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For Approval August 19, 2020
<br />
<br />Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
<br />Virtual Board of Directors Meeting
<br />June 17, 2020
<br />
<br />
<br />Board Members Present: Pam Hemminger, Dixon Pitt, David Brooks, Tanya Moore, Kayla Dempsey,
<br />Mark Bell, Sam Vadgama, Lydia Lavelle, Mark Sherburne, Tim Hoke, Spring Council, Betsy Bertram,
<br />Libbie Hough and Jamezetta Bedford, Shannan Campbell.
<br />Not Present: Anthony Carey, Matt Gladdek
<br />Staff Attendance: Laurie Paolicelli, Marlene Barbera, Patty Griffin, Susan Rice, Leslie Wilcox, and Katie
<br />Murray.
<br />Also present: Lee Davis, CEO Clean Design, Inc. Manish Atma, owner, Atma Hotel Group, Lisa
<br />Ganzzermiller, General Manager AC Marriott, Boris Bunich, Beacon Investment Management, Sam
<br />Speicher, grad student intern with Orange County Economic Development.
<br />
<br />Call to Order
<br />In absence of a Chair, Laurie called the meeting to order at 8:05 a.m.
<br />
<br />Approval of Minutes
<br />Laurie requested a motion to approve the February 19, 2020 minutes. Lydia Lavelle so moved and Pam
<br />Hemminger seconded the motion. With all members in favor, the minutes were approved as submitted.
<br />Executive Director’s Report
<br />The last time we met clearly our world and our industry that we are here to talk about today has been
<br />shuttered. On a meeting yesterday with the United States Tourism and Travel Association, they did
<br />confirm that there is a 59% unemployment rate in our industry. The Travel, Tourism and Hospitality
<br />Industry has really taken it the hardest. After today’s meeting, I will send you the deck that the US
<br />Travel Association is using to lobby on the hill this week. Really, it is a targeted relief effort for phase 4
<br />of the COVID-19 legislation that has three critical points. The key asks are #1. Relief. More access to
<br />financial support. #2. Protection for our small businesses. Targeted liability protection. If someone
<br />comes in and says, “I got sick there. Your cook wasn’t wearing a mask”, etc. This bill is really looking at a
<br />perspective on protection for liability. #3 Stimulus monies. Trying to get more travelers to travel. Tax
<br />credits, etc. There is a huge push right now, a bipartisan effort, from the US Travel Association.
<br />Presentations
<br />Manish Atma.
<br />We are all depending, in Orange County, on what happens with the University of North Carolina, Chapel
<br />Hill and the sporting events. From what we are hearing, the university is going to be back but they are
<br />unsure of how football and basketball will be handled as far as whether they will have fans in the seats
<br />or not. Second is the second wave of COVID-19. As we know, North Carolina has been on an uptick. So,
<br />there is a lot of uncertainties. We have seen a small uptick on occupancy. We went from single-digit
<br />room rentals to now we are in the twenties and thirties, which is positive, but we are still not out of the
<br />woods yet. We feel this recovery is going to take a minimum of eight to twelve months before we even
<br />get to a break-even point.
<br />DocuSign Envelope ID: 8AD3FF29-5083-4B94-98F6-B99CC7D47930
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