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SPECIAL SESSION, UH, PRESENTATION[1. 20-6953 Briefing on the 2021 Visit San Antonio Business Plan to include the San Antonio Tourism Public Improvement District. [Carlos Contreras, Assistant City Manager; Patricia Muzquiz Cantor, Executive Director, Convention and Sports Facilities]]
BY THE V SS A.UH, SO LET ME TURN THE FLOOR TO CITY MANAGER ERIC WALSH.
UH, TODAY'S PRESENTATION, WE WILL, UH, PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S 2021 BUSINESS PLAN, UH, TO INCLUDE THE SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT.
UM, V S A IS, UH, TASKED, WE ALL KNOW, TASKED WITH THE SALES, MARKETING AND PROMOTION OF SAN ANTONIO TO CONVENTIONS, GROUPS, AND, AND LEISURE, UH, VISITORS.
V SS A, UH, AS MANY YOU'LL RECALL, UH, WAS A, UH, ACTED AS A CITY DEPARTMENT, UH, THROUGH SEPTEMBER OF 2016.
AND THEN BEGINNING IN OCTOBER OF 2016, CITY COUNCIL APPROVED ITS TRANSITION TO A, UH, 5 0 1 C SIX PUBLIC-PRIVATE ENTITY.
UH, AND THAT AGREEMENT IS A FIVE-YEAR AGREEMENT, UH, WITH A RENEWAL OPTION THROUGH F Y 2026.
UM, THE FIRST, UH, TERM, UH, THE FIRST ORIGINAL, UH, FIVE YEARS, UM, WILL BE UP, UH, NEXT, UH, NEXT OCTOBER ON.
AND THEN IN ADDITION, ON DECEMBER 6TH, 2018, UH, THE COUNCIL APPROVED THE CREATION OF THE, UH, SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT, WHICH IS, UH, FOR AN EIGHT YEAR PERIOD, UH, THAT WENT INTO EFFECT ON JANUARY 1ST, 2019, AND IS SCHEDULED TO END ON SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2026.
SO, CASSANDRA'S GONNA WALK THROUGH KIND OF THE PLAN FOR 2021 AND GIVE THE COUNCIL AN UPDATE ON THE T I D.
UH, JEFF A, WHO IS THE CURRENT CHAIRMAN OF THE BUSINESS, SAN ANTONIO BOARD, UH, WILL BEGIN THE PRESENTATION AND, UH, HE'LL HAND IT OFF TO CASSANDRA MATTE, UH, THE, UH, C E O AND PRESIDENT OF V S A.
SO WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO JEFF.
I WAS AFRAID YOU HAD CONFUSED ME WITH CASSANDRA AT FIRST.
I THANK ALL OF YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BRIEF YOU TODAY AND VISIT SAN ANTONIO MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
I'M JEFFREY ARN, PRESIDENT AND C E O OF VIA METROPOLITAN TRANSIT, AND THE CHAIRMAN OF THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
AND BEF, AS I BEGIN MY COMMENTS, I, I'LL REMIND US ALL THAT IT WAS JUST A MONTH AGO TODAY THAT FOLKS WENT TO THE BALLOT BOX AND APPROVED THE THREE INITIATIVES THAT WERE, UH, PLACED BEFORE THEM, PRE-K WORKFORCE AND VIA.
AND SO THIS IS MY FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO CONGRATULATE THE COUNCIL ON THE SUCCESS OF THOSE OF THOSE ITEMS. UH, BUT WE TODAY WILL BE, UH, ADDRESSING YOU REGARDING VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND OUR INDUSTRY.
AND IT'S BEEN A GRUELING YEAR.
I KNOW WE ALL KNOW THAT ON SO MANY LEVELS AND YOU'RE PROACTIVE AND CARRYING ATTENTION TO THIS COMMUNITY'S NEEDS HAS BEEN A REAL STRENGTH TO ALL OF US.
NO ONE HAS BEEN IMMUNE TO THE IMPACTS OF C OVID 19 PANDEMIC, AND THAT'S CERTAINLY TRUE OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.
THE PAST FEW MONTHS HAVE GIVEN US A GLIMPSE OF WHAT OUR COMMUNITY LOOKS LIKE WITHOUT A ROBUST VISITOR LANDSCAPE, AND IT HAS BEEN COSTLY, ROUGHLY $410 MILLION IN ECONOMIC IMPACT THROUGH THE LOSS OF MORE THAN 250 MEETINGS ALONE.
THAT DOESN'T INCLUDE THE EFFECT OF THE FALLOUT OF LEISURE TRAVEL WITH THE SEISMIC REPERCUSSIONS TO OUR BUSINESSES, MANY OF THEM SMALL BUSINESSES THAT RELY ON TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY.
VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND THE IMPORTANT SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT.
THE ORGANIZATION'S ANNUAL MEETING WAS HELD JUST YESTERDAY AT A LARGELY EMPTY CONVENTION CENTER, AND IT ALSO PROVIDED A GLIMPSE INTO WHAT OUR CURRENT NORMAL IS, A HYBRID FORMAT THAT INCLUDED SOCIALLY DISTANCED LIVE AUDIENCE AND OTHERS LOOKING ON VIRTUALLY.
WE KNOW THAT TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY WILL RECOVER.
HOW DO WE KNOW? WELL, LIKE, LIKE ME? I'M SURE MANY OF YOU CANNOT WAIT UNTIL WE'RE IN A CIRCUMSTANCE WHERE WE CAN BOTH VISIT OTHER PLACES.
AND PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANTLY, WE CAN INVITE OUR FRIENDS AND GUESTS TO RETURN TO SAN ANTONIO.
AND I BELIEVE SAN ANTONIO WILL PARTICULARLY BENEFIT FROM THE RESURGENCE OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY.
IN 2010, WE WELCOMED FOUR 40 MILLION LEISURE VISITORS TO OUR, TO OUR DESTINATION FUELING 15.2 BILLION ECONOMIC DIVIDEND FOR THE CITY.
MORE THAN 140,000 WORKING SAN ANTONIANS WERE EMPLOYED IN THE VISITOR SECTOR.
NOW, EARLY THIS YEAR, THAT NUMBER HAD TUMBLED ALARMINGLY, BUT AS WE CLOSE OUT, 2020, MORE THAN 115,000 ARE BACK AT WORK IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.
THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO BOARD OF DIRECTORS IS WORKING DILIGENTLY WITH THE ORGANIZATION TO MAKE THE STRATEGIC MOVES THAT WILL
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HELP THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY OF THE INDUSTRY AND WITH THE INDUSTRY, OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY.I'D LIKE TO OFFER A SPECIAL THANKS TO CITY MANAGER ERIC WALSH, COUNCIL MEMBERS REBECCA VIA GRAND AND ROBERTO TREVINO FOR INVESTING THEIR TIMES AND TALENTS ON THE SAN VISIT SAN ANTONIO BOARD.
AND IN FACT, JUST LAST YEAR, THE COUNCILWOMAN WAS HONORED WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S INAUGURAL LA COM CAMPANA AWARD FOR HER SUPPORT OF THE CITY'S HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY THAT SUPPORT FROM ALL OF YOU, INCLUDING AS YOU CONSIDER APPROVING THE T I D SERVICE PLAN FOR 2021 IS MORE IMPORTANT NOW THAN EVER TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY WILL DOUBTLESSLY PLAY AN INTEGRAL ROLE IN SAN ANTONIO'S ECONOMIC RECOVERY IN THE, IN THE COMING MONTHS.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOU, ALL THE WORK YOU'RE DOING.
KEEP THIS CITY GOING SAFELY DURING THESE DIFFICULT TIMES, AND I'M NOW PLEASED TO INTRODUCE.
LET ME INTRODUCE AND WELCOME TO THE VIRTUAL PODIUM, CASSANDRA MATE, PRESIDENT AND C E O OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN, ART MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
WE'RE SO DELIGHTED TO BE WITH YOU TODAY.
AS CHAIRMAN ART SAID YESTERDAY, VISIT SAN ANTONIO HELD A HYBRID ANNUAL MEETING AT THE HENRY B. GONZALEZ CONVENTION CENTER TO SHOWCASE THE SAFE WAY OF HOLDING A MEETING IN PERSON.
AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, FOR THOSE OF US IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, WHICH IS BY ITS VERY NATURE, IS INTERACTIVE AND INTERPERSONAL, THIS HAS BEEN A REMARKABLE CHANGE THAT HAS REQUIRED MAJOR ADJUSTMENTS.
THE IMPACT IS NOT SEEN, ONLY SEEN IN BUSINESSES THAT COUNT ON TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY, THE $15.2 BILLION INDUSTRY IN 2019, BUT TO THE ECONOMY OF OUR CITY, FOR EXAMPLE, THROUGH OUR SALES TAX.
BUT AS AN INDUSTRY, WE STAND TODAY WITH A STUBBORN RESOLVE TO EMERGE STRONGER AND COMMITTED TO A BRIGHTER FUTURE.
I HAVE OFTEN SAID, BUT WE MUST ALSO SAY IT AGAIN, PERPETUAL OPTIMISM IS GOING TO GET US THROUGH THIS.
AND THAT'S TRUE BY ITS VERY NATURE.
OUR INDUSTRY IS HOPEFUL, AND I AM HOPEFUL AS WELL.
IT'S WHY WE ADOPTED THE SLOGAN FOR YESTERDAY'S ANNUAL MEETING, RESILIENCE, RECOVER, RECREATE.
ALL OF THAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SHARING WITH YOU SOME OF WHAT VISIT SAN ANTONIO HAS DONE AND WILL DO.
I'D LIKE TO SHARE A VIDEO WITH YOU.
SOME FOLKS ARE HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE AUDIO, SO, UH, IS RESTARTING THAT.
HELLO, I'M CASSANDRA MATA, PRESIDENT AND C E O OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
THE UNPRECEDENTED C OVID 19 PANDEMIC HAS IMPACTED THE TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY AT EVERY LEVEL, INCLUDING VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
WHILE LARGE COMPANIES HAVE FELT THE EFFECT OF IT, THE MAJORITY OF OUR INDUSTRY IS MADE UP OF SMALL BUSINESSES THAT TODAY ARE TRYING THEIR BEST JUST TO SURVIVE.
AT VISIT SAN ANTONIO, WE WERE FORCED TO CHANGE OUR STRATEGIES, ADAPT AND INVOLVE LANDSCAPE, AND THUS REDEFINE OUR MISSION TO BRING THE WORLD TO SAN ANTONIO.
THAT WORLD HAS SHRUNK FOR ALL OF US IN RECENT MONTHS.
SOME CHALLENGES WE'VE EXPERIENCED HAVE LEFT US CHANGE FOR THE BETTER.
VISIT SAN ANTONIO TEAM MEMBERS, AND MANY OF YOU HAVE HEARD ME SAY THIS MANY TIMES, BUT I CAN'T HELP BUT REPEAT IT.
THERE IS ONE THING FOR SURE THAT WE KNOW OUR INDUSTRY IS RESILIENT.
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OF THAT RESILIENCY IS THE WAY OUR PARTNERS HAVE HAD TO BE INNOVATIVE AND CREATIVE IN WHAT THEY DO.THERE ARE EXAMPLES OF IT THROUGHOUT OUR COMMUNITY, AND TODAY WE'D LIKE TO SHARE A FEW OF THOSE STORIES IN THEM.
DESPITE THESE DIFFICULT TIMES, I THINK YOU'LL SEE SOMETHING SPECIAL.
THIS PANDEMIC HAS REALLY PUSHED US TO THINK BEYOND WHAT WE DO ON A NORMAL BASIS AND REIMAGINE WHAT TRUE FLAVORS IS.
WE'VE GONE ALMOST COMPLETELY TOUCHLESS.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN YOU ENTER THE PARK, WE GO THROUGH OUR TEMPERATURE SCREENING AREA, OUR NEW SEC SAFETY PRECAUTIONS DONE ALLOW THROUGH THE ENTIRE PARK TO MAKE SURE OUR GUESTS ARE HAVING A FUN, SAFE, MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE EVEN DURING A PANDEMIC.
IN ORDER TO ADAPT DURING THIS PANDEMIC, WE HAVE INVESTED THROUGH THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO OVER $2 MILLION INTO OUR FACILITIES.
NEW TECHNOLOGIES SUCH AS THE THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA FOR TEMPERATURE CHECKS, CONTACTLESS TICKET SCANNERS, UV LIGHTING ON ESCALATORS FOR CLEANING THE HANDRAILS.
AND WE ALSO HAVE UV LIGHT ROBOTS THAT CLEAN LARGE AREAS OF THE CONVENTION CENTER.
WE FELT WE NEEDED TO INTRODUCE THE SAN ANTONIO A WAY TO BRING FOOD TO OUR CUSTOMERS IN A SAFER WAY.
YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING.
IT ALLOWS US TO BRING FOOD TO OUR, OUR CLIENTS' HOMES, OUR CLIENTS' BUSINESSES.
BUT THERE WAS A NEED FOR ESSENTIAL GOODS.
AND WITHIN 24 HOURS, LA GLORIA AND
WE'VE INVESTED IN OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM TO RECEIVE A CERTIFICATION IN PANDEMIC AND EVENT DESIGN COURSE TO ALLOW US TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE PROVIDING THE BEST SAFETY MEASURES IN PLACE FOR THE UPCOMING EVENTS, AND TO CONSULT WITH OUR CLIENTS AS THEY'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH THEIR VIRTUAL AND HYBRID PLATFORMS ON WHAT THEY CAN LOOK FORWARD TO IN THE COMING MONTHS.
IT'S BEEN A GREAT PARTNERSHIP WITH SAN ANTONIO, OUR GUESTS, OUR FANS, OUR RESIDENTS, AND NOW THAT WE'RE REOPENED, REALLY EMPLOYING THOUSANDS OF SAN ANTONIOS YET AGAIN FOLKS THAT ARE LOOKING FOR EXTRA MONEY, OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO IS GONNA MAKE US STRONGER FOR THE FUTURE.
WE ARE HERE AND WE ARE READY WHEN YOU ARE.
SAN ANTONIO HAS ALWAYS BEEN RESILIENT.
WE'VE ALWAYS PUSHED THROUGH AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO AS LONG AS WE HAVE TO.
YOU KNOW, INDEED 2020 HAS BEEN A TRUE TEST TO THE RESILIENCE OF BOTH SAN ANTONIO AND ITS IMPACTFUL HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.
FIRST, I WANTED TO TAKE A QUICK LOOK BACK TODAY, SINCE THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN A WHILE THAT WE'VE BEEN TOGETHER ALMOST IMMEDIATELY LAST SPRING, WE FELT THE IMPACT OF C OVID 19, AS ALL OF YOU DID.
AND ARGUABLY, FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE NINE 11 VISIT, SAN ANTONIO MADE A DECISION TO GO COMPLETELY DARK WITH OUR MARKETING OF SAN ANTONIO AS A DESTINATION.
AND WE DID THIS FOR A COUPLE OF REASONS.
IT WAS NOT THE RIGHT TIME TO HAVE A MESSAGE OUT INVITING PEOPLE TO SAN ANTONIO, BUT WE ALSO KNEW THAT WE WERE GOING TO NEED TO SAVE AS MUCH FUNDING AS POSSIBLE FOR WHEN THE TIME WOULD BE RIGHT.
UM, SO THOSE WERE REALLY THE KEY REASONS, YOU KNOW, AT THAT TIME, WORKING OF COURSE, UH, WITH THE CITY.
UH, WE CUT OUR BUDGET BY A THIRD, WHICH IMPACTED OUR TEAM AND OUR PROGRAMS, AND WE KNOW WE'RE CERTAINLY NOT ALONE.
UH, BUSINESSES IN OUR INDUSTRY SECTOR, UM, TEMPORARILY HAD TO CLOSE AND IN SOME CA CASES HAVE PERMANENTLY CLOSED.
UH, THE TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY IS MADE UP OF MOSTLY SMALL BUSINESSES, SO THIS IS A SEISMIC IMPACT.
UH, LIKE YOU, WE HAVE TRIED TO LOOK INTO OUR IMAGINARY CRYSTAL BALL TO DETERMINE WHEN THE INDUSTRY WILL FULLY COME BACK.
UM, BUT ACCORDING TO A LOT OF OUR INDUSTRY RESEARCH AND EXPERTS, UM, INCLUDING ADAM SACKS OF TOURISM ECONOMICS, IT'LL BE LATE 2023 OR THE BEGINNING OF 2024 THAT OUR INDUSTRY SECTOR WILL BE FULLY RECOVERED, WHETHER IT'S LOCALLY OR ALL OVER THE UNITED STATES, UM, IN THIS LANDSCAPE FOR TRAVEL.
YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW WHAT'S BEEN IMPORTANT IS STUDYING, STUDYING TRAVELER SENTIMENTS, UH, WHERE THEIR COMING FROM AND HOW, UH, WHAT THEIR HABITS ARE AND EXPECTATIONS.
UM, AS THE YEAR WORE ON, EVEN THE PANDEMIC AFFECTED US.
WE HAVE SEEN THE TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY SLOWLY REGA REGAINING OUR FOOTING.
AND MANY OF THOSE, UH, TEMPORARY CLOSED BUSINESSES, THEY'VE BEEN OPEN AGAIN, UM, OFTEN WITH OBVIOUSLY DRAMATIC CHANGES
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TO THEIR OWN OPERATION.AND OF COURSE, WE ARE STARTING TO SEE SOME OF THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY NUMBERS IMPROVE.
UH, ONE THING IS FOR CERTAIN AND HAS MOTIVATED VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
AS WE EXAMINE OUR OPERATIONS, WE STILL REPRESENT A DYNAMIC TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
TIME AND TIME AGAIN, HISTORY HAS SHOWN THAT THE, THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR WILL REBOUND AND IN SOME CASES REBOUND EVEN STRONGER THAN EVER.
THE POINT OF THE MATTER IS PEOPLE WANT EXPERIENCES, PERSONAL INTERACTION, AND BEING REFRESHED BY SEEING SOMETHING NEW OR REMARKABLE.
AND I THINK WE ALL KNOW THAT OUR WONDERFUL SAN ANTONIO HAS JUST THAT.
WITH ITS RICH DIVERSITY OF CULINARY ARTS AND CULTURE HISTORY AND FAMILY ATTRACTION ASSETS, WE ARE SET UP TO BE DESTINATION OF CHOICE.
THE CITY IS A GENERATIONAL CHOICE FOR VISITORS, ESPECIALLY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK THAT'S GONNA HELP US ON THE RECOVERY IS CONSIDER THAT NEARLY 70% OF OUR VISITORS HAIL FROM INSIDE THE STATE'S BORDERS.
AND SO WITH THAT IN MIND, EVEN AS WEVE SURVEYED THE PRESENT AND FORECAST FOR UNCERTAIN FUTURE, WE KNEW WE COULD NOT SIT STILL.
SO IN EARLY SUMMER, IN FACT, I CAN REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY, IT WAS JUNE 15TH, WE SAID, OH, SURELY BY JUNE 15TH, WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO LAUNCH SOMETHING.
SO WE WORKED REALLY HARD AND WE LAUNCHED A PROMOTION CALLED SEE SAN ANTONIO, AS IN YES, SAN ANTONIO, ENCOURAGING TRAVELERS TO, TO OUR DESTINATION, BUT IMMEDIATELY CONSUMERS AND OUR INSTINCTS TOLD US IT JUST WASN'T THE RIGHT TIME.
SO WE HAD TO MOVE ON FOR THAT.
FROM THAT INITIATIVE AS WELL, WE ALSO HAD TO REORGANIZE OUR OWN ORGANIZATION.
AND PART OF THAT, UH, RESTRUCTURING ALLOWED US TO SAVE FUNDS FOR FUTURE ACTIVATIONS AND TO PRESERVE FOR LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY.
LIKE MANY OF OUR BUSINESS PARTNERS, STAKEHOLDERS, AND SO MANY IN OUR COMMUNITY BUSINESS, SAN ANTONIO HAS HAD TO MAKE BUDGET ADJUSTMENTS AND REEXAMINE OUR OPERATIONS, RESULTING FROM THE REDUCED BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITIES ASSOCIATED WITH C OVID 19.
FOR CONTEXT, WE WANTED TO SHARE THE ORIGINAL.
OUR ORIGINAL FISCAL YEAR 2019 ADOPTED BUDGETS FOR BOTH VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND T I D.
DURING THIS PA PAST YEAR, WE SAW REVENUE DECLINE, AND SO WE HAD TO MAKE CORRESPONDING EXPENDITURE AND OPERATIONAL ADJUSTMENTS TO ACCOUNT FOR THOSE REDUCED REVENUES.
AND YOU CAN SEE HOW IT CONTINUES TO AFFECT OUR ORGANIZATION INTO FISCAL YEAR 2020.
WE SAW ABOUT A 42% DECLINE IN OUR BUDGET, UM, FOUR 20, UM, FROM THE ORIGINAL ADOPTED BUDGET WE'RE TARGETING, AS YOU CAN SEE, 21.3 MILLION OF OPERATING BUDGET FOR THIS CURRENT YEAR.
THAT REPRESENTS A 45% DECREASED AS COMPARED TO OUR ADOPTED BUDGET LAST YEAR.
UH, WE WILL REMAIN IN CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH YOU, THE CITY AND OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND THE TOURISM AND PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THINGS MAY CHANGE MONTH TO MONTH.
BUT OF COURSE, WITH MY PERPETUAL OPTIMISM, I HOPE IT CHANGES FOR THE BETTER.
HERE'S A BREAKDOWN OF HOW THOSE DOLLARS WILL BE SPENT THIS YEAR.
UM, WE'RE FOCUSED ON OUR CORE COMPETENCIES OF SALES AND MARKETING.
THOSE INITIATIVES ACCOUNT FOR APPROXIMATELY 82% OF OUR TOTAL VISITS SAN ANTONIO BUDGET.
WE NEED EVERY DOLLAR TO WORK FOR US RIGHT NOW AS WE MOVE ON AND INVITE PEOPLE TO SAN ANTONIO.
WE ALSO WANNA SHOW YOU THE SAN ANTONIO TPI D BUDGET AS THOSE DOLLARS ARE INTEGRATED INTO THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO SALES AND MARKETING EFFORTS AND HELP TO AUGMENT OR ENHANCE VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S EFFORTS BY AFFORDING MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO GET OUR ME MESSAGE OUT IN FRONT OF CUSTOMERS FOR THE SAN ANTONIO T I D THE FISCAL YEAR 2021 WAS DEVELOPED WITH THIS S THE T P I D BOARD BACK IN AUGUST AND OUTLINES THE ANTICIPATED BUDGET PROGRAMMING FOR THE COMING YEAR.
AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE ORIGINAL PETITION AND SERVICE PLAN, AT LEAST 90% OF THE TPI DOLLARS MUST BE USED TOWARDS SALES AND MARKETING EFFORTS.
AT THIS POINT, PLEASE LET ME INTRODUCE YOU TO HENRY FELDMAN,
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THE CHAIRMAN OF THE SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT.UH, MAYOR NIERENBERG AND CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS.
IT'S A PLEASURE TO TALK WITH YOU TODAY.
UM, AS CASSANDRA SAID, MY NAME IS HENRY FELDMAN.
UH, WE OWN AND OPERATE THE LA KINTA, UH, CONFERENCE CENTER IN THE MEDICAL CENTER.
AND FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS, I'VE BEEN CHAIR OF THE SANITARY NEO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT.
WHEN COUNCIL APPROVED THE CREATION OF THE TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT TWO YEARS AGO THIS WEEK, WE WERE ENJOYING THE BENEFITS OF A ROBUST HEALTH, A ROBUST HOSPITALITY ECONOMY IN SAN ANTONIO.
THE INITIAL PROJECTIONS WERE THAT BY 2020, THE FIRST FULL YEAR THAT THE T I WOULD BE IN EFFECT AT LEAST $10 MILLION WOULD BE GENERATED BY OUR LOCAL HOTELS.
THOSE FUNDS OVERSEEN BY THE, UH, SAN ANTONIO TEPI BOARD, WOULD BE DIRECTED TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO TO HELP MARKET THIS BEAUTIFUL DESTINATION IN NEW AND CREATIVE WAYS.
AS WE ALL KNOW, THE C OVID 19 AND PANDEMIC ALTERED THOSE HOPES FOR NOW.
BUT ONE TRUTH REMAINS TODAY, THE TEA PIT AND ITS POTENTIAL ARE GREAT FOR THIS COMMUNITY AND PROVIDES A NECESSARY FUEL TO DRIVE VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S EFFORTS TO SPUR THE RECOVERY OF THE THIS SUCH AN IMPORTANT TOURISM INDUSTRY.
IT'S WHY YOUR CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF THE ANNUAL SERVICE PLAN ON DECEMBER 10TH FOR THE TID REPRESENTS A CRITICAL STEP.
SAN ANTONIO'S REVITALIZATION WILL DEPEND IN LARGE PART ON THE COMEBACK OF THE HOSPITALITY SECTOR.
IN TURN, THAT RENEWAL IS VITAL FOR OUR HOTELS, WHICH REPRESENT SUCH A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THIS UNPRECEDENTED TIME.
OUR HOTELS HAVE RESPONDED AS NEEDED, ALL HAVE IMP IMPLEMENTED THE SAFETY PRO PROTOCOLS AND MESSAGING NECESSARY TO PROTECT NOT ONLY THEIR GUESTS, BUT EMPLOYEES.
MANY HAVE SIGNED THE GREATER SAFER TOGETHER PLEDGE THAT CAN BE FOUND ON THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO WEBSITE.
AS A BOARD, WE ARE ALSO RESPONDING.
NOT LONG AGO WHEN I LAST SPOKE IN FRONT OF YOU, YOU AS A COUNCIL CHALLENGED US TO FIND MORE FEMALE REPRESENTATION ON OUR BOARD, PART OF A COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY.
WHILE UNFORTUNATELY, ONE OF OUR FEMALE BOARD MEMBERS HAS MOVED ON TO ANOTHER CITY, WE BROUGHT ON TWO NEW FEMALE BOARD MEMBERS.
ADDITIONALLY, MARIA MARTINEZ, WHO IS THE GENERAL MANAGER OF WESTERN RIVERWALK, WILL SERVE AS OUR SECRETARY AND IS IN LINE TO BE CHAIR OF THE T BID IN THE FUTURE.
WE ARE MAKING STRIDES AND WORKING TO BE A GOOD PARTNER WITH YOU.
WE KNOW THAT TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THIS DIFFICULT TIME.
AND NOW LET ME TURN YOU BACK TO CASSANDRA.
WE WANTED TO ALSO TAKE A MOMENT TO SHARE A LITTLE BACKGROUND OR REMINDER ABOUT THE SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC DISTRICT.
WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE CITY TO FACILITATE THE PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE DIS DISTRICT RENEWAL AND APPROVAL OF THE CORRESPONDING SERVICE PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2021.
AND THAT ITEM IS SCHEDULED FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION NEXT WEEK DURING THE DECEMBER 10TH, A SESSION IN 2019 IN ORDER TO HELP ADVANCE SAN ANTONIO AS A PREMIER US DESTINATION.
VARIOUS INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY PARTNERS, INCLUDING THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THE SAN ANTONIO HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, TEXAS HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, AND VISIT SAN ANTONIO, WORKED TOGETHER TO PROPOSE AND IMPLEMENT A SAN ANTONIO TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT, OR WE CALL IT T I D, THAT WENT INTO EFFECT JANUARY 1ST, 2019 FOR AN EIGHT YEAR PERIOD ENDING SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2026.
THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF THE T P I D IS TO FUND ADDITIONAL TOURISM PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES FOR SAN ANTONIO AND THE MEMBERS OF THAT DISTRICT.
ANY HOTEL IN THE SA SAN ANTONIO CITY LIMITS WITH A HUNDRED ROOMS OR MORE IS A MEMBER OF THE DISTRICT.
CURRENTLY, THERE ARE 154 PROPERTIES THAT ARE ON THE ASSESSMENT ROLE.
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1.25% ASSESSMENT ON ANY TAXABLE OCCUPIED ROOM FOR THE PURPOSE OF GENERATING FUNDS TO MARKET AND PROMOTE SAN ANTONIO AS A CONVENTION AND TOURISM DESTINATION.SO IN ORDER TO GET ON THE PATH TO RECOVERY, WE WORKED WITH OUR BOARD OVER THE LAST FIVE MONTHS TO UPDATE OUR STRATEGIC PLAN TO ALSO INTEGRATE RECOVERY.
THE PROCESS INCLUDED INTERVIEWS WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS, CIVIC LEADERS, VIRTUAL FOCUS GROUPS WITH INDUSTRY, AS WELL AS VISIT SAN ANTONIO TEAM MEETINGS.
FROM ALL THE INFORMATION GATHERINGS, WE KNOW SAN ANTONIO IS STANDING IN A VERY GOOD POSITION TO RECOVER.
FIRST OF ALL, AS YOU KNOW, SAN ANTONIO IS STARTING WITH A STRONG BASE OF TOURISM ASSETS, AND I APPRECIATE ALWAYS YOUR LEADERSHIP OF REINVESTING IN THOSE ASSETS TO MAKE SURE US THAT LIVE HERE AS RESIDENTS AND THE VISITORS THAT COME HERE, THEY ALWAYS HAVE A WONDERFUL DESTINATION TO EXPLORE.
RECOVERY FROM COVID WILL BE A LONG AND VOLATILE PROCESS.
THE THIRD, THERE WILL BE FIERCE COMPETITION AND OPPORTUNITY FOR EVENTS ONCE THEY RETURN.
WHY WILL WE'RE GONNA HAVE A LOT MORE COMPETITION IS ON THE SHORT TERM.
MANY OF OUR PROGRAMS OR MEETINGS ARE GONNA BE MUCH SMALLER.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WERE SOME GROUPS THAT COULD FIT IN SAN ANTONIO BUT COULDN'T FIT, FOR EXAMPLE, IN AUSTIN.
BUT NOW, BECAUSE SOME OF THOSE PROGRAMS ARE GOING TO BE SMALLER, OUR COMPETITION IS GONNA GET LARGER.
BUT LET'S LEAVE WITH OUR GLASS HALF FULL.
ON THE SAME NOTE, SOME OF OUR LARGER COMPETITORS, THE MAJOR CITIES, NEW ORLEANS AS AN EXAMPLE, ATLANTA, SOME OF THOSE PROGRAMS THAT WOULDN'T FIT IN OUR FACILITY WILL MOST LIKELY BE ABLE TO FIT IN OUR FACILITY IN THE, IN THE COMING YEARS.
AND SO WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THAT OPPORTUNITY AND POTENTIALLY NEW MEETINGS FOR SAN ANTONIO.
AND OF COURSE, I DO WANNA PUT ON YOUR RADAR, WE ARE HOSTING US TRAVEL, US TRAVEL ASSOCIATION'S PREMIER INTERNATIONAL SHOW.
AND IN 2023, AND FROM ALL THE INFORMATION GATHERING REGARDING OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, IT WAS HELD TRUE THAT THIS IS NOTED AS A MAJOR OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR COMMUNITY AS WE TRULY WELCOME THE INTERNATIONAL WORLD STAGE TO SAN ANTONIO.
UM, SO WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
WE DID REVISIT OUR VISION AND MISSION STATEMENTS, HOWEVER, CONSENSUS OF ALL OF OUR PARTNERS, UM, AND CIVIC LEADERS WAS THAT THEY REALLY REMAIN RELEVANT TODAY.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE EVER SEEN THIS, SO WE WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU AND OVERALL, OUR TARGETS BY THE END OF 2023 ARE ASPIRATIONAL, BUT WE WANNA WORK HARD TO GET US AND BE, HAVE ONE OF THE BEST YEARS THAT IN PRE COVID.
AND ONE OF THOSE YEARS IS THE EXAMPLE IS 2018.
SO IN A THREE YEAR TIMEFRAME, WE WANNA GET BACK TO 2018.
WE WILL SEND YOU VIA EMAIL, OUR FULL STRATEGIC PLAN FOLLOWING TODAY.
BUT WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME FOUR KEY AREAS THAT ARE OUR FOCUS OF THE PLAN.
STRATEGIC SALES AND MARKETING.
OF COURSE, OUR CORE WITH A FOCUS ON OUR REGIONAL MARKET MESSAGING OF HEALTH AND SAFETY, AND THE FACT THAT IT'S A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY.
OUR VENUES, OUR CITY, OUR OUR PARTNERS CAN DO WHAT THEY NEED TO DO, BUT THE VISITORS ALSO SHARE IN THAT RESPONSIBILITY.
COLLABORATIVE DESTINATION MANAGEMENT, WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO REOPEN THE VISITOR ECONOMY WITH CLEAN AND SAFE VISITOR EXPECTATIONS.
PLAY A ROLE IN ADVOCATING FOR DEVELOPING AND ENHANCING SAN ANTONIO ASSETS, AND OBVIOUSLY ADVOCATING FOR OUR INDUSTRY AT THE UPCOMING LEGISLATIVE SESSION.
WE ALSO WANNA BE A TRANSFORMATIONAL PARTNER AND, AND HAVE GREAT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
SO WE'RE LOOKING TO RETOOL, RELAUNCH AND ENGAGE OUR MEMBERSHIP MODEL AND DEVELOP AND LAUNCH A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP PRO, PRO, UH, PROGRAM.
UM, WE ALSO WANT TO BE AN INNOVATIVE AND RESULTS ORIENTED ORGANIZATION.
SO THAT MEANS COLLABORATING WITH OTHER ORGANIZATION ORGANIZATIONS FOR OPPORTUNITIES FOR MAYBE SHARED RESOURCES OR EFFICIENCIES, EXAMINE NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO BECOME
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A MORE DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE ORGANIZATION AND MAINTAIN STATUS AS AN EMPLOYER OF CHOICE.OUR STRATEGIC PLAN CERTAINLY HELPED DRIVE OUR ORGANIZATIONAL PRIORITIES FOR THIS YEAR, AND I'D LIKE TO SHARE SOME WITH YOU.
IT WASN'T JUST THE ARRIVAL OF C OVID 19 PANDEMIC THAT FORCED US TO TAKE A LONG LOOK OF HOW WE DO BUSINESS.
THE NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON EQUALITY LEFT US EXAMINING INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY HOW WE AT VISIT SAN ANTONIO OPERATE.
VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND ITS BOARD EMBRACED A COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY AND AND INCLUSION AS A PRIORITY.
IT MEANS MAKING A COMPLETE MARKETING AUDIT TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE ACCURATELY REPRESENTING THE DIVERSITY OF OUR CITY AND VISITORS.
WE ALSO PRODUCED A STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT TO THE BLACK COMMUNITY DURING WHAT HAS BEEN A PAINFUL YEAR.
THE STATEMENT IS HOUSED ON OUR WEBSITE.
WE, WE, WHAT WE DO IN OUR DAILY OPERATIONS AND OUR INITIATIVES TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE IN, IN INTEGRATING OUR CORE VALUES.
ALSO, WE ARE PUTTING THOSE INTENTIONS INTO ACTION.
WE'RE DEPLOYING OUR SALES REPRESENTATIVES TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH DIVERSE GROUPS TO BRING THEM TO SAN ANTONIO.
THOSE ACTIONS WILL ALSO INCLUDE AN INTERNAL COMMITMENT THAT WILL INCLUDE TRAINING AND TALENT PROCUREMENT.
WITH DIVERSITY IN MIND, WE KNOW AS YOU DO THAT PART, THAT BEING A PART OF THIS CITY'S REVITALIZATION MEANS INVESTING IN HEALING AT ALL LEVELS.
WE WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU AND THE PUBLIC TODAY AT OUR PUBLIC STATEMENT TODAY THAT WAS RELEASED FROM VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
AND OUR BOARD, AS YOU KNOW, OUR CORE VALUES REPRESENT AND DRIVE THE CULTURE OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
RECENTLY, WE EXPANDED THOSE CORE VALUES TO INCLUDE A NEW ENTRY.
WE WELCOME WE PROMOTE DIVERSITY.
WE ARE A DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE ORGANIZATION.
NOW I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME ABOUT THE WHAT RECOVERY HAS LOOKED LIKE.
OUR IMMEDIATE INVESTMENT IN RECOVERY HAS BEEN AN INVESTMENT IN BETTERING THE CITY AROUND US.
WE HAVE INCREASED OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WITH THE BELIEF THAT A BETTER SAN ANTONIO IS A STRONGER HOME FOR ALL OF US WHO LIVE HERE AND A STRONGER DESTINATION FOR THOSE WHO ARE DECIDING WHERE TO VISIT.
AND WE QUICKLY IDENTIFIED THAT WE COULD STEP UP AND HELP THE COMMUNITY WITH OUR AS ASSETS.
OUR WEBSITE COULD ALSO SERVE AN IMPORTANT TOOL FOR THE COMMUNITY.
SO WE CREATED OUR VIRTUAL SAN ANTONIO PAGE WHERE THE ARTS COMMUNITY, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, RESTAURANTS, ATTRACTIONS, AND MANY OTHERS, HAD A PLATFORM TO SHARE THEIR ONLINE SOLUTIONS.
THINGS LIKE ONLINE ORDERING AND PICKUP VIRTUAL MUSEUM TOURS AND EXPERIENCES.
DO IT YOURSELF DEMONSTRATION OR EVEN PROVIDING VIRTUAL BACKGROUND OPTIONS FOR ZOOM CALLS OR VIRTUAL CALLS WE SHARED ON OUR PAGE.
OUR TEAM MEMBERS HAVE FED THE HOMELESS HANDED OUT MEALS FOR, FOR THE SAN ANTONIO FOOD BANK.
WORKED WITH THE TO-GO FOR GOOD INITIATIVE TO BENEFIT LOCAL RESTAURANTS AND INVEST IT IN SO MANY CAUSES, DEAR TO OUR COMMUNITY.
OFTEN SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH YOU TO GO FOR GOOD INITIATIVE.
AS AN EXAMPLE, UH, WE RAISED MORE THAN $75,000 FOR THE SAN ANTONIO FOOD BANK, AND NEARLY 20,000 WENT TO THE PARTICIPATING LOCAL HOTELS CURRENTLY, AND I HOPE YOU'VE HEARD ABOUT THIS, A NEW FUNDRAISING PROGRAM IS UNDERWAY THAT OFFERS SAN ANTONIO A MEANINGFUL WAY TO GIVE AND GIFT THIS HOLIDAY SEASON.
HOLIDAY GIFTING FOR GOOD PROVIDES SHOPPING, UM, SHOPPERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE CURATED GIFTS FROM ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS SPURS, GIVE THE PEARL SAN ANTONIO BOX AND VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
AND THESE, UM, EFFORTS ARE SUPPORTING THE LOCAL BUSINESSES AND THE UNITED WAY OF SAN ANTONIO AND BEXAR COUNTY.
WE ALSO PARTNERED WITH THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TRANSITION TEAM TO CREATE THE GREATER
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SAFER TOGETHER PLEDGE WEBSITE.CURRENTLY, VERY PROUD TO SAY WE HAVE MORE THAN 2100 PLEDGES FROM BUSINESSES WHICH ARE COMMITTING TO PRO PROTECT THE WELFARE OF GUESTS AND EMPLOYEES AT THEIR OPERATIONS.
THIS INITIATIVE IS VITAL AS WE LET POTENTIAL VISITORS AND RESIDENTS KNOW THAT SAN ANTONIO REMAINS THE SAFE, WARM DESTINATION THAT IT'S ALWAYS BEEN.
IN 2019, WE GREETED 40 MILLION LEISURE VISITORS, AND MANY OF THEM HAVE TOLD US THAT THEY HAVE COME TO OUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEY ARE TREATED LIKE FAMILY.
AND THAT'S MORE IMPORTANT THAN MORE THAN EVER.
WE'RE DOING SO WITH A POSITIVE MINDSET TO USE OUR RESOURCES TO HELP REBUILD THE HOSPITALITY SECTOR, THE THIRD LARGEST ECONOMIC INDUS ECONOMIC INDUSTRY IN THE CITY.
AND IN DOING SO, HELP REVITALIZE SAN ANTONIO'S ECONOMY.
SO LET'S TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE AS IT PERTAINS TO THE MEETINGS LANDSCAPE.
WE KNOW QUARTER ONE OF THE CALENDAR YEAR IS STILL VERY UNCERTAIN, BUT WE ALSO KNOW THAT WE DO HAVE BUSINESS THAT WILL BE COMING TO THE CITY AND THE HENRY B. GONZALEZ CONVENTION CENTER FOR 2021 AND THE CONVENTION CENTER.
WE STILL HAVE 59 CONVENTIONS STILL ON THE BOOKS REPRESENTING ALMOST 250,000 ATTENDEES, ALMOST 300,000 ROOM NIGHTS.
AND AN ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACT OF NEARLY $200 MILLION TO THIS ECONOMY.
WE CONTINUE TO SEE GROUP LEADS COMING IN BOTH SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM, ALTHOUGH ADMITTEDLY SO OUR GROUP LEADS AND RFPS ARE DOWN, UH, OVER COMPARED TO LAST YEAR.
BUT WE ARE GETTING THOSE LEADS.
CUSTOMERS ARE READY TO TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE.
AND OUR MESSAGING TO GROUPS THAT ARE CONSIDERING THEIR FUTURE IS VERY DIRECT.
SAN ANTONIO WAS RANKED BY FINANCE BUZZ AS ONE OF THE TOP 25 DESTINATIONS IN THE COUNTRY TO WORK FROM HERE.
THIS AC ACCOLADE CONSIDERED ASSETS THAT WOULD ALLOW AN EXTENDED STAY, WIFI AVAILABILITY AND MORE CRITERIA THAT HELPS A CUSTOMER DECIDE TO ENJOY WORK FROM A SITE AND ALSO ENJOY THE DESTINATION.
AT THE SAME TIME, THIS NEW AND INNOVATIVE FORM OF TRAVEL CAN C CAN BECOME A TREND AND A NEW ASSET TO INSPIRE CHOOSING SAN ANTONIO OTHER OVER ANOTHER DESTINATION.
ADDITIONALLY, HOMESCHOOLING IN THE UNITED STATES HAS RISEN UP TO 400%.
THIS TREND REPRESENTS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US, CONSIDERED A HISTORIC AND CULTURAL CITY BY TRAVELERS.
SCHOOL CURRICULUMS CAN INCLUDE LEARN FROM HERE OPTIONS FOR A RICHER AND MORE EDUCATIONAL, EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE OF LEARNING REMOTELY FROM THE DESTINATION ITSELF.
DEFINITELY AN OPPORTUNITY FOR TRAVEL AND EXTENDED STAY IN OUR DESTINATION.
OF COURSE, SAFETY AND SECURITY ARE TOP PRIORITIES WHEN IT COMES TO TRAVEL FROM TODAY AND FOR YEARS TO COME.
EVERY MESSAGE THAT PROMOTES OUR DESTINATION, AND FRANKLY, ANY DESTINATION WILL NEED TO BE COMPLETED WITH A SAFETY MESSAGE.
IT WILL BECOME A STANDARD FOR OUR INDUSTRY OF TRAVELERS TO A DESTINATION IN MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS.
OUR FOCUS IS VERY SIMPLE EMPHASIS ON LEISURE TRAVEL, FOCUS ON KEY REGIONAL MARKETS, AND LEVERAGING PARTNERS TO EXPAND OUR REACH IN 2021, WITH THE APPROVAL OF OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND OUR MARKETING COMMITTEE, THE GOAL WILL BE TO REACH 26 MILLION ONLINE ENGAGEMENTS.
SO WHAT ARE WE DOING TO FOCUS ON TO REACH THAT GOAL IN 2021? IT IS CRITICAL TO PRO TO PROTECT OUR BREAD AND BUTTER.
OUR REGIONAL TRAVELERS WILL BE STRONGLY TARGETED BY ALL OTHER TEXAS DESTINATIONS, CONSIDERING THAT
[00:40:01]
THEIR INTERNATIONAL AND CORPUS BUS CORPORATE BUSINESS TRAVELER SOURCES HAVE BEEN DIMINISHED BY COVID.WE ALSO NEED TO ENSURE THAT THE MEXICO MARKETS CONTINUE TO RECOGNIZE SAN ANTONIO AS A PREFERRED LEISURE AND SHOPPING DESTINATION.
WE ARE ALSO INCLUDING MEXICO AS A KEY PRIORITY, CONSIDERING THAT OTHER COMPETITORS CURRENTLY HAVE NO PRESENCE TODAY IN THAT MARKET.
SPRING AND SUMMER WILL CONTINUE TO BE OUR LARGEST SEASONS OF THE YEAR.
AND TO ENSURE A STRONG COMEBACK, WE ARE PLANNING ON BRINGING BACK THE C SAN ANTONIO PROMOTION TO GENERATE DEMAND AND SUPPORT THE HOTEL, RESTAURANT AND ATTRACTION BUSINESSES DURING THESE PEAK SEASONS.
OUR TOTAL BUDGET WILL TO GO OUT TO MARKET IN 2021 IS ESTIMATED AT MORE THAN $7 MILLION, WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 40% LESS THAN PRE C O YEARS.
THIS YEAR, MORE THAN EVER LEVERAGING OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH REGIONAL MEDIA IS A KEY TO SUCCESS.
PR WILL BE A KEY TOOL TO HELP SUPPLEMENT THAT DECREASED INVESTMENT IN OUR MARKETING.
OUR GOAL IS TO REACH 4 MILLION ONLINE ENGAGEMENTS FOCUSED ON REGIONAL MEDIA TO ENSURE WE PROTECT OUR POSITION AGAINST OUR COMPETITORS.
A KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR FOR NEXT YEAR WILL BE A NUMBER OF POSITIVE MEDIA PLACEMENTS REGARDING SAN ANTONIO.
OUR GOAL IS TO OBTAIN 200 OR MORE, UH, STORIES ABOUT SAN ANTONIO.
WORKING WITH THE REGIONAL CHANNELS WILL CONTINUE TO BE A KEY DRIVER OF EARNED MEDIA VALUE.
REINFORCING MEDIA ACTIVITY IN MEXICO WILL ALSO BE A FOCUS OF OUR SEASONED COMMUNICATIONS PROFESSIONALS WHO HAVE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN THE FIELD TO GET SAN ANTONIO PUBLISHED IN KEY PRIORITY MARKETS.
TOURISM IS A SIGNIFICANT DEPARTMENT THAT SUPPORT OUR ONLINE ENGAGEMENT GOALS AND OUTREACH PLAN, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY HELPS TURN ONLINE ENGAGEMENT INTO REAL TRAVEL BUSINESS.
THEY WORK WITH ONLINE TRAVEL AGENCIES, TRAVEL WHOLESALERS, AND THE TRAVEL TRADE TO SELL THE DESTINATION NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY.
SO IN 2021, WE HAVE CHALLENGED THE TOURISM UNIT TO HELP US GROW THE BASE OF NEARLY 650,000 INTERNATIONAL TRAVELERS.
ACCORDING TO OXFORD ECONOMIC STUDY FOR 2020 TO 1.2 MILLION TRAVELERS IN 2021 WORKING WITH US RECEPTIVES AND TOUR OPERATORS IS A CRITICAL VEHICLE TO FEATURE SAN ANTONIO AND TEXAS PRODUCTS AND ITINERARIES, AS WELL AS INVESTIGATE OPPORTUNITIES TO ADD HOTEL OR ATTRACTION PRODUCT.
WE'LL COORDINATE VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON FAMILIARIZATION TRIPS, AND THE TEAM WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO EXPAND RELATIONSHIPS WITH ONLINE TRAVEL AGENCIES, AS WELL AS VACATION RENTALS SUCH AS AIRBNB.
TOURISM IS ALSO FOCUSED IN DEVELOPING DATA AND RESEARCH THAT WILL CONTINUE TO EDUCATE OUR MARKETING DECISIONS AND REDEFINE OUR TARGETING STRATEGIES.
TOURISM WILL EXPAND IN OUR CO COLLABORATIONS WITH THE SAN ANTONIO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO LEVERAGE GAIN MOMENTUM WITH THE MEXICAN AIRLINES AND TO SUPPORT THE AIRPORT TEAM IN RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION EFFORTS IN GROUP SALES.
OUR FOCUS THIS YEAR IS ON CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT, RETAINMENT OF THOSE DEFINITE GROUPS AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, UTILIZING OUR NEW CITYWIDE SALES STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE ARE THREE AREAS WE'RE FOCUSED ON EVENT GOALS BASED ON QUALITY VERSUS QUANTITY.
SHIFTING A FOCUS ON PLACING EVENTS WHERE THERE ARE GAPS.
ADDITIONALLY, LOOKING AT OUR LEAD GOALS CONSIDERING PANDEMIC LEAD VOLUME, UM, AS WELL AS REALLY ESTABLISHING A CLOSING RATIO OF THAT BUSINESS.
WE WANNA BE ON THE FOREFRONT OF TRENDS FOR RECOVERY WITH A, WITH VERTICAL MARKETS FOCUSED ON SHORT-TERM OPPORTUNITIES, WHI WHICH WHILE WORKING TO BOLSTER OF COURSE THAT BASE FOR LONG-TERM CITYWIDE MEETINGS.
EXECUTION OF NEW COLLABORATIVE CITYWIDE STRATEGY, ALLOWING A MORE STRATEGIC PRO APPROACH TO OUR GOAL SETTING, ANALYZING A FUTURE CROSSOVER
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GOALS AND A GUIDEPOST FOR GROUP ROOM NIGHT DISCUSSION AND IMPROVED ALIGNMENT WITH OUR STAKEHOLDERS.WE'RE DEPLOYING OUR SALES STAFF A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY.
WE'RE LOOKING ALSO AT VERTICAL MARKETS ALONG WITH THE GEOGRAPHICAL MARKETS SUCH AS SOME EMERGING BUSINESS SEGMENTS.
THIRD PARTY MEETING PLANNING COMPANIES, THE SPORTS MARKET, AS WELL AS DIVERSITY AND CULTURE DESTINATION TO CAPTURE MORE MEETINGS AS WE EMERGE OUT OF THE CURRENT PANDEMIC.
AND OF COURSE, ONE OF THE THINGS OUR GROUP IS CONTINUOUSLY DOING IS HOSTING GREATER SAFER SAN ANTONIO CUSTOMER FAMILIARIZATION TRIPS, WHETHER THEY'RE VIRTUAL OR IN PERSON, TOUTING THE SAFETY WALKABILITY AND THE EASE OF DOING BUSINESS IN OUR DESTINATION.
IN A POST PANDEMIC MEETINGS ENVIRONMENT, OUR DESTINATION EXPERIENCE DEPARTMENT IS FOCUSED ON ENHANCING AND STREAMLINING THE PROCESS FOR MEETING PLANNERS.
BY ASSISTING THEM IN CURATING AN AUTHENTIC SAN ANTONIO EXPERIENCE, WE WILL HAVE CONTINUE TO HAVE CLIENT ENGAGEMENT EVENTS.
AND IN FACT, EACH MA MANAGER WILL CONCEPTUALIZE AND HOST ENGAGEMENT EVENTS FOR THEIR DEFINITE MEETING FUNNEL.
IN COLLABORATION WITH MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS, WE'LL CREATE AND IMPLEMENT AN ATTENDANCE BUILDING INITIATIVE.
'CAUSE WE HAVE THESE DEFINITE GROUPS, WE'VE GOTTA MAKE SURE THOSE ATTENDEES COME TO SAN ANTONIO.
SO WE WANNA CREATE A SENSE OF ASSURANCE THAT AN THE ORGANIZATION CAN BE SUCCESSFUL.
WELL ATTENDED AND SAFE BROADEN AWARENESS OF SAN ANTONIO THROUGH SUPPORT OF GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES FOR THOSE MEETING ATTENDANCE BY OFFERING INDUSTRY LEADING MARKETING RESOURCES TO PROMOTE, PROMOTE ATTENDANCE AND THE VISITOR EXPERIENCE IN CONCERT WITH THE HENRY B. GONZALEZ CONVENTION CENTER AND THEIR TEAM, ENSURING TIMELY COMMUNICATION OF ALL NEWLY IMPLEMENTED SAFETY AND WELLNESS RESOURCES AND PROTOCOLS SUCH AS THE G A C ACCREDITATION, WHICH IS DIFFERENTIATING OUR DESTINATION AND MAKING SURE PEOPLE KNOW NOT ONLY ARE WE OPEN, BUT WE ALSO ARE SAFE AND WE HAVE THOSE PROTOCOLS.
AND LASTLY, WE WANNA ENHANCE THE CLIENT EXPERIENCE AND ENGAGEMENT IN SAN ANTONIO WHILE MANAGING MEETING PLANNER EXPECTATIONS AND CONCERNS REGARDING NEW CITY DEVELOPMENTS.
POSTING COVID RECOVERY MESSAGING WHILE ENSURING THE NARRATIVE REMAINS ONE OF CONFIDENCE, EXCITEMENT, AND ATTENDANCE BUILDING.
UM, AGAIN, OUR MANTRA IS IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT, UH, POSTPONEMENT, POSTPONE AND WE'LL WORK WITH YOU, DON'T CANCEL.
LET'S BE A CA CATALYST FOR DEFINITE BUSINESS AND LET'S GET THEM HERE TO SAN ANTONIO IN OUR PARTNER AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
IT IS SO IMPORTANT MORE NOW THAN ARAB EVER, AND OUR PRIORITIES IN THIS AREA ARE PROMOTION AND MESSAGE OF THE VALUE OF THE VISIT VISITOR INDUSTRY.
EDUCATE AND ENGAGE AND HELP OUR PARTNERS ACTIVELY ENGAGE YOU, OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS, AND OBVIOUSLY PREPARE AND BE AN ADVOCATE DURING THE 87TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION THAT WILL BE GETTING VERY SOON.
WE'RE GONNA BE RETOOLING AND RELAUNCHING OUR MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM AND BE THAT GO-TO RESOURCE FOR OUR PARTNERS AND BE THAT SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND OF COURSE, BE A SERVICE TO OUR PARTNERS THROUGH ENHANCED COMMUNICATION.
WE'LL BE LAUNCHING JUST THIS WEEK A NEW PARTNER WEBSITE, UM, USING THE TIME, UH, TO REEVALUATE.
UM, SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE DOING, UH, WITH OUR PARTNERS.
UH, WHEN IT COMES TO OUR CERTIFIED TOURISM AMBA AMBASSADOR PROGRAM, WE ENDED 2019 WITH 19 CERTIFIED TOURISM AMBASSADORS DUE TO COVID AND OF COURSE, SOME FURLOUGHS.
WE EXPECT TO BE CLOSER TO A THOUSAND IN 2021, BUT WE'LL BE COLLABORATING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO HELP RECRUITMENT OF FRONTLINE STAFF TO BECOME EDUCATED AND CERTIFIED NEXT MONTH.
AND, AND OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, THIS, Y'ALL ARE PREPARING FOR, THIS IS THE START OF THE 87TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION, AND WE EXPECT THERE WILL BE A NUMBER OF TOPICS IN AUSTIN THAT WILL DEMAND OUR ATTENTION AS AN INDUSTRY.
OUR GOVERNMENT RELATIONS TEAM WILL BE TRACKING AND RESPONDING TO ANY LEGISLATION OF POTENTIAL IMPACT.
AND WE'LL BE COMMUNICATING PROACTIVELY WITH YOU ABOUT OUR DEVELOPMENT.
KEEPING OUR INDUSTRY STRONG AND SUPPORTIVE WILL BE A VITAL PART
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OF ITS RECOVERY.PLEASE KNOW THAT VISIT SAN ANTONIO WILL JOIN YOU EVERY DAY ON THE FRONT LINES FOR THAT BATTLE.
UH, WE'VE DEVELOPED ADVOCACY COALITIONS, INCLUDING PARTNERS WITH THE SAN ANTONIO HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, THE TEXAS RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION, THE SAN ANTONIO RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION, LOCAL CHAMBERS AND OTHER FEDERAL STATE ON THE, ON THEIR BOTH STATE AND FEDERAL LOCAL PRIORITIES.
WE'LL UTILIZE ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS, INDUSTRY EVENTS IN DISTRICT TOURS AND MEETINGS TO ENABLE ELECTED OFFICIALS TO GAIN A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM INDUSTRY.
I JUST WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME OF OUR PRIORITIES FOR THIS LEGISLATIVE SESSION.
OF COURSE, ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND GROWTH, SUSTAIN SUSTAINABILITY, UM, THE TEXAS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND THE FACT THAT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE TRAVEL, UH, THE TRAVEL TEXAS EVENTS TRUST FUND IS FUNDED AND CONTINUES.
AND THEN OF COURSE, UH, THE, THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX AND THE USE THAT'S MAINTAINED.
AND THEN WE WILL LOOK AT ALL INTERESTS THAT PROTECT TRAVEL AND TOURISM.
AS I CLOSE, I JUST IN SUMMARY, WANTED TO SHARE SOMETHING, UH, A FEW POINTS WITH YOU.
THE NEXT FOUR TO FIVE MONTHS WILL CONTINUE TO DEFINITELY BE DIFFICULT FOR OUR INDUSTRY AND FOR THE COMMUNITY.
THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR, WE WILL SEE SOME STRONG REBOUND, MEANING THE SECOND HALF OF THE CALENDAR YEAR, DOMESTIC AND DRIVE MARKET WILL BE THE LEAD OF OUR RECOVERY AND OUR FOCUS, THE ECONOMIC OUTLOOK WILL DEFINE A A THREE-YEAR PATH AND HISTORY AND HISTORIC PRECEDENT CONFIRMS THAT TRAVEL AND TOURISM WILL RETURN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, AND WE ARE, UH, HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, UH, CASSANDRA FOR THE PRESENTATION AND FOR THOSE OF YOUR LEADERSHIP AND BOARD, UH, MEMBERS FOR BEING HERE AS WELL.
UH, THERE'S A LOT, THERE'S A LOT IN HERE.
AND I'M, I'M SURE YOU HAD TO, UH, NARROW DOWN A LOT OF WHAT YOU WANTED TO, TO TALK ABOUT TODAY, BUT I DID WANNA HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE OF THINGS AND, AND I CERTAINLY SHARE YOUR OPTIMISM.
AND ONE OF THE REASONS IS, UM, SAN ANTONIO'S STRENGTH THROUGH THIS PANDEMIC IN MY MIND, HAS BEEN A LOT ABOUT INTEGRATION AND TEAMWORK AND THE GREATER, STRONGER, SAFER PLEDGE, I THINK IS A PART OF THAT.
AND, AND SO I, I THINK THERE'S A, A GREAT DEAL OF CONFIDENCE AS WE GO OUT TO THESE INDUSTRIES AND PITCH CONVENTIONS AND MAJOR EVENTS THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE, WE CAN DO AT THE SAME TIME IS SHOW HOW BIG EVENTS AND MEETINGS CAN BE DONE SAFELY, WHEN IT CAN BE DONE SAFELY.
OBVIOUSLY, WE'VE GOT A LONG WAY TO GO.
WE'RE NOT OUTTA THE WOODS, BUT WHEN EVENTS START TO COME BACK AND THERE'S CONFIDENCE WITHIN THE INDUSTRY, START PLACING 'EM, SAN ANTONIO SHOULD BE ON THE LEADING EDGE OF THAT CURVE IN TERMS OF LANDING, UM, THESE OPPORTUNITIES.
SO TO THE EXTENT THAT WE CAN DO THAT, UH, AND WE CAN INTEGRATE THE HEALTH MESSAGE AND THE SAFETY MESSAGE INTO IT, UM, I'D LIKE FOR FOR YOU TO LEAN ON US AND, AND FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN DO THAT TOGETHER.
UH, THE OTHER PART IS, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE HAD, OR IF YOUR BOARD HAS HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH, WITH SOME OF THE, UM, THE ECOSYSTEM OF HEALTH PROVIDERS THAT ARE ASSISTING IN THIS AREA.
AND ONE OF THEM THAT COMES TO MIND IS, UH, COMMUNITY LABS, WHICH IS DOING ASSURANCE TESTING.
ANOTHER COMPANY IS XANAX, WHICH HAS THE, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE GERMS ZAPPING ROBOTS.
THERE ARE COMPANIES THAT ARE INCUBATED AND GROWING HERE IN SAN ANTONIO THAT ARE, ARE PART OF THE POST COVID ERA THAT IF WE INCORPORATE INTO SOME OF OUR OWN PITCHES AND APPROACHES WITH THESE CONFERENCES, MIGHT GIVE US AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO, UH, DEMONSTRATE STRENGTH AND GIVE THEM CONFIDENCE IN SAN ANTONIO AND ALSO, UM, AND, AND, YOU KNOW, THE, THEIR, UH, THEIR OWN ATTENDEES.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, TO THE EXTENT THAT WE CAN BE HELPFUL AND BUILD CONSUMER CONFIDENCE BACK IN YOUR APPROACH, THAT WE, WE DEFINITELY WANNA BE CREATIVE AND, AND BE PART OF THAT.
THE ONLY OTHER THING I'D LIKE TO ASK YOU ABOUT IS, UM, OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, IT'S ALWAYS PERPLEXED ME WHY, UM, OUR MESSAGE CONTINUES TO BE, UM, WELL, OUR MESSAGE HASN'T EVOLVED AS FAST AS OUR INDUSTRIES HAVE EVOLVED.
AND, AND WHAT I'M, WHAT I'M GETTING AT IS THAT SAN ANTONIO HAS, UH, A, A HEALTHCARE AND BIOSCIENCES INDUSTRY THAT'S, THAT'S WORTH BEING PROUD
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OF.HOW MUCH OF OUR PITCH AND HOW MUCH OF OUR MESSAGE ABOUT WHO SAN ANTONIO IS, IS REFLECTIVE OF THE DIFFERENT INDUSTRIES THAT ARE BEGINNING TO GROW HERE.
AND, AND I I THINK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT, UM, THE BIOSCIENCE COMMUNITY, UM MM-HMM.
UH, AND JUST TO KIND OF GO BACK ON SOME OF YOUR POINTS, UH, WE ARE ACTUALLY SETTING UP A MEETING WITH, UH, COMMUNITY LABS BECAUSE WE'RE VERY EXCITED WHAT THAT COULD MEAN, UM, FOR SOME OF THE LARGER CONVENTIONS.
UH, SO I THINK THAT THAT'S GOING TO BE VERY, UM, IMPACTFUL.
UM, SO WE ARE REACHING OUT TO THEM AND HAVE, AND HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED.
UH, SO THAT IS MOVING FORWARD WITH THOSE CONVERSATIONS.
UM, AND I DO AGREE WITH YOU, THAT CAN BE A SAN ANTONIO D D DF DIFFERENCE MAKER
UM, BUT, UM, WHAT I WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU, SO OUR LEISURE MESSAGE COMES FROM OUR, FROM RESEARCH, RIGHT? SO OUR LEISURE MESSAGING IS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT THAN SOMETIMES OUR, OUR CONFERENCE WHEN WE'RE BIDDING ON CONFERENCES.
SO WE HAD A PROGRAM THAT WAS CALLED, BUT UM, I KNOW THAT EVOLVED TO, INTO WHAT'S CALLED CONNECT SA.
AND OUR VISIT SAN ANTONIO CONNECT SA PROGRAM TAPPED INTO LOCAL INDUSTRIES AND LOCAL EXPERTS AS WE WERE BIDDING.
LIKE IF IT WAS, FOR EXAMPLE, HEALTHCARE, IF IT WAS A HEALTHCARE ASSOCIATION, WE REACH OUT TO THE PROFESSIONALS, NOT ONLY, UH, TO GET THEIR STORY.
AND THAT IS PUT IN OUR, OUR CONVENTION BID PROPOSALS, BUT WE ALSO TAP INTO THE VARIETY OF INDUSTRIES, UH, FOR SPEAKERS, UH, AND ALSO TO BE RESOURCES FOR THOSE CONVENTIONS THAT ARE IN COMING TO SAN ANTONIO.
I, THAT, THAT APPROACH, I'D LOVE TO BE BRIEFED ON THAT, UH, BE BECAUSE I THINK THAT OUR, OUR OVERALL MESSAGE OUT INTO THE WORLD ABOUT WHO SAN ANTONIO IS, UH, I THINK PEOPLE INSTINCTIVELY KNOW, AND IT IS ABOUT CULTURAL TOURISM, BUT THERE'S SO MUCH TO THE SAN ANTONIO STORY THAT I THINK IT GETS BURIED UNDER THAT.
AND, AND IT WOULD BE HELPFUL IF WE, IF I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT AND, UM, EXPLORE THAT A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE I, THERE, THERE'S JUST A LOT THAT PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE CITY, BUT WHEN THEY FIND OUT, UH, WE HAVE 'EM HOOKED.
SO ANYWAY, THIS IS, THIS IS A GREAT PRESENTATION.
UM, WE KNOW YOUR, YOUR INDUSTRY, YOUR PARTNERS ARE REELING, AND WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT'S BEEN TOUGH ON EVERYBODY, BUT IT'S BEEN PARTICULARLY TOUGH ON THE HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM INDUSTRY.
WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE WANNA BE HELPFUL TO YOU, WHICH IS HELPFUL TO THE WHOLE CITY.
SO, UM, HANG IN THERE AND, UH, WE'RE GONNA SEE A MUCH BETTER 21 COUNCIL MEMBER.
THANK YOU TO MR. HENRY FELMAN AND JEFF ARNT.
UH, THAT IS A CLASSY GROUP OF HEAVY HITTERS, UH, AND I'M, I'M GLAD THAT, UH, WE GOT TO HEAR FROM YOU TODAY.
I, I DO WANT TO POINT OUT, UM, ON PAGE 58 OF YOUR PRESENTATION, OR 57, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVES, AND I KNOW CARLOS, UH, RAS AND JEFFER ON HERE, BUT, UH, IT, I, I DO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE LOOK PAST, UH, MY CAMERA'S OFF HOLD.
UM, UH, I DO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE LOOK PAST THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE AND TO REALLY THINK ABOUT THE, THE FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE, UM, OPPORTUNITIES AS WELL.
UH, MY, MY LAW PARTNER AND I ARE MEMBERS OF THE TEXAS HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, AND, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN WATCHING IS THEIR EFFORTS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE TEXAS LODGING STORY IS TOLD, UM, IN DC RIGHT? AND, UM, THEY'RE, THEY'RE CHASING A WHOLE BUNCH OF INITIATIVES.
BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK THAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP WITH AS FAR AS OUR LEGISLATIVE AGENDA, UM, IS TO ADVOCATE FOR THREE THINGS.
ONE IS, UH, RESTORING THE ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS EXPENSE DEDUCTION.
UM, AND SO, I DUNNO IF Y'ALL REMEMBER, BUT IN 2017, UH, THE LEGISLATURE REPEALED THAT DEDUCTION FOR BUSINESS EXPENSES AT ARTS, UH, AND ENTERTAINMENT FACILITIES.
UH, THEY STILL MAINTAINED THE DEDUCTION FOR MEALS, UM, DURING BUSINESS TRAVEL, BUT THEY GOT RID OF, UH, OF ENTERTAINMENT FACILITIES.
AND SO THERE IS A REQUEST BY THE DIFFERENT HOTEL ASSOCIATIONS, UM, TO BRING THAT BACK, UH, FOR ORDINARY AND, AND, AND NECESSARY BUSINESS, UH, EXPENSES AT ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT FACILITY.
SO LONG AS THOSE ARE CONNECTED DIRECTLY TO, UM, YOU KNOW, THE ACTIVE CONDUCT OF THEIR BUSINESS, LIKE MARKETING, ET CETERA.
UM, I, I, I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE REALLY IMPORTANT IF WE COULD, YOU KNOW, UH, GET THAT FOR SAN ANTONIO.
[01:00:01]
THE, THE SECOND THING THEY WERE LOOKING AT WAS BOOSTING, UH, C D B G GRANTS, UM, TO PROMOTE HEALTHY TRAVEL.AND SO I UNDERSTAND THAT THE TEXAS, UH, H L A, UM, IS ADVOCATING FOR A BILLION DOLLAR FLEXIBLE COMMUNITY, UH, DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT, UM, THAT WOULD GO DIRECTLY TO DESTINATION MARKETING ORGANIZATIONS LIKE YOURS, CASSANDRA.
THEY DID THIS, UM, AFTER NINE 11, AFTER HURRICANE KATRINA.
SO, UM, I THINK THEY DID IT FOR THE 2018, UH, ECONOMIC CRISIS.
AND THEN SPEAKING OF THE 2018 ECONOMIC CRISIS, UM, AND THE 20, I'M SORRY, NOT 2018, THE 2008 ECONOMIC CRISIS.
AND THEN, UH, AFTER NINE 11, CONGRESS ALSO EXTENDED THE NET OPERATING LOSS DEDUCTION, UM, SO THAT THE OPERATING LOSS DEDUCTION WOULD ALLOW BUSINESSES TO MITIGATE THE HARM OF, OF, UM, OF DECLINING REVENUE, SPECIFICALLY, UH, QUALIFIED BUSINESSES LIKE HOTELS AND TRANSPORTATION COMPANIES AND ENTERTAINMENT COMPANIES.
AND SO I THINK THAT THERE'S, UH, JEFF AND, AND CARLOS AND THE OPPORTUNITY THERE FOR US TO VISIT WITH OUR I G R COMMITTEE TO MAYBE BAKE THAT INTO OUR LEGISLATIVE AGENDA AND, UM, JOIN, YOU KNOW, THE TEXAS HOTEL LOBBYING ASSOCIATION, UM, AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS SIMILAR TO, YOU KNOW, CASSANDRA'S TO, UH, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL WALKING IN LOCKSTEP AND SAYING THE SAME THINGS.
CASSANDRA, UH, YES, COUNCILMAN, ONE OF THE THINGS.
WE PARTNER AND VERY INVOLVED WITH THE US TRAVEL ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE CURRENTLY DRAFTING OUR FEDERAL AGENDA THAT HA THE REIMBURSEMENT IS ON THAT.
I WOULD LOVE TO SEND, UM, THE FULL AGENDA THAT HOPEFULLY IN JANUARY OUR BOARD WILL BE ADOPTING, BUT WOULD LIKE TO GET YOUR INPUT.
UM, BUT HAPPY, HAPPY TO SEND YOU THE DRAFT FORM.
BUT JUST SO YOU KNOW, WE DO WORK WITH THE US TRAVEL ASSOCIATION AND THE AMERICAN HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION FROM A FEDERAL STANDPOINT.
SO I'VE ASKED CARLOS AND JEFF TO TEE UP FOR A CONVERSATION, YOU KNOW, UH, TO WHAT EXTENT, UH, WE CAN SUPPORT WITH VERY SPECIFIC INITIATIVES, UM, ADVOCACY IN DC FOR FOOD AND BEVERAGE.
UH, I, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO MAYBE WIDEN THAT NET AND, UH, INCLUDE THE OTHER MEMBERS OF YOUR, UH, OF, OF YOUR CONSTITUENCY, CASSANDRA, MAYOR, THOSE, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS.
UM, AND AGAIN, THANK YOU TO HENRY FELMAN, UH, REALLY, REALLY, UH, APPRECIATIVE THAT HE'S HERE HERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER PIAS, COUNCIL MEMBER RO GARCIA.
THANK YOU, UM, MAYOR, AND THANK YOU CASSANDRA FOR THE WONDERFUL PRESENTATION.
AS ALWAYS, I THINK THAT YOU ALL DO A GREAT JOB.
AND I ALSO HAVE TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE, UM, SHOUT OUT TO L SS A 300, WHICH I NOTICED IN YOUR PRESENTATION.
I SAW SOME OF MY CLASSMATES AND AND STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS AT L S A 300 SHIRTS.
UM, I DO, UH, WANNA ALSO THANK MR. FELDMAN FOR YOUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY.
CONGRATS, BY THE WAY, ON, UH, ACHIEVING THAT WITH SUCH A, A QUICK TURNAROUND.
IT LOOKS LIKE YOU TOOK OUR INPUT AND RIGHT AWAY PUT IT TO WORK.
SO I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. FELDMAN, AND, AND TEAM, AND I'M EXCITED ABOUT MARIA AS THE UPCOMING, UM, CHAIR AS WELL.
UM, CASSANDRA, MY MY FIRST QUESTION IS HOW DID YOU ARRIVE AT THE GOAL OF, UM, BY, I THINK IT WAS BY 2023, BEING BACK TO PRE COVID LEVELS? A LOT OF THE INFORMATION THAT I'VE SEEN OUT THERE, UM, HAS, UH, FORECASTED THAT THE INDUSTRY IS GOING TO RECOVER FOUR TO SEVEN YEARS FROM NOW.
AND SO THE YEAR LIST BEING FOUR YEARS, AND I KNOW WE'RE TAKING THE OPTIMISTIC VIEW, UM, BUT WHAT'S OUR PLAN B OR, OR, OR KIND OF LIKE, HOW DID YOU ALL GET TO THAT AND, AND, AND WHAT HAPPENS IF IT'S NOT BY 2023? WELL, I THINK VERY SIMILARLY COUNCILMAN, UM, THAT, THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT OUR BUDGET, WHETHER IT'S MONTH TO MONTH, QUARTER BY QUARTER, UH, WE'RE GONNA KNOW PROBABLY BY THE SECOND HALF OF 2021 WHAT THE TRUE LANDSCAPE OF MEETINGS WILL BE.
AND THAT'S GONNA TELL US A LOT.
AND I'M WORKING, AS I MENTIONED WITH US TRAVEL ASSOCIATION, THE TEXAS TRAVEL ALLIANCE, UH, JUST TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING AROUND THE STATE AND WHAT'S HAPPENING NATIONALLY.
WHERE WE RECEIVED THAT WAS THROUGH TOURISM ECONOMICS, WHO IS FOCUSED ON THE TOURISM INDUSTRY AND BASED ON ALL OF THEIR DATA FROM A NATIONAL SENSE, THEY FEEL LIKE THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY WILL BE BACK FULLY, UH, BY 2024.
SO WE'RE BEING VERY AGGRESSIVE BECAUSE I WILL ALSO TELL YOU, I FIRMLY BELIEVE SAN ANTONIO IS IN A REALLY GOOD, UH, PLACE IN THE SENSE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE A STRONG TEXAS MARKET AND THERE'S 30 MILLION TEXANS, UH, TO MARKET TO.
SO, UH, THE FACT THAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO START TRAVELING WHEN THEY'RE COMFORTABLE AND THEY'RE GONNA TRAVEL CLOSER TO HOME, I THINK SETS US UP FOR SOME SUCCESS.
SO I THINK BECAUSE THE TYPE OF DESTINATION WE ARE, THE FACT THAT WE ARE EVEN A DRIVE MARKET, IF YOU WILL, TO MEXICO, THAT, YOU KNOW, MEXICO IN A LOT OF WAYS IS A REGIONAL MARKET FOR US.
[01:05:01]
I DO THINK THAT THAT'S GONNA HELP US PROPEL IN SOME OF THE SUCCESS SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.CASSANDRA, THANK YOU FOR MENTIONING, UM, TOURISM, TOURISM ECONOMICS.
SO, UM, 91.5% IS STILL DEDICATED OF YOUR BUDGET, IS, IS DEDICATED TO MARKETING, SALES, AND MARKETING.
UM, THAT'S EXACTLY WHERE, WHERE IT SHOULD BE.
UM, ON PAGE 17, I DIDN'T GET WHERE THE OTHER 0.5% WOULD BE ALLOTTED.
UM, JUST F Y I MAY MAYBE LATER YOU, YOU CAN HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT.
UM, AND THEN I APPRECIATE, BUT YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE VISITOR, UM, ECONOMY AND WHAT THE NEW INDUSTRY STANDARD IS IN TERMS OF SAFETY.
UM, AND SO SAFE SAFETY IS NOW STANDARD WITH ALL OF THIS, AND SO CONSUMERS WANT TO FEEL LIKE THEY'RE, UH, SAFE.
SO I APPRECIATE THAT YOU ARE LOOKING AT THIS AS, AS PART OF THE NEW COVID REALITY, RIGHT? AND SO, UM, SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR DOING THAT.
I KNOW THAT THE CONVENTION CENTER, UH, AND, UH, THE AOD DOME HAVE DONE EXCELLENT WORK.
I, I'VE BEEN TO, UH, A FEW EVENTS NOW AT THE ALAMO DOME AND, AND THEN ALSO HAVE BEEN TO THE CONVENTION CENTER, AND I THINK THAT THEY'RE DOING A GREAT JOB.
I APPRECIATE THAT YOU ALSO HAVE ON THERE A FOCUS ON PR AS A TOOL, UM, BECAUSE AT AND YEAH, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT EARNED MEDIA AND YOUR GOAL OF 200 PLUS STORIES, I THINK IS ON TARGET FOR, UM, A CITY, UH, SUCH AS SAN ANTONIO.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WAS LOOKING AT ALSO, OH, AND BY THE WAY, THANK YOU FOR THE SAN ANTONIO DOWNLOADS.
I HAVE, UM, PLAZA DEMAS AND, UH, THE SEBASTIAN SCULPTURE IN MY ZOOM BACKGROUND, SO THANK YOU.
LIKE, YOU COULD BE WORKING FROM THE RIVERWALK.
I LITERALLY HAVE SEEN OTHER PEOPLE WITH THOSE TYPE OF BACKGROUNDS.
SO THANK YOU FOR DOING THAT FOR, UH, FOR YOUR LOCALS.
UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WAS LOOKING AT ALSO WAS, UH, A NEED FOR PROTECTION OF OUR WORKFORCE.
SO OUR, UH, EMPLOYEES THAT WORK AT RESTAURANTS, OUR LOCALS OBVIOUSLY THAT WORK AT HOTELS, ET CETERA.
I THINK THAT THAT'S ANOTHER COMPONENT THAT I'VE SEEN IN SOME OF THE INDUSTRY ANALYSIS.
UM, HOW ARE WE TAKING CARE OF OUR OWN PEOPLE? WE'RE TAKING CARE OF THE, THE TOURISTS.
YOU'RE LOOKING AT COMMUNITY LABS, FOR INSTANCE.
HOW ARE WE MAKING SURE THAT OUR ESSENTIAL WORKERS, WHICH BY THE WAY, A LOT OF 'EM ARE EMPLOYED FROM DISTRICT FOUR, HOW ARE WE TAKING CARE OF THEM? THAT IS IMPORTANT TO ME.
SO MAYBE A IF YOU CAN JUST GIMME A, A, A QUICK, YOU KNOW, UPDATE AND THEN WE CAN ALSO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION OFFLINE, BECAUSE I, I STILL HAVE SOME MORE QUESTIONS THAT, THAT'S GREAT.
WELL, AND THE, ONE OF YOUR FIRST QUESTIONS THAT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE YOU HAD MENTIONED, UH, 82%, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE BEING SALES AND MARKETING, UM, THE REMAINDER OF THAT BREAKDOWN IS IF, IF YOU LOOK AT PARTNER AND COMMUNICATION RELATIONS, AND THEN OF COURSE, RESEARCH, RESEARCH IS SO IMPORTANT IN GUIDING WHAT WE DO BECAUSE WE'RE A MARKETING ORGANIZATION, AND IN SOME WAYS MARKETING CAN BE VERY SUBJECTIVE.
AND SO RESEARCH THAT TELLS US WHAT, UH, NOT ONLY ARE THE TRAVELERS SENTIMENTS, BUT WHO ARE THOSE TRAVELERS AND HOW WE NEED TO SERVE UP THE MESSAGING TO THEM.
THAT'S A BIG PART OF THAT, THAT ADDITIONAL 5%.
AND THEN OF COURSE, JUST TO ADMIN.
SO THAT'S KIND OF THE BREAKDOWN, BUT I'M HAPPY TO GO IN FURTHER.
UM, IF YOU WOULD LIKE, UM, SURE, SURE.
YOU'RE, YOU, YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT WORKFORCE, UH, BECAUSE OUR INDUSTRY, UH, GOT HIT SO HARD, UH, WHEN IT CAME TO THAT, WHAT I THINK WAS SHARED EARLIER, UH, MAYBE BY, UH, CHAIRMAN ARN WAS VERY INTERESTING.
UM, WE WERE, IN 2019, WE HAD AN INDUSTRY OF UPWARDS OF 140,000 WORKERS IN OUR INDUSTRY.
AND, UH, THE DALLAS FED, WE RECEIVED SOME INFORMATION THAT THAT HAS COME BACK TO ABOUT 115,000.
SO THAT'S STILL A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT GAP.
AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS, UM, TALKING ABOUT COLLABORATION, UH, WITH THE ECONOMIC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UH, TRANSITION TEAM, WE HAD A SEAT AT THE TABLE TALKING TO THEM ON HOW CAN WE WORK WITH WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS.
SO WE REACHED OUT TO MANY OF OUR PARTNERS ON WHAT ARE THE SKILL SETS, WHAT ARE THE LEADERSHIP SKILLS? WHAT KIND OF TRAINING DO YOU NEED? AND SO WE SUPPLIED THAT INFORMATION TO WORKFORCE, WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS SO THAT FOR SURE THAT OUR EMPLOYEES CAN GET THE TRAINING THAT THEY NEED.
SO WE'RE HAPPY TO STILL CONTINUE THAT, UM, AND BE PART OF THAT DIALOGUE, BUT THAT'S HOW WE'VE BEEN INVOLVED THUS FAR.
AND, AND, AND AGAIN, JUST THE SAFETY OF OUR EMPLOYEES, OF OUR ESSENTIAL WORKERS IS CRITICAL FOR ME.
SO, UM, I, I'D LOVE TO CONTINUE HAVING THAT CONVERSATION WITH, WITH YOU AND, AND OF COURSE WITH WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS, ALAMO AND, AND EVERYONE ELSE.
UM, MY NEXT ITEM IS GOING TO FOCUS SPECIFICALLY ON OUR DIGITAL STRATEGY, UH, DIGITAL STRATEGY.
AND SO I NOTICED THAT, SO LIKE THE, THE EXAMPLE THAT I COULD FIND IS 90% OF ALL TRAVEL IN CHINA HAS BEEN BOOKED WITHIN SEVEN DAYS.
SO IT'S GONNA BE CRITICAL TO BE ABLE TO PIVOT ON ANY TYPE OF DIGITAL STRATEGY.
[01:10:01]
GONNA BE CRITICAL TO REALLY TARGET, UM, YOU KNOW, CERTAIN AUDIENCES AND, AND EVEN THE, THE, THE BUSINESS TO BUSINESS, IF YOU WILL, UM, AUDIENCE, UH, AS WELL.UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'VE SEEN IS VIRTUAL REALITY AND AUGMENTED REALITY AND HOW, UM, I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE.
MY CHIEF OF STAFF HAS TRAVELED THE WORLD SINCE THE START OF THE PANDEMIC ON HIS LAPTOP.
AND SO, UH, HE'S GONE EVERYWHERE.
UM, BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN, UH, ANYTHING THAT IS REALLY STELLAR.
TECH RAD HAS A LIST OF LIKE, THE TOP VIRTU TOURS, AND THEY'RE SITE SPECIFIC.
UM, THERE'S ONE THAT'S CITY SPECIFIC, AND SO THEY HAVE A THREE MINUTE TOUR OF TOKYO.
AND I'LL BE HONEST WITH YOU, I WASN'T IMPRESSED WITH IT.
UM, BUT WE HAVE SO MUCH HIGH TECH HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
I THINK IT'S OUR OPPORTUNITY TO EVEN TARGET NICHE AUDIENCES.
SO THESE, UH, THESE, UM, PEOPLE WHO ARE LOOKING FOR ARCHITECTURAL TOURS AND HOW SAN ANTONIO PLAYS A PART THERE.
UM, MAYBE IT'S THE ADVENTURE, UH, TOURIST, RIGHT? MAYBE IT'S, IT'S THE FOLKS WHO WANT TO BE OUT, UH, OUTDOORS AND IN NATURE DOING THINGS ON THEIR OWN, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT POST PANDEMIC, THAT'S GONNA CONTINUE TO BE TOP POP, TOP OF MIND, OR NOT EVEN POST PANDEMIC DURING PANDEMIC IF PEOPLE ARE STILL WANTING TO TRAVEL.
I KNOW A LOT OF FOLKS THAT I KNOW HAVE WANTED TO GO UP TO COLORADO BECAUSE THERE'S, YOU KNOW, BIG SPACES, ET CETERA.
AND SO I'D LIKE TO ASK, UM, TO SEE IF, IF WE'VE CONSIDERED THAT, THAT TYPE OF THING, A REALLY TARGETED APPROACH, BUILDING PERHAPS, UH, VIRTUAL REALITY OR AUGMENTED REALITY INTO SOME OF THESE REALLY COOL THINGS.
I MEAN, WE SPENT ALMOST AN HOUR TODAY TALKING ABOUT, UH, BIRD CITY DESIGNATION.
AND SO, UM, I I, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU ALL HAVE THAT TYPE OF STRATEGY.
AND THEN ALSO, AGAIN, BECAUSE OF THE TECHNOLOGY COMPONENT AND THE MAYOR MENTIONED THE XANAX ROBOTS, AND I, I THINK I TEXTED HIM THE OTHER NIGHT DURING GREY'S ANATOMY BECAUSE THEY SHOWED THE ROBOT TWICE.
AND I WAS SO EXCITED BECAUSE I WAS TECHNOLOGY BUILT IN SAN ANTONIO, AND YES, WE WATCHED GREY'S ANATOMY.
UM, SO ANYWAY, UH, BUT YEAH, SO, SO, AND I THINK, BY THE WAY, THAT'S A GOOD, THAT'S ONE OF THE, THE 200 STORIES RIGHT PITCH THAT, THAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT.
BUT SO THE DIGITAL STRATEGY, I GUESS, AND, AND ARE WE, UM, EMBEDDING ANY TYPE OF VIRTUAL REALITY IN THERE? SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT UP.
SO IMMEDIATELY WE, I DIDN'T WANNA SIT STILL, SO DURING THE TIME WHERE PEOPLE WEREN'T TRAVELING, WE STARTED OFFERING OUR PARTNERS.
UH, THERE'S A COMPANY, IT'S CALLED E 360, AND SO WE'VE GONE INTO THE MAJORITY OF OUR HOTELS.
THEY HAVE VIDEOTAPED, THEY HAVE IT.
IT'S A REALLY AWESOME WAY TO EXPERIENCE A HOTEL, THE CONVENTION CENTER, AND WE'VE OFFERED IT FREE FOR ALL OF OUR PARTNERS.
WE ALSO HAVE ON OUR WEBSITE A WHOLE VIRTUAL COMPONENT, AND IT CONTINUES TO GROW.
SO TO YOUR POINT, THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO OUR STRATEGY.
UH, BUT WE ARE OFFERING, OFFERING THAT SERVICE, AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO CONDUCT A LOT OF, UH, VIRTUAL SITE INSPECTIONS BECAUSE THESE ARE BE BEAUTIFUL, AND I CAN SEND YOU SOME EXAMPLES FOR YOU TO SEE, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, BUT ABOUT 70% OR MORE OF OUR EFFORTS ARE IN THE DIGITAL LANDSCAPE.
SO, UH, VIRTUAL REALITY I THINK IS PART OF THE NEXT STEP.
SOME OF OUR PARTNERS HAVE DONE THIS, UH, BUT THAT IS CERTAINLY PART OF OUR WEBSITE.
LIKE I SAID, I'VE SEEN JUSTIN OR I'VE SEEN, UH, SPECIFIC SITES, BUT NOT CITYWIDE.
COUNCIL MEMBER ROSA GARCIA, COUNCIL MEMBER CAB
THIS QUESTION IS ACTUALLY FOR CITY STAFF.
I'M CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES THE CITY HAS OVER THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS OF VISIT SA.
UH, COUNCILMAN I'LL, I'LL, I'LL TRY TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION AND ASK CARLOS TO, TO KIND OF BACK ME UP.
UH, WHEN, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT DECISION MAKING, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, UH, HOW THEY SPEND MONEY OR WHAT THEY DO FROM AN HR PERSPECTIVE, OR, WELL, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY, THEY'RE TALKED TODAY ABOUT HOW THEY'RE A, A MARKETING TEAM, REALLY.
AND, UM, THEN, AND THEN WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE MESSAGING THAT THE CITY WANTS TO PUT OUT.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF VISIT SA WANTS TO ATTRACT AND BID FOR A PUBLIC PERFORMANCE, A CONVENTION, HOW IS THE COUNCIL INFORMED AND CONSULTED? AND THEN WHAT HAPPENS IF THE COUNCIL DISAGREES WITH THE ACTION THAT THE VISIT SA WANTS TO TAKE? SO I'LL GIVE YOU THREE DIFFERENT EXAMPLES AND THEN, AND THEN MAYBE CASSANDRA CAN TALK ABOUT HOW SHE DOES IT FROM AN OPERATIONAL STANDPOINT.
THE FIRST IS THAT WHEN THIS, WHEN, UH, WHEN BEFORE BUSINESS SAN ANTONIO WAS, UH, A SEPARATE ENTITY, IT WAS A CITY DEPARTMENT, UM, IT IS, IT, IT IS NO LONGER, UM, A CITY DEPARTMENT AND HAS BEEN SPUN OUT OF THE ORGANIZATION.
AND PART OF THAT ORIGINAL AGREEMENT THAT THE COUNCIL APPROVED AT THAT POINT PLACED TWO COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THE CITY MANAGER ON THEIR BOARD OF DIRECTOR.
UM, AND SO, UH, WE PARTICIPATE,
[01:15:01]
UH, COUNCILWOMAN GRO, COUNCILMAN TRAVINO AND I ARE ON THAT BOARD.UM, ACTIONS THAT THAT BOARD TAKES DO NOT NEED TO COME TO CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL.
NUMBER TWO, WHEN IT COMES TO COORDINATING, UH, ATTRACTING EVENTS FROM AN OPERATIONAL STANDPOINT, UH, CASSANDRA AND PATRICIA AT CONVENTION CENTER WORK EXTREMELY CLOSE.
UH, PATRICIA IS ALSO A MEMBER OF THE BOARD.
UM, AND SO FROM AN OPERATIONAL STANDPOINT, I DON'T THINK THERE'S REALLY ANY, UH, PROBABLY AT THAT LEVEL, THERE'S NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE WAY THEY WORKED BEFORE THE CHANGE.
AND, UH, AND, AND CASSANDRA, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WANT TO MAYBE GIVE SOME, GIVE IT FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
WELL, AND WHEN WE'RE, WELL, I THINK EVERYTHING THAT YOU'VE SAID, BECAUSE THE CITY HAS A STRONG REPRESENTATION IN COUNCILWOMAN, UH, THE, THE OTHER ASPECT OF IT IN OUR MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, UH, WE GIVE OUR, OUR FULL BUSINESS PLAN, UH, FOR, FOR YOU ALL TO SEE, UH, WE, AT ANY TIME THAT YOU WANT TO HEAR FROM VISIT SAN ANTONIO, UH, WE WILL PRESENT, HAVE MEETINGS WITH YOU.
SO IN THE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT ITSELF, IT LAYS OUT SOME OF THOSE ACCOUNTABILITY, UM, FROM THAT STANDPOINT.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO MARKETING, WE HAVE A MARKETING COMMITTEE THAT'S MADE UP OF MARKETING PROFESSIONALS FROM, WHETHER IT'S OUR ATTRACTIONS, U SS A A MANY OTHER COMPANIES, IT'S ALL THEIR VICE PRESIDENTS OF MARKETING THAT HELP DRIVE THAT MESSAGING.
E UH, ECONOMIC, UH, SAN ANTONIO, E D F IS ALSO PART OF OUR BOARD AND PART OF, UM, OUR MARKETING COMMITTEE.
SO THOSE ARE JUST SOME EXAMPLES.
BUT, UH, YES, UH, UH, CITY MANAGER WALSH MENTIONED HE AS WELL AS, UH, COUNCILMAN VIRON IS ACTUALLY ON OUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, UH, FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
AND THEN OF COURSE, COUNCILMAN, UH, TREVINO SERVES ON THE BOARD.
UM, AND WE HAVE MEETINGS EVERY OTHER MONTH TO UPDATE.
BUT IF IT'S A HUGE PROGRAM, YOU KNOW, FINAL FOUR AS AN EXAMPLE, IT TAKES A COLLABORATION WITH THE CITY, WITH OPERATIONS.
UM, I'M SORRY, ERIC, YOU CUT OUT.
I THINK AT A VERY KEY THING THAT YOU SAID, DID YOU SAY THAT IT DOES COME TO COUNCIL OR DOES NOT? THEY DID NOT COME TO COUNCIL.
DOES NOT COME TO COUNCIL FOR COURT.
AND THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR THE, I'M SORRY.
THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION.
YOU GO FIRST, COUNCILWOMAN, I'M SORRY,
UH, WELL, YOU GO, WE GO AHEAD, ERIC.
WELL, I WAS JUST GONNA SAY THAT THE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, AND, AND I THINK I MENTIONED THIS IN MY OPENING, THE, THE MAN, THE CURRENT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, UM, EXPIRES NEXT FALL.
AND, UH, THERE IS A FIVE-YEAR EXTENSION AND, AND, AND MAYBE AS FOLLOW UP TO TODAY'S MEETING, UM, WE'LL, UH, WE'LL SEND OUT A COPY OF THAT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT BECAUSE IT'S HOW WE OPERATE WITH, WITH, UH, BUSINESS SAN ANTONIO.
AND, UM, IT REALLY IS THE, KIND OF THE GROUNDWORK AND, AND WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT COUNCIL GETS A, A COPY OF THAT IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH IT.
THAT WAS, UH, ACTUALLY MY NEXT QUESTION.
SO I, I'LL, I APPRECIATE, UM, RECEIVING THAT AGREEMENT.
UM, UH, CASSANDRA, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE, THE VERY THOROUGH PRESENTATION.
WILL YOU EXPAND ON HOW INCREASING THE SHARE OF SMALL MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES AS VENDORS OR CONTRACTORS, CONTRACTORS, UM, HOW WE, HOW WE CAN INCREASE THAT? ANYWAY, SO AS MENTIONED, WE ARE JUST STARTING THE PROCESS.
SO OUR BOARD, UM, OF DIRECTORS HAVE MADE THIS A PRIORITY, UM, LOOKING AT EVERYTHING.
SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE ASSESSMENT PERIOD.
UM, BUT WE DO FOLLOW, UH, C AND PART OF OUR MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT IS THIS IS VEDA OF ANYTHING THAT'S OVER 50,000.
UM, SO WE DO FOLLOW YOUR GUIDELINES WHEN IT COMES TO PROCUREMENT OF THINGS THAT ARE 50,000 AND GREATER.
UH, BUT WE WANNA TAKE A DEEPER DIVE AND LOOK AT HISTORICALLY ON EVEN SOME OF OUR SMALLER CONTRACTS, WHAT WE LOOK LIKE.
SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE DEVELOPING WHAT WOULD BE A REPORT CARD OF WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.
UM, BUT THAT HAS BEEN A PRIORITY.
SO WE'VE CREATED A BOARD COMMITTEE.
WE'VE ALSO CREATED A VISIT SAN ANTONIO TEAM COMMITTEE, AND REALLY THERE'S THREE BUCKETS WE'RE LOOKING INTERNALLY.
UM, SO HOW ARE OUR TEAM, UH, HOW ARE WE EDUCATING, HOW ARE WE TRAINING, WHAT'S THE ONGOING, UM, WHAT DOES OUR TALENT RECRUITMENT LOOK LIKE? AND THEN OPERATIONALLY, JUST AS YOU MENTIONED, HOW, WHAT, WHAT IS OUR CURRENT SCORECARD, UH, THE VENDORS THAT WE WORK WITH.
UM, BUT REST ASSURED WE DO FOLLOW CE BETA, UH, THAT'S OUTLINED BY THE CITY.
AND I ACTUALLY WANNA TAKE YOU UP ON YOUR OFFER.
UM, I'M NOT SURE HOW OFTEN YOU ALL PRESENT TO COUNCIL, BUT IF WE CAN MEET, UM, YOU KNOW, ONCE A QUARTER JUST TO KEEP ME ABREAST OF WHAT'S GOING ON AND, AND, UM, AND, AND LEARN, YOU KNOW, ABOUT ANYTHING NEW THAT'S COMING UP.
[01:20:01]
AND THAT, THAT'S ALL I HAVE, MAYOR.COUNCIL MEMBER
UH, I KNOW THAT, UH, WE'VE ALWAYS RELIED ON A LOT OF, UH, REGIONAL TRAVELERS COMING TO SAN ANTONIO, AND I KNOW THAT'S, THAT'S PART OF YOUR, UH, ONGOING PROGRAM.
UH, WHAT IS YOUR EXPECTATION FOR WHAT THE PERCENTAGE OF EXPENSES YOU'RE GONNA BE PUTTING INTO YOUR MARKETING AND SALES, UH, YOU KNOW, DEDICATED TO BRINGING IN REGIONAL VISITORS? PERCENTAGE WISE? I MEAN, I WOULD TELL YOU IT IS THE PRIMARY FOCUS BECAUSE WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE, LIKE, WE KNOW FROM, UH, TRAVEL
SO ALMOST ALL OF OUR MARKETING BUDGET, UH, IS BEING SPENT EITHER WITHIN THE STATE OF TEXAS OR KEY MARKETS, UH, SUCH AS MEXICO AND SOME OF THE TOUCH STATES.
BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO EARMARK A CERTAIN, UH, PERCENTAGE, UH, BECAUSE WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THE AIRPORT RETAINS OR GETS BACK THE FLIGHT FLIGHT ROUTES THAT IT HAS.
SO WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO INVEST IN SOME OF THOSE MARKETS AS WE REENGAGE WITH.
WELL, I, I JUST WONDERED IF YOU, YOU'D SET ASIDE A PERCENTAGE, BUT YOU'RE SAYING REALLY THE MAJORITY, THE VAST MAJORITY IS PROBABLY GONNA BE REGIONAL, UH, UNTIL I GUESS THE AIRLINES ARE FLYING MORE AND THE CONVENTION BUSINESS COMES BACK TO THE CITY.
IN FACT, IT'S, IT'S NEARING IT'S NEARLY 80% OF THE MARKETING BUDGET.
UM, NOW I KNOW THAT YOU'VE HAD A, A FINANCIAL, A FINANCIALLY DIFFICULT TIME LIKE EVERYBODY RELATED TO TOURISM, UH, BUT I KNOW THAT YOU HAD A, UM, A MARKETING AGREEMENT WITH THE JW MARRIOTT.
THEY WERE GONNA BE, I THINK PAYING ABOUT A $50,000 FEE TO V S A.
UH, HAS THAT, UH, GONE THROUGH, HAS THAT BEEN PUT ON THE SIDELINES? CAN YOU TELL ME IF THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO PAY OFF ON THAT? WELL, THEY HAVEN'T BEEN AT THAT LEVEL FOR THE LAST, UH, YEAR.
WE'RE ACTUALLY TALKING WITH THEM ABOUT BECOMING A VISIT SAN ANTONIO MEMBER.
UM, AND WHAT OUR REAL HOPE IS, IS THAT THEY MAY BECOME A VOLUNTARY, UH, CONTRIBUTOR TO THE T P I D, BUT WE'RE JUST IN DISCUSSIONS WITH THEM AT THIS POINT, SO THAT, THAT THAT MARKETING AGREEMENT DOES NOT EXIST.
OH, SO IT WASN'T IN EFFECT OR HASN'T BEEN IN EFFECT? THAT'S CORRECT.
IT, IT'S, IT'S PROBABLY ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO THAT THE LAST, THAT WE HAD THAT AGREEMENT.
BUT WE, THEY, THEY HAVE NEW LEADERSHIP, AND SO WE'VE BEEN MEETING AND TALKING WITH THEM ABOUT THE VALUE THAT VISIT SAN ANTONIO COULD BRING TO THEM.
AND SO WE'RE HAVING THAT DISCUSSION NOW.
UH, HOW ABOUT SOME OF THE OTHER RESORTS IN THE AREA THAT MAY NOT BE PART OF THE HOTEL, UH, PIT, UH, ORGANIZATIONS? UH, ARE THEY WORKING WITH YOU TOO, TO CONTINUE TO TRY AND BRING PEOPLE TO THEIR DESTINATIONS? THEY ARE.
SO ALL THE OTHER RE RESORT RESORTS ARE ACTUALLY IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
AND THE OTHER RESORTS ARE A MEMBER OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO, AS WELL AS CONTRIBUTE TO THE T P.
WELL, THOSE ARE THE ONLY QUESTIONS.
AND, UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CASSANDRA, FOR THE PRESENT, THE, THE 59 SLIDE PRESENTATION THAT YOU, UH, GAVE US
IT WAS A LOT TO COVER AND TO MY COLLEAGUES AND OF COURSE TO OUR CHAIR AND TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE WHO I HAVE THE HONOR OF SERVING WITH.
UM, IT'S, IT'S AN, IT'S A BIG HONOR AND A PRIVILEGE TO, TO BE SERVING ON THIS BOARD.
AND TO MY COLLEAGUES, THOUGH, TO BE FAIR, UM, UNFORTUNATELY I'VE NOT BEEN ABLE TO ATTEND SOME OF OUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE ON BOARD MEETINGS AS OF MOST RECENTLY BECAUSE THEY'RE CONFLICTING WITH OUR OWN EITHER SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETINGS OR B SESSIONS OR OTHER A SESSIONS.
SO SOME OF THIS INFORMATION THAT YOU'RE SEEING IS A LITTLE, IS NOT SOMETHING THAT I'VE SEEN.
UH, WE WERE BRIEFED, UM, JUST YESTERDAY BECAUSE ACTUALLY, NOT JUST ME, BUT EVEN, UH, THE CITY MANAGER AND, UH, MY OTHER COUNCIL COLLEAGUE, UM, IT'S BEEN DIFFICULT FOR US TO ARRANGE SOME OF OUR MEETINGS HERE.
BUT ALL THAT TO SAY, UM, WE HAVE, I THINK WE HAVE COME A LONG WAY WITH, UM, FROM EVEN THE C D C WHEN I WAS PART OF THE C D C TO NOW WHERE WE ARE VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
BUT I STILL THINK THAT WE HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO, AND I REALLY DO THANK ALL OF MY COLLEAGUES FOR THEIR QUESTIONS
[01:25:01]
AND THEIR CONTINUED QUESTIONING, UM, AND, UH, INSIGHT AND, UM, OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY SEE THAT WE CAN REALLY WORK MORE ON.AND, UM, I DO WANNA GET SOME FIRST CLARIFICATION ON, AND I THINK, I KNOW I'VE ASKED THIS BEFORE IN THE BOARD MEETING, UH, CASSANDRA, SO IF YOU CAN PLEASE CLARIFY, BECAUSE I DON'T WANNA USE THIS TERM, UM, SO EASILY INTERCHANGEABLY, BECAUSE I THINK THERE IS A DISTINCTION TO CLARIFY WHAT PARTNERSHIP IS AND CLARIFY WHAT MEMBER IS, BECAUSE I SEE WE USE IT A LOT, BUT WE HAVE, IN OUR SERVICE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT WE HAD THAT WE WERE GOING TO LOOK AT A, A MEMBERSHIP MODEL TO GET SOME, SOME DOLLARS TO, TO RAISE MONEY FOR OUR, FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
BUT THEN WE HAVE PARTNERSHIPS I NEED YOU TO CLARIFY BETWEEN THEM, PLEASE.
SO, I, I DO USE THEM INTERCHANGEABLY BECAUSE I DO DO SEE THEM AS ONE.
UH, WE DID LAUNCH A TRUE MEMBERSHIP MODEL, UM, BUT IN ITS INFANCY, UM, AS WE WERE LAUNCHING, OF COURSE, COVID HAPPENED, AND A LOT OF OUR PARTNERS OR MEMBERS ARE EXTREMELY SMALL BUSINESS AND THEY COULD NOT AFFORD, UH, TO HAVE MEMBERSHIP.
SO WE ACTUALLY, UH, UH, CURRENTLY PAUSED OUR MEMBERSHIP MODEL IN ORDER TO HELP THE GREATER GOOD, BUT WE DID NOT WANT THEM TO NOT RECEIVE THE BENEFITS OF VISITS SAN ANTONIO AND THE THINGS THAT WE OFFER.
SO RIGHT NOW, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS RETOOLING, REVAMPING, AND HOPEFULLY BE ABLE TO HAVE A TRUE MEMBERSHIP.
HOWEVER, MANY OF OUR PARTNER, OUR PARTNERS SLASH MEMBERS LIKE HOTELS, THEY ARE WILLING TO CONTRIBUTE FINANCIALLY, AND WE'RE STILL MOVING FORWARD WITH THOSE PARTNERS SLASH MEMBERS THAT ARE WILLING, UH, TO PAY INTO THE GREATER GOOD OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
BUT RIGHT NOW, WE JUST THOUGHT IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO BECAUSE MANY OF THESE BUSINESSES ARE JUST FIGHTING TO KEEP THEIR DOORS OPEN.
AND SO THAT'S WHY WE PAUSED OUR MEMBERSHIP, BUT EVERYONE IS RECEIVING THE COMMUNICATION, THE SERVICE, EVERYTHING THAT THEY WOULD IF THEY WERE A MEMBER, AND WE'RE HAVING ONE-ON-ONE DIALOGUE WITH THOSE PREVIOUS OFFICIAL MEMBERS TO SEE WHAT THEIR SHORT TERM AND THEIR LONG TERM OUTLOOK LOOKS LIKE.
SO THEN I GUESS I WANT TO SEE, UM, THE, I GUESS I NEED TO SEE THE BENEFITS OF, UM, THE MEMBERSHIP MODEL, BECAUSE I BELIEVE WE WERE STARTING THE MEMBERSHIP MODEL FOR, UH, A GOOD WHILE BEFORE COVID THE AND PANDEMIC HIT.
AND OF COURSE, WE'RE NOT GONNA ASK OUR SMALL BUSINESSES OR PEOPLE TO PAY THESE MEMBERSHIP FEES BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT MEMBERSHIP LEVELS THAT WE HAVE.
BUT I ALSO THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO TAKE THAT INTO EXPECTATION AND INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THE SERVICE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT AND, AND HOW THINGS ARE GOING TO BE CLEAR.
I THINK THAT TID IS, UM, ABSOLUTELY RIGHT NOW WE WORKED HARD FOR IT.
WE, UM, WE WERE OFF TO A GREAT START.
I THINK WE WERE SEEING THE BENEFITS OF IT, AND I THINK IT COULD NEEDS TO CONTINUE, UM, AS OF COURSE AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS TPI MODEL.
UM, SO I THINK THAT'S CRITICAL.
UM, AND I DO NEED SOME MORE CLARIFICATION BETWEEN PARTNERSHIP AND MEMBERSHIP BECAUSE I ALSO TO COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, I THINK GO GARCIA MENTIONED, OR I'M NOT SURE WHICH, WHICH COUNCIL COLLEAGUE MENTIONED THIS, BUT I DO WANNA SEE A BREAKDOWN OF WHEN WE WERE, UM, WHEN WE ARE HIGHLIGHTING ON OUR VISIT SAN ANTONIO WEBPAGE, UM, CERTAIN PARTNERS, CERTAIN MEMBERS, UM, THE EQUITY OF THE ENGAGEMENT THERE, IF, IF EVERYONE IS, IS GETTING THEIR, THEIR FAIR SHARE OR JUST GETTING SOME HIGHLIGHTS AND SOME INSIGHTS THERE.
I DID WANNA ASK, UH, AND I DO AGREE, I THINK IT WAS MENTIONED AS WELL, UH, ABOUT TELLING OUR STORY, TELLING THE SAN ANTONIO STORY.
WE ALWAYS WANT TO TELL OUR SAN ANTONIO STORY, AND THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, RICHARD GARCIA FOR MENTIONING OUR WORLD, UH, OUR WORLD, UM, MIGRATION DAY, BIRD MIGRATION DAY, AND OUR, ALL OF THE GREAT, UM, ASPECTS THAT WE HAVE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO AND THE GREAT CULTURAL, CULINARY ASPECTS THAT WE HAVE.
AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO TELL THAT STORY.
UM, BECAUSE WE JUST, WE ALL KNOW, AND WE'VE SEEN THE IMPACT THAT THE, THAT EVEN, UH, FOR HAVING PAT FURRY COME AND HAVE THEIR HEADQUARTERS HERE, IT'S BECAUSE BEING HERE, THEY SAW, WOW, THIS IS MUCH COOLER THAN WE THOUGHT.
SO WE ALL COLLECTIVELY, AND I KNOW WE'RE ALL TRYING TO WORK TOGETHER AND COLLABORATE TO TELL OUR STORY BETTER.
[01:30:01]
I THINK THAT'S EXTREMELY, EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.SO I WANNA PUSH THAT OUT THERE AND I WILL SHARE THIS, UH, WITH, WITH ALL MY COLLEAGUES.
'CAUSE YOU SAW THE VISION AND THE CORE VALUES, AND I KNOW, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER TREVINO CAME UP WITH A GREAT IDEA YESTERDAY TO, TO BE INCLUSIVE.
AND I ALSO THINK WHEN WE'RE COMING TO OUR VISION AND, UH, TALKING ABOUT, UH, THE STORY OF SAN ANTONIO, HOW SAN ANTONIO NEEDS TO BE A MUST SEE DESTINATION, IT'S NOT JUST THE CULT, THE TEXAS CULTURE, OR TEXAS CULTURE AND HISTORY BEGINS, I BELIEVE IT'S THE, WHERE THE STORY OF THE AMERICAS, UH, IT'S THE INTERSECTION OF THE STORY OF THE AMERICAS.
SO THAT'S WHY IT'S ALSO A MUST SEE DESTINATION.
SO I WANNA PUT THAT OUT THERE TO OUR, MY COLLEAGUES ON THE BOARD SO WE CAN HAVE THAT CONVERSATION.
AND, UM, I KNOW WE ARE TRYING, WE ARE BEING VERY, UM, OPTIMISTIC AND PUSHING HARD TO SEE THESE GREAT NUMBERS, UM, IN THE NEAR FUTURE, UH, MOVING FORWARD.
BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT, UM, WE HAVE SOME GREAT NUMBERS, THE BEST NUMBERS WE'VE HAD IN 2018, AND WE KNOW IT WAS OUR, IT WAS OUR, UH, TRICENTENNIAL YEAR.
WE HAD A KING AND QUEEN OF SPAIN VISIT.
A LOT WAS GOING ON, AND WE HAD SPENT, EVERYBODY HAD SPENT YEARS, UM, PUSHING TO GET THESE NUMBERS AND IT TOOK A LOT OF WORK.
SO I KNOW IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO TAKE A LOT OF WORK AND TO GET UP TO THOSE, THOSE NUMBERS OR JUST EVEN BEFORE OR AFTER.
ERICA, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU.
UM, WITH THE HOT TAX, HOW MANY CITY EMPLOYEES DO WE HAVE? HAVE WE BROUGHT BACK TO WORK IN THE CONVENTION CENTER AREA THAT ARE BEING, UM, FUNDED BY THE HOT TAX? I'LL, UM, HE'S ON THE LINE, ERIC, BUT HE'S ON THE LINE IF YOU WANT, REFER TO HER AS THAT.
YEAH, WELL ACTUALLY LET ME, LET ME, LET ME ADDRESS IT FIRST BECAUSE IT WAS MORE THAN JUST TO UNDERSTAND.
ALRIGHT, SO COUNCILWOMAN, THE, THE, WE HAD, WE HAD SOME EMPLOYEES.
UM, WE BROUGHT BACK, UM, WE STARTED BRINGING BACK IN PHASES, UM, IN JUNE AND IN JULY, A PORTION OF THE STAFF.
AND THEN BECAUSE WE'D HELD VACANCIES, WE FOUND OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE REST OF THE STAFF.
UM, THERE WERE SOME RETIREMENTS, AND I, I DON'T REMEMBER OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD THAT INDIVIDUALS THAT JUST CHOSE NOT TO COME BACK, UH, TO THE WORKPLACE OR HAD PLENTY OF YEARS, UH, UH, WITH THE CITY AND COULD RETIRE OR CHOSE TO RETIRE.
UM, AND, AND PART OF WHAT WE DID AS WE BROUGHT BACK EMPLOYEES TO OTHER PARTS OF THE ORGANIZATION, UM, KNOWING THAT AT SOME POINT WHEN BUSINESS STARTS TO PICK BACK UP, WE'RE GONNA NEED ADDITIONAL STAFFING BACK AT THE CONVENTION CENTER THAT WE WOULD GIVE THOSE OP EMPLOYEES AN OPPORTUNITY TO TRANSITION BACK OVER TO THE CONVENTION CENTER.
SO, UM, ALL TOLD, I I, I DON'T THINK WE BROUGHT EVERYBODY BACK.
'CAUSE I SAID I THINK SOME CHOSE TO RETIRE.
UH, PATRICIA, ADD ON TO THAT FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
WELL, BEFORE MY TIME RUNS OUT, LET ME, UM, UH, LET ME JUST SAY THIS, AND THEN PATRICIA, IF YOU WANNA ADD ONTO THIS, UH, OR ADD ONTO WHAT HE WAS, UH, WHAT ERIC WAS MENTIONING.
UM, I DID WANT TO THANK THE, THE TEAM AT VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND THE BOARD MEMBERS, ESPECIALLY THE WORK THAT WE ARE NOW DOING WITH DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION.
UM, IT IS ABSOLUTELY, IT IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL, ESPECIALLY AFTER THIS SUMMER.
AND WE'VE MADE IT, WE'VE MADE IT AS A BOARD A PRIORITY BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE, UM, WE WANT TO, EVEN THERE, AND I SPOKE ABOUT IT YESTERDAY, ABOUT ENDING SYSTEMIC RACISM AND NOT JUST TALKING ABOUT IT AND PUTTING OUT STATEMENTS, BUT ACTUALLY CHANGING OURSELVES AND LOOKING INWARDLY TO MAKE THOSE CHANGES, UH, TO BE ANTI-RACIST FOR RESPECT.
AND EVEN LOOKING AT UNCONSCIOUS BIASES, TRAINING THAT HAS HAPPENED WITHIN OR WITHIN MISS SAN ANTONIO, WHAT WE CAN DO, BECAUSE WE'RE ALWAYS CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVING, UH, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS.
SO, PATRICIA, IF YOU, IF YOU WANNA FINISH UP WHAT ERIC WAS SAYING, AND THANK YOU PATRICIA, FOR HOSTING ME YESTERDAY IN YOUR OFFICES TOO.
YOU'RE ON, YOU'RE ON MUTE, PATRICIA.
I NEEDED TO UNMUTE MY PHONE AS WELL.
[01:35:01]
UM, SO WE HAVE A CURRENTLY BACK AT BOTH FACILITIES, 136 PEOPLE.UM, BUT THE OTHERS, AS ERIC MENTIONED, THEY SPEND EVERY DEPLOY TO OTHER, UH, CITY DEPARTMENTS.
AND, UM, AND SO CASSANDRA, HOW ABOUT YOU? HOW MANY OF YOUR EMPLOYEES CAME BACK? UM, YOU CASANDRA MUTE? OH, I'M, I, OH, ANYWAY, UH, PRE COVID WE WERE 85 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES.
UH, AS OF OCTOBER 1ST, WE ARE 54.
WELL, I KNOW IT'S, IT'S, UH, IT'S, I KNOW IT'S TOUGH GOING.
UM, I KNOW, UM, YOU KNOW, AND I GUESS THIS IS JUST SOME INFORMAL CONVERSATIONS, UM, THAT I'VE HAD WITH, UM, BUSINESS OWNERS, UM, AND HOTEL IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA IS THAT THEY CAN'T FIND EMPLOYEES.
UM, AND SO, I DON'T KNOW, UM, I, I'M CONCERNED THAT THAT WILL ALSO, UM, BE A, A PROBLEM IN THE FUTURE, UM, ESPECIALLY AS WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WE JUST, UM, CREATED THE WORKFORCE INITIATIVE.
WE'RE TRYING TO GET PEOPLE OUT OF THESE INDUSTRIES.
UM, YOU KNOW, I, I, AT LEAST THAT'S, YOU KNOW, WHAT I UNDERSTAND, UM, THE WHOLE PURPOSE IS, AND SO I I, ARE YOU SEEING THAT AS WELL, THAT YOU HAVE, UM, SOME BUSINESS OWNERS SAYING THAT THEY JUST CAN'T FIND EMPLOYEES? I, I WOULD TELL YOU PRE COVID, WE, WE, I CERTAINLY WOULD HAVE THAT DIALOGUE QUITE OFTEN, UM, POST COVID, BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY CHANGES IN THEIR OPERATIONS.
UH, FOR ONE EMPLOYEE, THEY MAY NOW BE DOING THREE OR FOUR DIFFERENT ROLES, UH, WHETHER IT'S THE RESTAURANT OR THE HOTEL.
UM, SO I'M NOT HEARING THAT RIGHT NOW, UM, AS MUCH AS I DID PRE COVID.
UM, AND CERTAINLY, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A PLACE FOR US, UM, AS YOU'RE BUILDING THE PROGRAM, YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS AN INDUSTRY WE'D LIKE TO BE PART OF THAT.
WELL, YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS BELIEVE THAT, YOU KNOW, THE TOUR TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, UM, WAS SO IMPORTANT.
I KNOW THAT YOU, UM, AGAIN, SORT OF INFORMAL CONVERSATION.
SO, UM, BUT PEOPLE THAT WERE LEAVING MY DISTRICT TO GO WORK SOMEWHERE, WERE WORKING DOWNTOWN IN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.
UM, AND, UH, THE PROBLEM WASN'T, UH, THE COMPLAINT WAS NOT SO MUCH THAT, UM, IT WAS THAT THE, UM, PAY WAS LOW.
UM, YOU KNOW, MOST OF THEM WERE PRETTY HAPPY WITH THEIR JOBS.
UM, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK THAT THE PROBLEM IS THAT IN MANY WAYS THERE WAS NOT ROOM FOR ADVANCEMENT.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'LL SEE, UH, HOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT IT LEADS INTO THE NEXT, UM, CHAPTER, YOU KNOW, IN A POST COVID ENVIRONMENT.
UM, AND, AND HOPE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL SEE WHERE, WHERE THAT LEADS.
BUT, UM, THE OTHER, YOU KNOW, QUESTION I HAD IS THAT, YOU KNOW, I, I HEARD YOU MENTION SEVERAL TIMES, UM, UH, RELATIONSHIP WITH MEXICO OR PROMOTING THAT, AND I, I'M LOOKING AT THE INFORMATION.
I STILL SHOWED THAT THE BORDERS ARE CLOSED TO RECREATIONAL TRAVEL UNTIL AT LEAST DECEMBER 21ST.
UM, I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR TIMELINE IS FOR THE ROLLOUT OF YOUR MARKETING PROGRAM RIGHT NOW, AIR TRAVEL IS OPEN FROM MEXICO TO THE UNITED STATES.
UM, SO FROM THAT STANDPOINT, WE'RE FOCUSED ON THE KEY MARKETS, AND THERE'S BEEN SOME, UM, MEXICAN AIRLINES THAT HAVE STARTED THEIR SERVICE BACK TO SAN ANTONIO.
UM, AND SO WE'RE WORKING THAT RELATIONSHIP AND, AND THOSE DESTINATIONS.
SO JUST NOT LAND TRAVEL, BECAUSE THAT, AND, AND WERE, WAS IT SUCH THAT, I DON'T KNOW, IN A POST COVID ENVIRONMENT, PRE COVID, THAT PEOPLE WERE PRIMARILY TRAVELING BY AIR OR BY LAND? 'CAUSE WE ARE QUITE CLOSE.
THAT'S, UH, ANOTHER QUESTION I HAD, UM, ALSO, UH, CASSANDRA REGARDING, UM, UH, I, I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING IN YOUR, UM, 59 SLIDE, WHICH I MAY HAVE MISSED IT, BUT, UM, I DIDN'T SEE ANY, ANYTHING ABOUT US BEING A CITY OF ASTRONOMY.
I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING ABOUT, UM, WORLD HERITAGE.
[01:40:01]
IT IN THERE AND I MISSED IT.UM, I THINK THROUGHOUT WE UTILIZE THE FACT THAT WE ARE A CITY OF GASTRONOMY IN ALL OF OUR PR PITCHES, UM, AS WELL AS THE UNESCO WITH THE AUDIENCES IN THE US WE'RE STILL EDUCATING THE DOMESTIC TRAVELER ON WHAT UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE IS.
AND SO ONCE WE GET BACK INTO INTERNATIONAL MARKETING SUCH AS THE UK AND GERMANY, THAT'S ACTUALLY OUR NUMBER ONE MESSAGE IN THAT MARKET.
SO, UH, IT IS THREADED THROUGHOUT EVERYTHING THAT WE DO, BUT I DIDN'T SEE IT.
UM, I GUESS THAT'S WHAT, UH, PERHAPS IT COULD BE MORE PROMINENT.
I MEAN, THOSE ARE REALLY THE REASONS FOR AT LEAST LEISURE TRAVEL, UM, YOU KNOW, ARE SOME OF THE HISTORIC LANDMARKS, RIGHT? UH, AND THE CITY OF ASTRONOMY, AT LEAST, THAT WAS WHAT I WAS HEARING, UM, TRAVELING IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, AGAIN, ALL PRE COVID, UH, ABOUT WHY PEOPLE WERE COMING TO SAN ANTONIO.
UM, IT WAS EITHER FOR CONVENTIONS OR BECAUSE WE WERE CITY OF ASTRONOMY.
SO I DIDN'T SEE THAT ANYWHERE.
WHICH, YOU KNOW, ALSO KIND OF LEADS ME TO, UM, SOME OF THE CONCERNS I'VE HAD WITH, UM, YOU KNOW, THIS, THIS IDEA THAT WE PROMOTE OURSELVES AS A CITY OF ASTRONOMY, BUT HASN'T REALLY RESPECTED OUR HOSPITALITY WORKERS, UH, AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO, UM, TO RECONCILE THAT.
UM, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, EVEN AGAIN, WITH ALL THE DISCUSSION OF THE ALAMO, UM, NEVER A REAL DISCUSSION ABOUT, UM, THE, JUST THE REALITY THAT, THAT THERE PRIMARILY, UH, PEOPLE OF COLOR THAT, UH, AND MOSTLY MEXICAN AMERICANS IN SAN ANTONIO WHO ARE DRIVING, UM, THAT AND, AND, AND STILL NOT QUITE, UM, THE RESPECT FOR THE WORKFORCE.
UM, YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT ENTIRELY YOUR JOB.
I UNDERSTAND YOUR JOB IS TO BRING PEOPLE HERE, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, WITH ALL OF THE WORKFORCE INITIATIVES THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT, UM, I JUST AM NOT SEEING A RESPECT FOR WORKERS, UH, IN THAT FIELD.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, I HOPE THAT WE CAN WORK ON THAT MESSAGING AS WELL, UM, IN SOME FORM OR ANOTHER, UM, ALWAYS, UM, YOU KNOW, THROUGH WHAT WE HOPE WILL JUST LEAD TO HIGHER WAGES, UH, FOR THOSE JOBS.
SO, UM, I, I, I THINK MY LAST, UM, YOU KNOW, QUESTION, UM, CASSANDRA, UH, LET ME SEE HERE.
UM, WELL, WE JUST, UH, WE HOPE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT, WHAT I'VE BEEN, WHAT WE'VE ALL BEEN HEARING IN THE NEWS, OF COURSE, IS THAT THINGS ARE STILL GONNA GET WORSE.
UH, AND I STILL WONDER ABOUT THE TIMELINE.
UM, YOU MENTIONED, UH, EARLY IN THE PRESENTATION THAT IN JUNE YOU WERE GONNA MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PLAN AND THEN DECIDED NOT TO BECAUSE OF THE VERY HIGH CASES.
AND IT'S WORSE NOW THAN IT WAS BACK THEN.
AND SO I STILL WONDER ABOUT, UM, THE TIMING OF THE MARKETING PLAN, UH, AND, UM, SHOULD IT NOT BE DELAYED UNTIL, YOU KNOW, THINGS ARE BETTER? AND, AND SO I I, I, IT, IT PAINS ME TO SAY THAT, UM, BUT I JUST, I THINK WE HAVE TO BE REALISTIC ABOUT WHAT WE'RE FACED WITH.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT, UM, AFTER THIS THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY, WE, WE, WE'LL LIKELY SEE AN INCREASE IN CASES, UM, AND IF IT'S JUST REALLY THE TIME TO BE PROMOTING IT RIGHT NOW.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I I, I, I KNOW EVERYBODY'S IS STRUGGLING ON ALL COUNTS, SO I'LL JUST LEAVE IT THERE.
AND, AND THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAVE.
COUNCIL MEMBER GONZALEZ, COUNCIL MEMBER TREVINO.
AND, UH, THANK YOU CASSANDRA FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, UM, GREAT, GREAT QUESTIONS FROM, FROM MY COLLEAGUES.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS IS JUST SHOWS HOW IMPORTANT VISIT SAN ANTONIO IS TO OUR CITY AND, UH, AND IMPORTANT TO DEMONSTRATE ALL THE HARD WORK THAT'S GOING ON WITH, UH, VI VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
UH, A THOUGHT CAME TO MIND THAT, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS I'VE TRULY APPRECIATED IS THE DIFFERENT COMMITTEES THAT, THAT, UH, HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED AND THAT WE GET TO BE ON.
I'M ON THE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE FOR SUBCOMMITTEE FOR V S A, AND, UH, I THINK A LOT OF GREAT WORK IS BEING DONE ON THAT.
UH, YOU KNOW, A SUGGESTION MIGHT BE THAT WE CAN BRING SOME OF THESE SUBCOMMITTEES TO COME, UH, AND PRESENT AS WE, AS WE COME IN, UM, EVERY NOW AND THEN TO, TO TALK ABOUT V S A.
UH, CERTAINLY THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT THINGS, UH, LIKE, LIKE I, LIKE I MENTIONED, THAT ARE HAPPENING IN,
[01:45:01]
IN THE ARTS AND CULTURE SUBCOMMITTEE TO TALK ABOUT HOW WE'RE PRESENTING, UH, UH, THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IN, IN A, IN A REALLY, REALLY, UH, UNIQUE WAY.CASSANDRA, YOU WANNA SPEAK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, ABOUT THOSE SUBCOMMITTEES? YES.
SO WE HAVE SOME ADVISORY COMMITTEES THAT ARE, UH, FOCUSED IN OUR EXPERTS IN THAT FIELD, ARTS AND CULTURE BEING ONE, HELPING US TELL THAT ARTS AND CULTURE STORY.
WE ALSO HAVE A CULINARY, UH, COMMITTEE, UH, BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, AND AS YOU'VE SEEN THE GROWTH OF THE CULINARY ARTS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO WE HAVE, WHETHER IT'S CHEFS, WHETHER IT'S, UH, RESTAURANT OWNERS AND OPERATORS, UH, THEY ARE PART OF THAT GROUP, UM, TO TALK ABOUT WHAT ARE THE TRENDS HAPPENING IN THAT INDUSTRY.
SO THOSE ARE TWO KEY, UM, UH, GROUPS THAT WE TALK TO AND STAKEHOLDERS ON AN ONGOING BASIS.
AND THEN THE THIRD IS WE HAVE A LEISURE COMMITTEE.
UM, AND THAT, OF COURSE, IS ALL OF OUR MAJOR ATTRACTIONS, SMALL ATTRACTIONS TO GIVE INSIGHT TO WHAT THEIR GAPS ARE, WHAT THEIR CHALLENGES ARE, AND WHAT THEIR STORY IS.
AND SO THOSE THREE COMMITTEES ARE VERY HELPFUL.
AND WHETHER IT'S COMING UP WITH STORIES FOR OUR COMMUNICATIONS TEAM TO PITCH, UH, TO MEDIA, UM, OR, UM, CREATING BIG INITIATIVES, UH, FOR THAT.
I KNOW IN, IN YOUR PARTICULAR COMMITTEE, COUNCILMAN, UH, THEY CREATED A DOCUMENT THAT IS OUR GUIDELINE OF THE ARTS AND CULTURE OF SAN ANTONIO.
UM, SO IT'S BEEN VERY HELPFUL THROUGH OUR, OUR INITIATIVES AND, AND WE ALSO GOT TO GIVE YOU, UM, A TOUR OF, OF, OF SPECIFIC AREAS THAT, THAT WE FOUND TO BE VERY, VERY SPECIAL WITHIN OUR DISTRICT.
AND, AND I THINK THAT'S KIND OF BEEN VERY HELPFUL AS WELL TO, TO KIND OF HIGHLIGHT, UH, WHO WE FEEL YOU WE ARE IN TERMS OF OUR IDENTITY.
IN FACT, I THINK I SAW SOME OF THOSE IN YOUR SLIDE.
THANK YOU FOR, UH, POINTING THAT OUT.
UH, WE STILL HAD TWO DISTRICTS TO GO BECAUSE, AND OF COURSE, COVID HIT.
UM, SO WE WILL FOLLOW UP, BUT WE HAVE, UH, DONE A TOUR, UH, WITH EITHER YOU OR YOUR TEAM MEMBERS.
AND REALLY THE GOAL IS TELLING US WHAT YOUR HIDDEN GEMS, HOW YOU WOULD WANT TO SELL YOUR DISTRICT, WHAT WHAT VISITORS COULD FIND.
AND YOU'RE RIGHT, THROUGHOUT THE PRESENTATION, UH, WAS, UH, PHOTOS REPRESENTING ALL OF THE DISTRICTS AROUND THE CITY.
AND ALL OF THOSE PHOTOS ARE ALSO ON OUR WEBSITE.
AND, YOU KNOW, UM, THE, THE SELENA MURAL, THAT'S A DIS DISTRICT ONE MURAL.
UH, REALLY PROUD TO HAVE TAKEN YOUR TEAM OUT TO THAT ONE, BUT I WANNA SPECIFICALLY, UH, COMMEND YOU FOR, FOR, FOR U USING AND UTILIZING THE PRIDE CROSSWALK.
I SEE IT IN THIS PRESENTATION.
I SEE IT IN A LOT OF THE MATERIALS THAT YOU, THAT YOU USE, UH, FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO.
UM, YOU KNOW, THAT IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT PIECE, UH, FOR L G B T Q COMMUNITY.
UH, SO I DO APPRECIATE THAT VISIT SAN ANTONIO DOES, DOES EMBRACE THAT INTERSECTION IN A VERY SPECIAL WAY.
IT, IT, UH, IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE HOPE TO, UH, CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN AND, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT IT IS, IT CONTINUES TO BE PART OF THE FABRIC OF OUR COMMUNITY.
SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT, THAT, THAT YOU SHOWCASE THAT.
AND THEN LASTLY, TH YOU KNOW, THANK YOU FOR THE BOOK, UH, THAT WAS GIVEN TO US, UH, HOW TO BE AN ANTI-RACIST, UH, VERY, VERY GOOD BOOK.
UH, AND THIS IS, I THINK IT'S SHOWING THAT, THAT, UH, THIS IS SAN ANTONIO IS HAVING THOSE, UH, HARD CONVERSATIONS AND IS LOOKING TO, TO, TO PROMOTE, UH, A CITY OF COMPASSION, A CITY THAT, UH, IS, IS WELCOMING.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE, YOU KNOW, WE KIND OF TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT, AND IT, IT IS A, IT IS A, UH, A, A CULTURALLY SIGNIFICANT MESSAGE TO, TO BE A CITY, UH, OF WELCOME, UH, A CITY THAT, THAT REALLY SCREAMS OUT, YOU KNOW, UNIDOS.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I REALLY APPRECIATE ACKNOWLEDGING THE RELATIONSHIP TO MEXICO BECAUSE WE ARE JUST ABSOLUTELY, UH, GEOGRAPHICALLY, UH, POSITIONED TO, TO BE, UH, THAT STRATEGIC PARTNER.
AND, UH, SO I SEE A LOT OF, A LOT OF GOOD THINGS HAPPENING WITH V SS A AND THEN LASTLY, JUST WANNA, UH, AGAIN, PROMOTE, UM, MORE SUPPORT FOR OUR FOOD AND BEVERAGE INDUSTRY AND THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY THAT IS, IS REALLY TRULY IN, IN, IN CRISES.
AND, UH, HOPE TO, TO FIND WAYS, TO, TO BE CREATIVE ABOUT, UH, MAKING SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO KEEP PEOPLE, UM, THAT, THAT WE JUST DESCRIBED AS PART OF OUR IDENTITY.
WE, WE TALK ABOUT HOW, I MEAN, THIS IS THE VERY THING THAT, THAT WE SELL OUR, OUR, OUR CITY ON.
AND, UH, PEOPLE COME AND ENJOY.
AND SO IT, IT WOULD BE A, A TRUE, TRUE DISASTER TO LOSE THAT, UH, BECAUSE, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT'S THE ONE THING I THINK, UH, WE'RE TRULY PROUD OF,
[01:50:01]
UH, HERE IN SAN ANTONIO IS OUR UNIQUE CULTURAL IDENTITY.AND, UH, I'M PROUD TO BE A PART OF THAT.
SO, UH, THANK YOU CASSANDRA FOR, FOR THAT.
AND, UM, AGAIN, UH, LOOK FORWARD TO, UH, MANY MORE CONVERSATIONS ON YOUR BOARD.
COUNCIL MEMBER TINO, AGAIN, UH, THANK YOU CASSANDRA AND, AND, UH, HENRY AND, UH, ALL THE FOLKS WHO CAME OUT FOR THE PRESENTATION TODAY, IT'S, UH, A GOOD PRIMER ON WHAT IS A VERY DEEP, UM, AND IMPORTANT PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING MOVING FORWARD.
SO APPRECIATE YOUR TIME AND ANY OTHER COMMENTS, CASSANDRA, BEFORE WE WRAP UP? NO, SIR.
JUST, IT'S AN HONOR TO SEE YOU.
I WISH WE COULD BE TOGETHER, BUT, UM, WE WILL SOON, WE WILL.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I, AGAIN, IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING, OUR FIRST PRIORITY IN THE COMMUNITY IS TO PROTECT THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF, OF EVERYONE, INCLUDING OUR VISITORS.
UH, BUT WHEN THE VIRUS, WHEN THE VACCINES DO START GETTING, UH, DISTRIBUTED HERE, I THINK WE CAN, UH, WE CAN START TO SAY WE SEE THE BEGINNING OF THE END OF THE PANDEMIC FINALLY.
WE'RE NOT THERE YET, BUT WE HOPE TO BE THERE SOON AND EVERYBODY STAY SAFE IN THE MEANTIME.
ALRIGHT, UH, THAT'S IT FOR OUR AGENDA THIS AFTERNOON.
EVERYONE HAVE A WONDERFUL AFTERNOON.
IT'S 3:02 PM AND WE ARE ADJOURNED.