO GRATEFUL TO WORK WITH THEM. ONE THING THAT I WANTED TO MENTION IS PHILLIP MCDANIEL AND I ARE ON THE VISIT FLORIDA MARKETING COMMITTEE, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING WITH, BRETT LARKIN, WHO IS THEIR CMO, IS WE'VE BEEN TELLING HIM, WE NEED TO GET YOUR TEAM OVER HERE, HELP US LIFT MUSIC TOURISM FOR OUR DESTINATION, AND COME OVER FOR AN IMMERSION VISIT. WE'RE WORKING ON THAT NOW. IF WE CAN GET VISIT FLORIDA TO TALK ABOUT US WHEN THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT ALL OF THESE OTHER WONDERFUL MUSIC EVENTS ACROSS THE STATE, THAT'S GOING TO HELP LIFT US. SO THE BCB IS COMMITTED TO HELPING WITH THAT. AND I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT. BUT AGAIN, KUDOS TO THE SING OUT LOUD TEAM. VERY PROUD OF THEM. THANK YOU SUSAN. ALRIGHTY. NIGHTS OF LIGHTS NUMBER TEN. OVERSHOT. [10. NIGHTS OF LIGHTS UPDATE AND DISCUSSION CONTINUED] GOOD AFTERNOON AGAIN. THE 32ND YEAR OF KNIGHTS OF LIGHTS WILL BEGIN ON NOVEMBER 2025. THIS WAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR CONTINUING DISCUSSION ON THE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES ASSOCIATED WITH THE EVENT. THE CHAIR ASKED US TO TO PUT THIS ON THE ON THE AGENDA SO THAT WE COULD CONTINUE SOME OF THE DISCUSSION. IT'S JUST ABOUT THOUGHTS, IDEAS AND AND GENERAL DISCUSSION. AND I'LL LEAD OFF BY SAYING THAT I ATTENDED A CHAMBER MEETING ABOUT THREE WEEKS AGO WHERE THERE WAS A DISCUSSION WITH ONE OF THE COMMISSIONERS FROM THE CITY, AND THEY'RE BASICALLY TALKING ABOUT THE SAME THINGS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT A MONTH AGO. [00:25:03] BUT THERE WAS A VERY CLEAR MESSAGE THAT IF THERE NEEDS TO BE A LOT OF MONEY IN THAT IT SHOULD COME FROM THE TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL, AND I THINK WE NEED TO DISCUSS HOW WE FEEL ABOUT THAT. I THINK WE NEED TO DISCUSS THE CITY'S ROLE. I THINK THEY WANT TO BE IN CHARGE AND NOT BE IN CHARGE IN THE SAME SENTENCE. IT DEPENDS WHO YOU'RE TALKING TO AND IN WHICH DAY. SO I JUST WOULD LIKE TO TALK THROUGH THIS, FIND OUT A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT WE CAN LEGALLY DO OR WE CAN'T DO. AND WHAT IS THE APPETITE FOR THIS BOARD TO TAKE NIGHTS OF LIGHTS IN THE NEXT LEVEL? SO I JUST WANT TO OPEN IT UP FOR DISCUSSION. SO I ATTENDED A MEETING AT THE CITY OF SAINT AUGUSTINE ABOUT A MONTH AGO, AND I THINK THERE WAS A GOOD WORKING GROUP OF PEOPLE THERE THAT DISCUSSED PRIORITIES TO MAYBE TRANSITION NIGHTS OF LIGHTS FROM WHERE IT WAS THIS PAST YEAR TO MORE OF A SMOOTHER NIGHTS OF LIGHTS THAT MAYBE HAVE HAPPENED IN YEARS PAST. OBVIOUSLY, WITH THE INFLUX OF PEOPLE THIS YEAR, IT WAS VERY UNORGANIZED IN MY OPINION. I SPENT SOME TIME DOWN THERE FOR THAT AND I THINK FOR THE RESIDENTS, BUT ALSO FOR THE BUSINESSES, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE TOO MUCH CHAOS, IT CAN DISRUPT BOTH. AND SO WE'VE GOT TO FIND A BALANCE. I'M A BIG BELIEVER THAT FOR SOMETHING LIKE NIGHTS OF LIGHTS, I THINK THAT THE CITY OF SAINT AUGUSTINE SHOULD HAVE SOME SKIN IN THE GAME. AND I THINK THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO HAVE SOME SKIN IN THE GAME, WHETHER IT BE CHARGING, PARKING FOR FRANCIS FIELD, WHETHER IT BE OTHER TYPES OF THINGS. I THINK THE TDC, ON THE OTHER HAND, SHOULD SUPPORT NIGHTS OF LIGHTS AND HELP OUT, BUT I DON'T. I'M NOT COMFORTABLE WITH THIS POSITION TODAY TO FUND 100% OF NIGHTS OF LIGHTS. CHARLES, I WOULD TEND TO AGREE WITH BASICALLY EVERYTHING THAT DYLAN JUST SAID. I THINK PROBABLY 80% OF THEIR PROBLEMS ARE REALLY LOW HANGING FRUIT THAT ARE EASILY FIXED WITH JUST SOME SIMPLE COORDINATION AND AND SOME PLANNING, AND I THINK THEY'LL GET THAT. YOU KNOW, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY'VE HIRED A CONSULTANT. SO IF THE CONSULTANT IS ANY GOOD, THEY'LL GET TO THOSE ITEMS PRETTY QUICK, WHICH I THINK WE'VE ALREADY POINTED OUT TO THEM. TO, TO MOVE IT FORWARD. ONCE YOU GET PAST THAT, YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M FINE SUPPORTING THE EVENT AND ALWAYS HAVE BEEN. IT'S A GREAT EVENT FOR SAINT AUGUSTINE AND IT'S JUST GOTTEN OBVIOUSLY IT STARTED ABOUT THE TIME I MOVED TO TOWN IN 1996, SHORTLY AFTER THAT, AND IT WAS KIND OF A GHOST TOWN IN THE HOLIDAYS PRIOR TO THAT. AND SO THIS THING HAS GROWN AND GROWN AND GROWN, AND THERE'S REALLY VERY FEW LIKE IT, CERTAINLY IN THE SOUTHEAST, BUT POTENTIALLY IN THE COUNTRY THAT HAVE GROWN TO THIS SIZE. SO I, I CERTAINLY THINK WE OUGHT TO SUPPORT IT PROBABLY HOW WE SUPPORT IT AND WHAT THE, THE DOLLAR FIGURE THAT'S BEING ASKED IS PROBABLY THE REAL QUESTION, WHICH WE DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO YET. OTHER THOUGHTS? YES, I DO. I DO THINK WE SHOULD START LOOKING AT WHO WE'RE ADVERTISING TO TO MAKE SURE IT'S A HIGHER QUALITY MARKET. I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. AND I AGREE WITH DYLAN THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU JUST CAN'T THROW MONEY AT A PROBLEM AND THE CITY HAS TO TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY. AND YOU KNOW, OF COURSE WE WILL BE SUPPORTIVE, OF COURSE, BECAUSE OF THE SAFETY OF OUR COMMUNITY. BUT THAT'S MY THOUGHTS. I HEARD A COUPLE THINGS, AND THEY'RE NOT SUBSTANTIATED. SO I DON'T WANT TO A LOT OF IT. BUT I HAD HEARD THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE THAT THE CITY WAS GOING TO COME TO THE TDC TO ASK TO PAY FOR THE CONSULTANT, AND AND THAT WAS WHAT I HEARD AT THE LAST MEETING FROM ONE OF THE COMMISSIONERS THAT CAME UP IN THAT MEETING. BUT I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S ACCURATE OR NOT. I KNOW THAT IT HAD BEEN VOTED AT A COMMISSION MEETING, A COUPLE MEETINGS BACK TO HIRE A CONSULTANT, BUT I THINK THERE WAS A LOT OF DISCUSSION FROM THE INDUSTRY THAT IT WAS MAYBE A FACILITATOR WOULD BE BETTER THAN A CONSULTANT BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE ROOMS. SO THAT WAS ONE SUBJECT. AND THE OTHER SUBJECT I HEARD, WHICH I ALLUDED TO A LITTLE EARLIER, [00:30:02] IS THAT THE CITY WANTS TO CONTROL THE EVENT, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY, I'VE HEARD COMMENTS FROM THE CITY THAT IT'S ACTUALLY THE TDC'S EVENT, AND IT'S NOT THE CITY'S EVENT. SO I DON'T REALLY KNOW WHERE THEY REALLY, TRULY FEEL ABOUT THAT. AND I'D LIKE TO CLEAR THAT UP. SO SOMEONE TAKES OWNERSHIP INSTEAD OF HAVING 2 OR 3 PEOPLE THINKING THEY'RE IN CHARGE, BUT REALLY THINKING THE OTHER PERSON IS GOING TO DO IT. SO I THINK WE HAVE TO CLEAR THAT UP SO THAT WHEN WE START TRYING TO GROW IT. AND MY BIGGEST CONCERN LONG TERM, SHORT TERM, I THINK CHARLES IS RIGHT. IT'S A LOT OF LOW HANGING FRUIT. BUT LONG TERM, HOW DO WE MAKE SURE WE'RE REALLY TOP TEN IN THE WORLD? AND WHAT ELEMENTS AREN'T WE DOING NOW THAT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT AND START MAKING IT LIKE THE GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKET, WHICH, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHERE I THINK WE SHOULD BE WITH NIGHTS AND LIGHTS. IRVING I'M A LITTLE DISAPPOINTED TO HEAR THAT THEY HIRED A CONSULTANT BECAUSE AT THE MEETING WITH THE CITY, I THINK IT WAS SAID, DON'T HIRE A CONSULTANT. USE PEOPLE WHO HAVE LIVED HERE THROUGH NIGHTS OF LIGHTS. AND I'M A PROPONENT THAT WE HAVE ENOUGH PEOPLE IN THIS CITY THAT ARE SMART ENOUGH WHO LIVE, BREATHE AND EAT THAT NIGHTS OF LIGHTS THAT WE COULD HAVE PROBABLY HELPED THEM FOR FREE. IF IT'S AN OUT OF TOWN CONSULTANT, I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT BECAUSE, AGAIN, WHAT DATA ARE THEY GOING TO COLLECT? EXCEPT THAT THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE, A LOT OF TRAFFIC, A LOT OF TRASH, NOT ENOUGH BATHROOMS, BUT WE JUST I MEAN, THEY COULD JUST PAY US TO SAY THAT. SO I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT, BUT I'M HOPING I WAS HOPING THAT MAYOR KLEIN WAS HERE TODAY, BECAUSE I THINK THERE'S ENOUGH PEOPLE ON THIS BOARD AND BUSINESS OWNERS IN THE CITY OF SAINT AUGUSTINE THAT CAN REALLY GIVE A HELPING HAND, AND I HOPE THAT THEY TAKE SOME OF THE DIRECTION THAT THAT THE PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO GIVE. SO AND I'M CONCERNED WHEN I HEAR THE WORD GROW IT BECAUSE IT NEEDS TO BE REFINED INSTEAD OF GROWN. AT THIS POINT, I THINK WE NEED TO GET IT UNDER SOME CONTROL FOR THE PEOPLE LIVING IN SAINT AUGUSTINE TO WRITE. BUT THERE'S THERE'S WAYS TO GROW IT AND NOT HAVE MORE PEOPLE COME AND REFINE IT. YEAH, IT'S YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO NIGHTS OF LIGHTS CURRENTLY, BESIDES CHRISTMAS SONGS AND TRINKETS AND LIGHT BULBS, WHAT ARE THE REAL THINGS THAT ARE BRINGING PEOPLE HERE BESIDES THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT? AND I'M NOT ADVOCATING ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR, BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF THERE WAS A WORLD CLASS GLASS EXHIBIT OR WORLD CLASS THIS OR THAT OR WHATEVER, TO ELEVATE IT TO A HIGHER LEVEL? THAT'S WHERE I'M COMING FROM. AND I THINK THERE ARE WAYS TO MANAGE DOWNTOWN THAT WILL CAUSE PEOPLE TO WALK INSTEAD OF DRIVE THEIR CARS THROUGH DOWNTOWN. SOLVE A LOT OF CONGESTION. AND THAT GOES RIGHT BACK TO CHANGING BEHAVIOR AND GETTING PEOPLE TO TAKE BUSSES INTO TOWN AND NOT DRIVING AND CHANGING THE WHOLE SENSE OF HOW THAT EVENT IS. SO I THINK THAT'S JUST A QUESTION OF UNDERSTANDING. YOU TALK ABOUT A CONSULTANT. IS THAT TO MANAGE FLOW OR DO THINGS LIKE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT ABOUT CREATING? I, I BELIEVE FROM THE CITY'S POINT OF VIEW, IT'S OPERATIONAL BLOCKING AND TACKLING. OKAY. AND I'M TALKING MORE LONG TERM STRATEGIC. THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE SUBJECTS. AND I THINK THE CITY IS MORE CONCERNED ABOUT BLOCKING AND TACKLING. WELL, I THINK YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO REALLY, YOU KNOW, MAKE THIS A WHOLE NOTHER THING EXCEPT FOR GET IT UNDER CONTROL BECAUSE WE'RE ALREADY IN MARCH. I MEAN, WE'RE LOOKING AT NOVEMBER. EVEN WHEN I USED TO PLAY IN TEN DAYS, WE STARTED THE DAY AFTER THE 10-K FOR THE NEXT YEAR. SO IT'S IT'S GOING TO ACTUALLY HAVE TO BE TWO SOLUTIONS. ONE IS SHORT TERM AND ONE IS LONG TERM. AND YOU KNOW, SO I THINK WE HAVE TO HAVE PARALLEL THOUGHTS. OF COURSE WE WANT TO DO ALL WE CAN TO MAKE THIS YEAR BE SMOOTHER THAN IT WAS LAST YEAR. THAT'S A GIVEN. AND HOW WE DO THAT AND WHO TAKES OWNERSHIP AND ALL OF THAT, WE JUST NEED TO WORK THROUGH IT. AND I'M GOING TO ENCOURAGE THE CITY TO MOVE QUICKER BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW WHY. YOU KNOW, A MONTH AFTER WE HAVE HAD THAT MEETING THAT WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE NEED BECAUSE IT'S PRETTY [00:35:02] OBVIOUS WHAT WE HEARD. I ALSO THINK TO ERVIN IS THAT IT WAS KIND OF A PERFECT STORM. SO THERE WERE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO DID NOT TRAVEL DURING THE SUMMER BECAUSE OF AN ELECTION YEAR. AND SO I THINK ONCE THE ELECTION CAME THROUGH, I THINK THE WEEKENDS IT SEEMS LIKE AFTER THE ELECTION, WHICH ALSO HAPPENED TO BE CLOSER TO THE HOLIDAYS, IT GOT BUSIER AND BUSIER AND BUSIER BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF PENT UP PEOPLE WHO WERE JUST DOING NOTHING. AND SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF WE IF THE CITY HANDLES IT RIGHT, I MEAN, I THINK THERE'S THERE'S SMALL THINGS THEY CAN DO ON THE SHORT TERM TRAFFIC CONTROL. OBVIOUSLY, WE DON'T WANT ANOTHER NEW ORLEANS TO TAKE PLACE HERE IN SAINT AUGUSTINE, BUT THE LONG BALL IS SOMETHING THAT I'M MORE CONCERNED ABOUT BECAUSE I, I DON'T WANT IT TO AFFECT THE BUSINESSES, BUT I ALSO UNDERSTAND THE SIDE OF THE RESIDENTS. RIGHT. SO WE HAVE THERE HAS TO BE A BALANCE. I THINK IT'S GETTING IT UNDER CONTROL AND THEN FIGURING OUT HOW TO ORGANICALLY CONTINUE TO GROW IT, NOT JUST TO GROW IT SO RAPIDLY. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? SHOULD WE REACH OUT TO THE CITY TO HAVE THEM GIVE US AN UPDATE NEXT MONTH? I CAN CERTAINLY DO THAT IF YOU'D LIKE. THAT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE. OKAY, SURE. DO WE HAVE DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANY ON THIS? GREAT. MONTHLY REPORTS. SO AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE HAVE A NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR IN OUR MIDST FOR THE [11. MONTHLY REPORTS] SAINT JOHNS COUNTY CULTURAL COUNCIL. HIS NAME IS MR. JEFF POTTS. I HAD THE PLEASURE OF MEETING WITH HIM LAST WEEK, AND I WOULD LOVE FOR HIM TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE HIMSELF AND FOR YOU ALL TO GIVE HIM A QUICK HELLO. WELCOME, JEFF. THANK YOU SIR. HI EVERYBODY. MY NAME IS JEFF POTTS. I AM THE NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE SAINT JOHN'S CULTURAL COUNCIL. AND AS OF ABOUT FOUR WEEKS AGO, I AM BRAND NEW TO SAINT JOHN'S COUNTY AND SAINT AUGUSTINE. REAL BRIEFLY ABOUT MYSELF, I HAVE SPENT THE PAST 25 PLUS YEARS WORKING IN NONPROFIT ARTS. THE CREATIVE ECONOMY, AS I LIKE TO REFER TO IT. A HANDFUL OF TIMES IN MY CAREER, I HAVE BEEN THE FIRST EMPLOYEE OF A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT HAS HELPED BRING BACK A HISTORIC THEATER, INCLUDING BUILDING THE TEAM AND THE PROGRAMING MODEL, BUILDING PARTNERSHIP MODELS WITH MY LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES AND MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE FOSTERING, AGAIN, A CREATIVE ECONOMY THAT IS GOOD FOR VISITORS AND RESIDENTS. MOST RECENTLY, WELL, MOST OF MY CAREER WAS SPENT IN THE MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN MARKET. SO I AM PROUDLY A CHEESEHEAD AND A PACKER FAN, AND I ENJOY THE WARM WEATHER HERE IN FLORIDA. VERY MUCH SO. MY APOLOGIES FOR THE THUNDERSTORMS THAT I MAY HAVE BROUGHT WITH, BUT THAT'S CUSTOMARY IN THE MIDWEST THIS TIME OF YEAR. I SPENT MOST OF MY CAREER IN WISCONSIN. I SPENT A FEW YEARS IN THE MOUNTAINS OF VIRGINIA, AND MOST RECENTLY I WAS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, WHERE I WAS THE MANAGING DIRECTOR FOR A THEATER PRODUCTION COMPANY. WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY CAME TO APPLY FOR THE POSITION HERE WITH THE SAINT JOHNS COUNTY CULTURAL COUNCIL, I JUMPED AT IT AS IT REALLY BRINGS TOGETHER EVERYTHING I'VE BEEN DOING IN MY CAREER. CREATING SUSTAINABLE ORGANIZATIONS, CREATING GREAT EVENTS, AND HAVING A LOT OF FUN. MY FIRST MONTH HERE HAS BEEN FILLED WITH MEETING FOLKS, SO I WAS REALLY HAPPY AS I GOT IN THE ROOM TODAY THAT THERE WERE A NUMBER OF FAMILIAR FACES. IF I HAVEN'T HAD TIME TO MEET WITH YOU YET, KNOW THAT I WILL BE REACHING OUT REAL SOON AND SPENDING SOME TIME TO GET TO BETTER KNOW YOUR OBJECTIVES AND GOALS FOR THIS COMMUNITY AND SEEING HOW WE CAN MAKE THOSE MATCH WHAT OUR ORGANIZATION DOES. I'M REAL HAPPY TO REPORT THAT IN MY FIRST MONTH HERE, I HAVE DONE A TON OF GREAT THINGS. I STARTED OUT AT FORT MOSE, WHERE I DID A NUMBER OF KNIGHTS OF THE BLUES AND JAZZ FESTIVAL. AMAZING. WE THEN WENT BACK AS A TEAM FOR THE FLIGHT TO FREEDOM, WHICH WAS A GREAT EVENT OUT THERE. IN THE MEANTIME, I'VE DONE A COUPLE FIRST FRIDAY ART WALKS THIS WEEKEND ALONE. I DID THE BALLET ONE NIGHT AND THE CELTIC HERITAGE FESTIVAL ANOTHER NIGHT, AND I HAVE JUST BEEN DOING THE ROUNDS, TRYING TO ENJOY AS MUCH OF SAINT JOHN'S COUNTY AS I CAN SO THAT WE CAN GET TO WORK OF PROMOTING THIS AREA'S RICH HISTORY, CULTURE, HERITAGE AND ARTS PROGRAMS. WITH THAT, I'LL ENTERTAIN ANY QUESTIONS, BUT MOSTLY I JUST WANTED TO SAY HELLO, GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF MY BACKGROUND, AND LET YOU KNOW THAT I VERY MUCH LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU AND APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT YOU'VE GIVEN OUR ORGANIZATION OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SUSAN PHILLIPS HAS A FEW HIGHLIGHTS FOR YOU THIS AFTERNOON THAT SHE WOULD LIKE TO SHARE. SO I'D LIKE TO INVITE SUSAN ON UP HERE. [00:40:04] OKAY. I'LL TRY TO MAKE THIS VERY BRIEF. SO LET US GO TO THE SLIDE. OKAY. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE LOOKING AT JANUARY WHEN WE'VE TALKED ABOUT NIGHTS OF LIGHTS, WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED IN DECEMBER. GOING INTO JANUARY WE STILL HAD A GOOD MONTH FOR JANUARY. YEAR OVER YEAR ON THE TRADITIONAL LODGING SIDE, ALL OF OUR METRICS WERE UP EXCEPT FOR A SLIGHT, VERY SLIGHT DIP IN SUPPLY. WHAT I WANT TO BRING TO YOUR ATTENTION, THOUGH, IS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE SEEING A LITTLE BIT OF SOFTENING FOR FEBRUARY. HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE ABLE HAD A COLD MONTH. OF COURSE, IN FEBRUARY. WE'LL GET THE NUMBERS VERY SOON. HOPEFULLY WE'RE GOING TO BE PICKING UP IN MARCH GOING INTO APRIL AND MAY. LOOKING AT THE WEATHER COMING UP FOR THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP THIS WEEK, WE EXPECT EVERYONE TO BE FILLED. IT'S GOING TO BE A WONDERFUL EVENT, AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS THAT ARE ANTICIPATING COMING HERE AND STAYING HERE AND HOPEFULLY SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY. MOVING FORWARD, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING ON ON THE ADVERTISING SIDE IS GETTING THE NEW AGENCY ONBOARDED. I MENTIONED TO YOU, WE'VE GOT A BRIDGE PROGRAM, A BRIDGE ADVERTISING PROGRAM, SO THAT WE'RE COVERING THE SPRING. THEY'LL IMMEDIATELY START TAKING CARE OF ALL OF OUR INSERTIONS AND MAKING ANY CHANGES THAT ARE NEEDED. SO THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT OF WORK GOING ON THERE, ESPECIALLY AS WE BRING THEM INTO THE DESTINATION TO ONBOARD THEM. IN YOUR PACKET OR ACTUALLY IN FRONT OF YOU, YOU SHOULD HAVE THIS, WHICH IS YOU HAVE A COLOR COPY. I DON'T HAVE A COLOR COPY WITH ME, BUT THIS IS OUR TOURISM ADVISORY WORKSHOPS. WE HELD TWO OF THESE IN FEBRUARY. WE TRY TO DO THIS EVERY YEAR. WE INVITE THE COMMUNITY. WE INVITE OUR TOURISM STAKEHOLDERS. ANYBODY THAT WANTS TO ATTEND. IT'S A FREE TWO HOUR EVENT. AND WHAT I START OFF WITH IS ABOUT A 30 MINUTE PRESENTATION TELLING WHERE WE ARE FOR THAT YEAR, WHAT WE HAVE COMING UP WITH OUR MARKETING PLAN, AND THEN WE GO INTO A SOLICITATION FROM ALL OF THE FOLKS IN ATTENDANCE TO HEAR WHAT THEY FEEL IS WORKING, WHAT IS NOT WORKING. WE HAVE THEM TALK ABOUT THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES, AND THEN THEY START TELLING US WHAT THEY FEEL THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE AS A BUSINESS OR AS SOMEONE IN THE COMMUNITY. THIS IS A RECITATION OF THE COMMENTS THAT WERE TAKEN FROM THAT. I DON'T THINK YOU'RE GOING TO SEE A WHOLE LOT OF SURPRISES, BUT IT IS GOOD FOR US TO KEEP OUR FINGER ON THE PULSE AND SEE WHAT THE BUSINESSES ARE THINKING, SEE WHAT ALL OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS, AND ALSO SEE WHAT ANYONE IN THE COMMUNITY MAY BE THINKING AS WELL. WHEN WE HOST THESE EVERY YEAR IN FEBRUARY, ALL OF YOU ARE ALSO WELCOME TO ATTEND. BUT I WILL SAY THAT WE, AS WE'VE DONE THESE OVER THE PAST, PROBABLY 5 OR 6 YEARS, THAT I'VE DONE THEM, WE GET VERY GOOD ATTENDANCE AND EVEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, GOOD COOPERATION AND INSIGHT. I THINK A FEW YEARS AGO WE HAD FOLKS THAT WERE A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT THE DIRECTION OF WHERE WE WERE GOING WITH TOURISM AND HOW IT WAS IMPACTING THEIR BUSINESSES, ESPECIALLY AS WE WENT THROUGH COVID. BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT THE WORKSHOPS WE HAD THIS YEAR, PEOPLE ARE INSPIRED. THEY'RE FEELING THAT THERE IS A FUTURE OUT THERE FOR THEM AND THEY'RE FEELING VERY POSITIVE. SO THAT WAS ONE THING THAT I WANTED TO MENTION TO YOU. AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS JUST TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR ADVERTISING MOVING FORWARD, AND I HAVE TO GET MY GLASSES OUT SO I CAN SEE MY NUMBERS HERE. WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE TRANSITION FROM NIGHTS OF LIGHTS, WE STOPPED THE NIGHTS OF LIGHTS ADVERTISING A LITTLE BIT BEFORE DECEMBER. I THINK IT WAS PROBABLY THE DECEMBER 19TH OR DECEMBER 20TH. AND THEN WE STARTED BACK IN JANUARY WITH OUR OUR SPRING CAMPAIGN. THE SPRING CAMPAIGN FOCUSED ON BLACK HISTORY. IT FOCUSED ON HISTORY OVERALL, ON FAMILIES, ON LUXURY. WE ARE CERTAINLY CONTINUING TO PUSH THE LUXURY SEGMENT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND ALSO OUR CULINARY SEGMENTS. WE HAVE BEEN FOR THIS FOR THE MEDIA THAT WE ARE HAVING MARKET RIGHT NOW. WE HAVE CONNECTED TV, YOUTUBE, FACEBOOK, META, TRIPADVISOR, DISPLAY, SEARCH, LEAD GENERATION AND SELECT PRINT PUBLICATIONS. HAITIANS. AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE DO A VERY LIMITED AMOUNT OF PRINT PUBLICATIONS, BUT WE DO LOOK FOR THE HIGHER ECHELON PUBLICATIONS SUCH AS GARDEN AND GUN, SOUTHERN LIVING AND SOME OF THOSE. AND WE TYPICALLY DO A PARTNERSHIP WITH VISIT FLORIDA UTILIZING THEIR CO-OP PROGRAMS THAT THEY HAVE THAT ALLOWS US TO SPEND OUR MONEY WISELY AND GET AS MUCH IN THE MARKETPLACE AS POSSIBLE. COMING UP, WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT ABOUT APPROXIMATELY $900,000. JUST SHORT OF $1 MILLION IS GOING TO BE ALLOCATED FOR THE CURRENT CAMPAIGN, AND THAT'S GOING TO GENERATE 114 MILLION IMPRESSIONS. AND THEN AS WE MOVE INTO THE SUMMER SEASON, SUMMER SEASON, WE'RE GOING TO START ADVERTISING. THAT WILL BE APRIL THROUGH JULY, AND WE'RE EXPECTING ABOUT 109 TO 110 MILLION IMPRESSIONS FROM THAT TIME PERIOD AS WELL. SO I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU ALL MAY HAVE. JUST ONE QUICK QUESTION, SUSAN. WHEN I'M LOOKING AT YOUR BULLET POINT HERE, THE BOTTOM ONE, IT SHOWS LEAD ROOM NIGHTS ARE UP, BUT THEN IT SHOWS -32.8. SHOULD THAT BE? SHOULD HAVE BEEN. SHOULD HAVE BEEN DOWN. SHOULD HAVE BEEN DOWN. OKAY. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I HAVE THAT SLIDE. ROOM NIGHTS ARE DOWN 32 POINTS. WHAT HAPPENED? JANUARY WAS A LITTLE BIT OF AN ANOMALY. IT WAS COLD. BUT ALSO WE SAW THAT PICKUP IN FEBRUARY. AND THANK YOU FOR THAT SEGUE. I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT OUR SALES TEAM HAS BEEN OUT ON THE ROAD. THIS IS THE BUSIEST TIME OF YEAR FOR SHOWS. SO EVEN THOUGH WE WERE OFF IN THEIR LEAD ROOM NIGHTS FOR JANUARY, THEY ARE ALREADY EXCEEDING GOAL. PICKING IT UP. [00:45:02] AND WHEN WE LOOK AT FISCAL YEAR TO DATE, THEY HAVE EXCEEDED GOAL AS WELL. EXCUSE ME PLEASE. NIGHTS OF LIGHTS GOES ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE END OF JANUARY, RIGHT? WE DID THE AVERAGE. IT DOES GO THROUGH THE END OF JANUARY, BUT WE DID THE MAJORITY OF OUR ADVERTISING THROUGH THE END OF DECEMBER. THAT WAS WHEN WE WERE GOING TO GET THE BIGGEST BANG FOR THE BUCK. WE DIDN'T WANT TO BE OUT THERE. I THINK THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN SOMETHING MARGINAL IN JANUARY, BUT IT WASN'T VERY MUCH. I WAS GOING TO SAY THE HOTEL OBVIOUSLY HAS GONE DOWN IN JANUARY FOR NIGHTS OF LIGHTS, BUT I KNOW IT WAS STILL BUSY. SO MAYBE WE COULD SAVE SOME MONEY AND SOME OF THAT ADVERTISING TO PUT TOWARDS THE FIRE. AND ONE OF THE THINGS I'D LIKE TO MENTION, TOO, IS I WANT YOU ALL TO KEEP IN MIND WE HAVE NOT MADE ANY DECISIONS ON ADVERTISING FOR THIS YEAR'S NIGHTS OF LIGHTS. THAT WAS ALL THIS PAST YEAR. SO IF ANYONE SAYS, OH, YOU KNOW, WE'RE PLANNING ON SPENDING MORE MONEY ON NIGHTS OF LIGHTS THIS YEAR, THAT IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE. WE HAVEN'T EVEN MADE IT TO THAT POINT. THAT WILL COME IN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR, AND CERTAINLY WE'LL BE LOOKING FOR GUIDANCE AND DIRECTION FROM ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD. THANK YOU. SARAH. ALL RIGHT. SO JUST SO YOU ALL ARE AWARE, THE CHAIR MET WITH MYSELF AND JESSE DUNN EARLIER THIS MONTH JUST TO TALK ABOUT HIS YEAR IN THE HOT SEAT AND HOW HE WOULD LIKE THINGS TO GO. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MR. CASS TALKED ABOUT A LITTLE BIT WAS THE REVIEW OF TGT COLLECTIONS YOU HAVE DETAILED REPORTS EVERY MONTH IN THE BACK OF YOUR BOOKS AND SENT TO YOU VIA EMAIL, BUT MAYBE YOU WANT TO LOOK AT THINGS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENTLY. SO WE'RE WE'RE WILLING TO ENTERTAIN THAT. IF YOU LOOK ON YOUR, ON THE DIAS, YOU HAVE A LONG SHEET OF PAPER. THAT'S JUST ANOTHER WAY WITH THE BAR GRAPH, ANOTHER WAY TO KIND OF LOOK AT TRENDS AND WHAT'S HAPPENING. BUT IF THERE'S ANY PARTICULAR REVENUE ANALYSIS OR TREND ANALYSIS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE US TO DO WE'RE HAPPY TO, TO ACQUIESCE TO THOSE REQUESTS AND, AND DO WHATEVER WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING. IT'S TRANSPARENT AND YOU CAN GUIDE, GUIDE THE DIRECTION APPROPRIATELY. ONE OF THE THINGS ON THIS POINT THAT I THINK IS IMPORTANT, AND I'D LIKE TO CHANGE HOW WE APPROACH THE MEETING, IS THE FIRST MAJOR AGENDA ITEM EACH MONTH SHOULD ACTUALLY BE HOW WE'RE DOING IN REVENUE, BECAUSE I THINK EVERY DECISION THAT WE MAKE HERE WOULD BE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT IF WE KNEW WE WERE HAVING A GOOD YEAR OR A BAD YEAR, OR HOW THE TRENDS WERE. AND IN MOST BUSINESS SITUATIONS, PEOPLE WANT TO MANAGE THE TOP LINE. AND IT'S THE GREATEST MANAGEMENT TOOL ADVICE I'VE EVER HEARD, WHICH IS REVENUES. IT'S IN. IT'S THE TOP LINE THAT YOU CAN GROW EVERY YEAR. THE BOTTOM LINE YOU CAN CUT ONCE, BUT IT'S MUCH HARDER TO DO. SO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO FOCUS ON THE TOP LINE. AND I'D LIKE US TO LOOK BECAUSE FOR YEARS WE THOUGHT WE WERE DOING AN AWESOME JOB. AND THIS IS A A BROKEN RECORD. BUT WE ACTUALLY HAVE BEEN FLAT FOR THREE YEARS, BUT WE'VE DONE A MUCH BETTER JOB COLLECTING MONEY IN THE AIRBNB CATEGORY, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WE'VE DONE WELL. BUT IN THE LAST TWO YEARS, IF YOU LOOK ON THIS FORM, YOU'LL SEE WE HAD A 4% GROWTH AND LAST YEAR WE HAD A 0% GROWTH IN THIS YEAR, BASED ON WHAT I SAW THE STOCK MARKET DO TODAY, IT WAS DOWN ABOUT 3.5% IN THE NASDAQ AND ABOUT ONE AND A HALF, 2% IN THE DOW. AND MORGAN STANLEY AND A FEW OF THE OTHER BANKS NOW ARE PUTTING A RECESSION AT ABOUT A 30% PROBABILITY. I THINK WE HAVE TO START THINKING THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE LUCKY TO BE FLAT. SO AS WE'RE LOOKING AT BUDGETS AND SPENDING, WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO BE REALLY SMART TO GET LEVERAGE OUR MONEY THE BEST WE CAN. AND SO I JUST WANT TO CHANGE THE CONCEPT OF HOW WE APPROACH THINGS TO REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING. AND IF WE'RE UP, ARE WE UP IN HOTELS? BUT BED AND BREAKFASTS ARE GETTING CLOBBERED AND WE'RE NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO THEM OR WHATEVER. WE NEED TO START LOOKING AT THINGS A LITTLE BIT MORE SEGMENTED AND BY ZIP, SO WE CAN REALLY SEE WHERE WE CAN THROW MONEY, WHERE THE FISH ARE FISHING. SO THE FISH ARE BITING. I GUESS THEY DON'T FISH. [00:50:04] WELL, ACTUALLY THEY DO. ANYHOW, THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY ON THAT CHAIR. MAY I MAKE A COMMENT, PLEASE? I THINK THAT'S A GREAT IDEA. AND I WAS ALSO WONDERING IF THERE'S ANY WAY TO BREAK OUT PONTE VEDRA TO SEE, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH THERE TO. BECAUSE THAT MIGHT BE A DIFFERENT ADVERTISING MARKET. YES, WE HAVE ALL OF THIS IN THE BOOKS AND WE JUST HAVE TO DO A SPREADSHEET. THERE IS A ZIP CODE ANALYSIS THAT WE GET EVERY MONTH. AND THEN THERE'S A BY ACCOMMODATION TYPE ANALYSIS AND EVERYONE LOOKS AT IT, BUT THERE'S NOTHING TO RELATE IT TO. IF WE LOOK AT IT LIKE A SEVEN YEAR SPREADSHEET, ALL OF A SUDDEN THE NUMBERS SAY, OH, LOOK AT WHAT THE TREND IS HERE OR THERE. SO I THINK THAT'S VERY HELPFUL FOR EVERYONE. IRVING, I APPRECIATE THOSE COMMENTS BECAUSE I THINK THAT THE I THINK THE TAX COLLECTION IS JUST UNDER 20% OF THE COUNTY, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN. THAT WAY. ANYTHING UNDER 20. I'M CORRECT. AND IT IS, IT SHOULD AND IS A DIFFERENT MARKETING CAMPAIGN BECAUSE IT'S A TOTALLY DIFFERENT PRODUCT. SO THANK YOU. WELL, WE ARE HAPPY TO WORK ON THOSE REVENUE TREND ANALYSIS REPORTS YOU MIGHT NEED. REALLY LONG SHEETS OF PAPER FOR ALL ALL SEVEN YEARS. BUT WE'LL CERTAINLY PRESENT YOU A VARIETY OF WAYS TO SHOW THE INFORMATION AND BE ABLE TO INFORM YOU A LITTLE BIT BETTER ABOUT THE DECISION. AND IF ANYONE HAS AN IDEA, JUST FORWARD IT ON TO SARAH IF YOU THINK THIS IS HOW IT SHOULD LOOK. OR JESSE. YES, JESSE. YES, ACTUALLY YOUR THE CONVERSATION ACTUALLY IS A GREAT SEGWAY TO START OUR BUDGET PROCESS. SO WE JUST BEGAN THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS WITH THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, AND WE'RE LOOKING AT A COUPLE OF MODELS FOR THIS YEAR, BUT THERE WAS SOME COMMENT ON, ON REVENUE THAT, THAT THE TDC WOULD LOOK AT REVENUES EACH MONTH IN TERMS OF STARTING THIS BUDGET PROCESS. AND YOU HAD MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, KIND OF A FLAT REVENUE AS YOU'RE SEEING UP THERE. IS IT THE DESIRE OF THIS COUNCIL TO START THIS BUDGET SEASON WITH A FLAT REVENUE. AND THEN WE CAN CERTAINLY MODIFY AS REVENUES COME IN, ESPECIALLY IF WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT THEM FROM MONTH TO MONTH. YOU KNOW, I KIND OF LOOK TO THIS GROUP AS THE EXPERTS AS TO WHERE WE WOULD START THAT REVENUE. DO YOU THINK IT SHOULD BE SLIGHTLY UP FLAT, A LITTLE LOWER? I PREFER IT TO BE FLAT BECAUSE THEN YOU CAN YOU CAN ALWAYS GO UP. YOU CAN ALWAYS LOOK AT IT. BUT FLAT IS KIND OF A REALISTIC GOAL. I THINK IT'S I AGREE, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE REVENUE IS A LITTLE BIT FLAT TO LAST YEAR AND THE YEAR BEFORE, BUT IF YOU GO BACK FIVE YEARS PRIOR TO COVID, THE REVENUE FROM THE FIFTH CENTURY, THE REVENUE FROM INCREASED RATES, OBVIOUSLY INCREASING THE RATES BRINGS THAT THAT TAX AMOUNT UP A GREAT DEAL. SO I THINK WE ARE STRUGGLING AGAINST LAST YEAR AND THE YEAR BEFORE, BUT LOOKING BACKWARDS, IF THE REARVIEW MIRROR IS IS THERE, IT'S BECAUSE OF THAT FIFTH CENT AND INCREASED RATES, NOT JUST IN THE NORTHERN PART OF THE COUNTY, BUT DOWN HERE IN SAINT AUGUSTINE AS WELL. AND ROOM RATE IS THE TRICKIEST PART GOING FORWARD IN THE MARKETPLACE. CRUISE LINES ARE HAVING PRICING ISSUES ALL OF A SUDDEN. AIRLINES ARE NOT, BELIEVE IT OR NOT. AND BUT HOTELS ARE. SO THOSE TWO INDUSTRIES HAVE REALLY LOWERED THEIR FORECAST ON PRICING POWER. SO. WELL, AT LEAST ACCORDING TO THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S ACCURATE OR NOT. WE'LL FIND OUT. SO CONSENSUS OF WE SHOULD FIRST SHOT OUT OF THE WOULD BE A FLAT LINE. OKAY. THIS IS ALL YOU. LET'S GO BACK TO THE AGENDA. THANK YOU. MEMBERS COMMENTS. [12. MEMBER COMMENTS] WHO WOULD LIKE TO START? CHARLES. [00:55:01] YOU HAVE. MY HEARING AIDS ARE OFF. MICHAEL. ANYTHING? SO YOU KNOW. OKAY. IS. EVERYONE'S OFF? YEAH. MINE WORKS. YOU CAN COME OVER HERE AND SIT WITH ME. HELLO? WHICH BUTTON? MINE. EXCLUSIVE OR THE NEXT ONE? OH, LET'S MUTE ALL. OF THAT ONE. I FEEL BETTER. IT WASN'T ME. BUT IT'S VERY POSSIBLE I COULD HAVE HIT A BUTTON. I GUESS I'LL GO FIRST, SINCE I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN TALK ANYHOW, LAST MONTH I HAD MENTIONED ABOUT THE FIVE PERIODS, AND I STILL THINK IT'S A GOOD IDEA, BUT IT'S JUST MY IDEA. THERE WERE A COUPLE PEOPLE WHO THOUGHT THAT WAS ALSO A GOOD IDEA, AND THE MORE I THINK ABOUT IT, THE MORE I WOULD LIKE US TO HAVE A WORKSHOP WITH IT IF THIS GROUP FEELS IT'S WORTH PURSUING. I'VE ACTUALLY AND OF COURSE, THIS IS REALLY ROUGH. ROUGH, ROUGH DRAFT. I SEE NIGHTS OF LIGHTS STARTING ON LITERALLY FOUNDER'S DAY. HUGE CELEBRATION, WHICH IS ALWAYS THE WEEKEND AFTER LABOR DAY. AND IT RUNS THROUGH NOVEMBER 1ST. AND IT'S A CELEBRATION OF MUSIC AND FOOD, AND WE CREATE A TEN WEEK PERIOD, AND THEN WE JUMP INTO NIGHTS OF LIGHTS, AND WE START AT NOVEMBER 1ST AND END IT THE FIRST OR SECOND WEEK OF JANUARY ON MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY. WE KICK OFF HISTORY PERIOD AND WE CELEBRATE HISTORY OF SAINT AUGUSTINE ALL THE WAY THROUGH BLACK HISTORY MONTH AND WOMEN'S HISTORY. YES, I APOLOGIZE TO EVERYBODY, BUT WE'VE LOST OUR MICROPHONES AND I THINK PEOPLE WILL BE HAPPY TO PARTICIPATE. OKAY. YEAH. BECAUSE I SAID YEAH, NEVER MIND. THANK YOU FOR COMING. NEXT WEEK WE'RE GOING TO ASK EVERYONE TO BRING ONE OF THOSE MEGAPHONE THINGS. WE HAVE TO. OKAY. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.