FAYETTEVILLE -- Visitors can expect a more inviting space welcoming them to the city after the Advertising and Promotion Commission on Monday approved its budget for next year.
The $4.6 million budget includes $145,000 to remodel and expand the Experience Fayetteville visitors center at Block Avenue and Mountain Street on the square. Executive Director Molly Rawn said the emphasis would be on the welcoming aspect of the center, with a reduced, but sharper, focus on the retail side.
2019 budget
The Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission’s overall budget is made up of the operations and expenses for the city’s tourism bureau Experience Fayetteville, the Town Center and Clinton House Museum.
Revenue
Experience Fayetteville — $3,662,988
Town Center — $911,000
Clinton House Museum — $37,000
Total revenue — $4,610,988
Expenses
Experience Fayetteville — $3,434,191
Town Center — $941,000
Clinton House Museum — $242,894
Total expenses — $4,618,085
Source: Fayetteville A&P Commission
"Our goal is to provide a unique experience without taking away from the other great retail experiences we already have on Block Street," she said.
The store will feature merchandise limited to items with the Experience Fayetteville logo and branding, convenience items for visitors and locally made goods, Rawn told the commission.
An unused office and a hallway could provide more space for the main area, Rawn said. The idea is to make the space more visually appealing and open, she said. Planned features include a coffee, water and phone charging station, a unique wall map and flexible space for a variety of programming.
Rawn sought the help of Modus Studio to work on the design. Bids and a construction contract should be worked out next month, with construction tentatively set to start in February.
Commissioner Matt Behrend said making the center friendlier could lead to more items sold despite the lower emphasis on retail.
The commission also plans to create new positions next year. Rawn proposed hiring a full-time cycling coordinator to handle all things bicycling in the city. A full-time operations manager will oversee the visitors center and another full-time employee would support the finance staff. A new part-time marketing coordinator position with a web focus will be created and the visitors service coordinator would become part-time.
The Town Center staff will shift more from contract labor to in-house employees. New positions include a full- and part-time facilities coordinator, full-time sales manager and eight part-time bartenders.
Work on the Town Center will continue. Extensive renovation took place this year, with replacement of the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system, remodeling of rentable space, repairing the Peace Fountain outside and other work.
The budget for next year calls for $27,000 in repairs and $55,000 for new furniture, light fixtures and equipment. About $148,000 was budgeted for this year.
Additionally, $100,000 is allocated next year for spring event and program grants for outside organizations. That's down from the about $115,000 in grants awarded this spring.
Rawn said the lower grant amount is needed to pay for the visitors center and Town Center work. Also, $25,000 will be set aside for public art.
The budget for this year was flat at $4.4 million. Next year's budget has a projected shortfall of $7,097. Rawn said she budgeted conservatively with an anticipated 2 percent growth in hotel, motel and restaurant sales tax revenue.
Half of the city's 2 percent HMR sales tax goes to tourism. The other half goes to parks.
The budget projects about $3.6 million in revenue from the tax. Other revenue comes from renting space at the Town Center and from events. So far this year, the commission has had a nearly 5 percent increase in sales tax revenue over last year. It averaged a 6 percent increase from 2014 to 2017.
The commission also has about $882,000 in cash on-hand, according to its balance sheets.
Between the conservatively projected growth and reserve cash, the commission should be able to make up the difference in the budget, Rawn said.
"We feel like this 2019 budget represents some important and significant investments that we need to make for the future of our organization," she said.
NW News on 12/18/2018