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For Approval June 21, 2017 <br />Approved August 18, 2017 <br />MINUTES <br />Chapel Hill /Orange County Visitors Bureau Board of Directors Meeting <br />June 21, 2017 <br />The Chapel Hill /Orange County Visitors Bureau met at <br />Courtyard by Marriott, Chapel Hill, NC <br />Board Members Present: Kayla Austin, Aaron Bachenheimer, Meg McGurk, Penny Rich - Acting Chair, Lydia Lavelle, <br />Jeffery Strickler, Mark Bell, Mark Sherburne, George Cianciolo, Andrew Strickland, Shannan Campbell, Annette Lafferty <br />Not Present: Allison Nichols- Clapper, Lee Storrow, Lee Pavao, Tim Hoke, Rosemary Waldorf- Chair, Anthony Carey <br />Staff attendance: Steve Brantley, Laurie Paolicelli, Marlene Barbera, Allison Chambers, Katie Murray <br />Also present: Lydia Chitwood- Intern, Town of Carrboro, Chris Blue -Chief of Police, Town of Chapel Hill, Eric Hallman, <br />Executive Director, Piedmont Food and Agriculture Processing Center, Lisa Ganzermiller - General Manager, Courtyard by <br />Marriott, Rob Stern, Sales Consultant, Chapel Hill /Orange County Visitors Bureau <br />Call to Order <br />Acting -Chair Penny Rich called the meeting to order at 8:05 am. <br />Introductions were given by all. <br />Approval of Minutes <br />Acting -Chair Rich requested a motion to approve the May 24, 2017 minutes. Mark Bell so moved and Lydia Lavelle <br />seconded. With all members in favor, the minutes were approved as submitted. <br />Host Introduction <br />Lisa Ganzermiller, General Manager of the Courtyard by Marriott, Chapel Hill thanked the board for allowing them to <br />showcase their newly renovated hotel. During their renovation they added an additional boardroom with updated <br />audiovisual equipment, updated all their guest rooms, additionally they updated their bistro breakfast and added a <br />shuttle service. She will offer tours of the hotel at 9:30 to anyone who would like to stay. <br />Guest Presentations <br />Chapel Hill Police Chief Chris Blue joined the board to talk about gun laws in North Carolina. He shared that over time <br />gun laws in our state have become more simplified. There is presently a bill in the legislature that addresses concealed <br />carry permits that, if passed, will effectively get rid of those permits. It is becoming increasing difficult at a local level to <br />dicern where guns can legally be carried. He shared some thoughts that he thought might be helpful to the board in <br />their workplaces or businesses, including tourism destinations in Orange County. <br />• North Carolina is an open carry state and it is legal for people to do that as long as they are not violating any <br />other law at that time <br />The number of places you cannot openly carry a gun has been declining and places such as the town's <br />Halloween celebration is now open to guns. You can now carry a weapon into bars and restruants that serve <br />alcohol <br />• A business owner can restrict customers from carrying a gun on the premises. If the person refuses to leave it is <br />not a firearms law that is being broken, rather they could be charged with trespassing <br />