HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009.08.05 Final CSE Strategic Plan
Town of Vail:
Commission on Special Events
STRATEGIC PLAN
Adopted August 5, 2009
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 2 of 11
Our Values:
Integrity-Collaboration-Accountability-Respect
Purpose:
The mission of the Vail Commission on Special Events (CSE) is to support and
assess a diverse collection of special events, both large and small, which
promote Vail's vitality, sense of commu nity, and increase the quality of the
experience for guests and residents year-round.
The purpose of the Commission on Sp ecial Events Strategic Plan is to
establish guidelines that will assist th e CSE in developing and supporting a
calendar of events that accomplish the following goals:
Assist in balancing the year
round economy
Increase sales and lodging
tax revenues in the Town of
Vail
Promote a strong sense of
community
Appeal to a diversity of
interests
Provide a better quality of life
for guests and residents
Entice visitors to return, and
Increase the length of their
visits
It is intended that this document be revisited and revised as the community
evolves and action steps are completed.
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 3 of 11
Process:
A committee was appointed by the CSE to develop a final draft of the plan.
The committed consisted of CSE members Kerry Donovan and Rayla
Kundolf, Vail Economic Developmen t Manager Kelli McDonald and CSE
Coordinator Sybill Navas.
The document was reviewed by the following entities:
• Town of Vail Event Review Committee (ERC)
• Vail Economic Advisory Council (VEAC)
• Vail Local Marketing District Advisory Council (VLMDAC)
• Vail Town Council
Adopted on August 5, 2009 by the Vail Commission on Special Events
Commission on Special Events Members:
Dave Chapin, Chairman
Robert McKown, Vice-Chairman
Bobby Bank
Kerry Donovan
Meggen Kirkham
Rayla Kundolf
Heather Trub
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 4 of 11
Background:
In 2002, the Vail Town Council approved legislation that created the
Commission on Special Events (CSE) in its current form. This ordinance
reorganized the existing CSE and set several broad objectives:
1. Stimulating the local economy
a. Increase lodging and sales tax collections
b. Increase number of visitors
c. Insure that visitors have a hi gh rate of intent to return
2. Create a sense of community in Vail and increase the quality of
experience for both guests and residents
3. To establish a single point of co ntact for events administration
4. To provide street entertainment and special events that reflect the
high quality image of Vail and contri bute to vitality, economic viability
and fun throughout the year
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 5 of 11
Strategic Fundamentals:
The CSE will encourage and recruit independent event organizers to
produce events in Vail by acting in a sponsorship role to provide seed
funding for the development of new ev ents and sponsorship dollars for on-
going events, particularly those events that are contributing to the economic
vitality of the community.
It continues to be the job of the CSE to weed out events not
performing as expected while continui ng to encourage the development of
new events that are commensurate wi th the world class image of Vail.
Additionally, in keeping with the pu blic trust and economic realities,
every event investment will be held to a high level of accountability. A post-
event recap will be expected from each event receiving public funding and
will be publicly reviewed by the CSE.
Progress will be evaluated by addr essing these basic questions:
• Did every event investment increase Vail’s economic performance?
• Are event investments being fully leveraged to increase sales and
marketing reach?
• Are we consistently achieving more impact with public resources?
• Do these events contribute to a st rong sense of community and better
quality of life?
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Events that qualify for CSE funding are ultimately selected by what they can
contribute to the community and how they fit into a calendar of events that
will appeal to a diversity of interests and provide a balance of activity and
economic vitality throughout the year.
Categories of Special Events:
Special Events are as diverse as the peop le that they attract. Different types
of events contribute to the community in different ways, and the CSE must
remain cognizant that all special even ts do not serve the same purpose in
the community. While recogn izing that some events “overlap” into more
than one category, in order to facilitat e the comparison of the contributions
that varying events bring to the community the CSE has developed the
following categories of Special Events:
Iconic Events:
1. Take place over a period of several days, or even weeks
2. Attract destination visitors from outside the region, and provide
strong stimulus for the lodging, restaurant and retail community
3. Nationally or internationally reco gnized competitions or cultural
events that contribute to Vail’s image as a world-class destination
4. Leverage community contributi ons with major sponsorships
5. Require a large number of volunt eers and significant community
support
Examples: World Alpine Ski Championsh ips, TEVA Mountain Games,
BRAVO! Vail Valley Music Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, Jazz
Festival
Role of the CSE: Review, evaluate economic impacts and potential,
facilitate and recommend
Participatory Events:
1. Attract destination guests and put “heads in beds” for the duration
of the event
2. Provide benefit to the lodging and restaurant community
3. Turnkey: the Town’s role is that of a host site
4. Capitalize on infrastructure that might otherwise be under-utilized
Examples: TEVA Mountain Games, Kick-It 3vs3 Soccer, Vail Lacrosse
Shootout, Vail Challenge Cup Soccer, Vail-Eagle Hockey Tournament
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Role of the CSE: Partner with the community, recruit, evaluate economic
impacts and potential, provide spon sorship and/or site fees where
necessary, facilitate, review
Ambient Events:
1. Provide entertainment, activities and street vitality for guests who
are already here, or who might come into town for an afternoon or
an evening
2. Attract visitors from within the region or the Front Range
3. Help to keep people in town for longer than they might otherwise
stay
4. Contribute to Vail’s image as a place where there is always
something fun to do
Examples: Vail Jazz Festival, Summer Street Entertainment, Gourmet on
Gore, BBQ Bonanza, Oktoberfest, Vail Farmers’ Market, Lionshead Friday
Afternoon Club, Vail Arts Festival
Role of the CSE: Communicate and partner with the business
community, develop concepts, enco urage sponsorship development,
provide funding where necessary, ev aluate economic contributions,
review
Community Events:
1. Create a venue to celebrate major holidays and important
community events, and to preserve the heritage and traditions of
our community
2. Provide for a better quality of life for residents: i.e. make people
happy
3. Bring “neighbors” (Summit Count y, down-valley) into town
4. Do not have a strong ability to attr act major sponsors and/or do not
provide opportunity for additional revenue sources to the event
producer or measurable economic contributions to the Town of Vail
Examples: America Days, Holidays in Vail, Trick-or-Treat Trot, Lionshead
Easter Egg Hunt
Role of the CSE: Facilitate, work with communi ty organizations, contract
for event production where ne cessary, evaluate and review
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 8 of 11
Givens:
The Commission on Special Events (CSE) strategy assumes several givens:
• Special events contribute to
visitor satisfaction, sense of
community and increased
spending.
• Cooperation and
communication with other
community organizations
that are essential to the
success of the CSE’s
program.
• Events that receive support
from the CSE must be of a
quality commensurate with
Vail’s image as a world-class
resort.
• The use of measurable
criteria in event selection,
funding and evaluation is
critical to ensuring progress.
• A single point of contact is
required to support special
event producers.
The CSE is part of the Town of Va il’s Economic Development Department
and relies on the Town Council to provide:
• Policy Direction
• Consistent Special Events Funding
• Proactive Development of Appr opriate Special Event Venues
• Town of Vail Staff support for Special Events as required
Every significant event destination allo cates resources to the administration,
ongoing support and recruiting of spec ial events. Research has proven that
Special Events generate additional sa les tax revenues in the Town of Vail.
The CSE recommends that some percentage of these increased revenues
should be used not only to help under write the costs of administration, but
also for research, evaluation and furt her event development or recruitment.
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 9 of 11
The CSE will:
Provide a balanced, year round calendar of events appealing to residents
and guests of diverse interests by:
o Attracting and developing events th at will enhance and contribute to
Vail’s world-class reputation
o Attracting visitors by dedicating resources to recruit and develop new
events
o Attracting and supporting participan t events for visitors and locals
o Developing community events that will enhance the experience of
Vail’s guests and residents, as well as become effective marketing
tools. Examples include Vail Americ a Days, Holidays in Vail, Trick-or-
Treat Trot, Lionshead Easter Egg Hunt, etc.
o Encouraging producers of special events to provide free street
entertainment, e.g. clowns from circus, musicians from BRAVO, and
artists from the Vail Arts Festival
o Actively soliciting entrepreneurial street entertainment
Assess and evaluate events to insure that the community benefits are
commensurate with the investment of public funds by:
o Following objective event selection, funding and evaluation criteria
o Developing critical success measurem ents: In coordination with the
Vail Local Marketing District (VLMD) and appropriate research vendors,
tools will be developed to regularl y measure the following criteria:
Economic indicators
a. Increased sales tax collections
b. Increased lodging tax collections
c. Improved occupancy rates
d. Impact from direct event spending
e. Quantifiable marketing benefits
Contributions to sense of community:
a. Does the event improve the qu ality experience for guests
and residents?
b. Does it pull down-valley residents into Vail?
c. Does it make people happy?
o Communicating with the local bu siness community, the Vail Chamber
and Business Association (VCBA), the Vail Valley Partnership (VVP)
Vail CSE Strategic Plan Adopted 8/5/2009 Page 10 of 11
and the Vail Recreation District (VRD) to insure that the events funded
by the CSE have a positive im pact on the local economy
o Ensuring that event investments are closely coordinated with the
economic needs of the community as recommended by the Vail
Economic Advisory Council (VEAC) and with the broader marketing
objectives identified by the VLMD
o Maintaining biannual meetings with the VLMDAC and continue to work
cooperatively to align the special events and marketing programs.
“Green Events:” Encourage environmen tally sustainable practices for all
Town of Vail events
Encourage producers of major events to develop sponsorships and to
reduce over time their reliance on Town of Vail funding and the
percentage of the event budget that is funded with public dollars
Encourage a culture within the Town of Vail that welcomes special events
and provides a “can do” attitude of cooperation between Town of Vail
Departments, Event Promoters and local businesses
Advocate for the development and im provement of venues and facilities
for Special Events with in the Town of Vail
Improve coordination and communication between the Town of Vail’s
Event Review Committee (ERC), the Va il Recreation District (VRD), Vail
Mountain Marketing and the CSE
Develop a refined program for the allocation of in-kind services to support
Special Events
Provide complete and accurate informat ion with regard to the calendar of
special events in response to the needs of prospective visitors, event
promoters, Town of Vail staff, concierges, locals and guests
Maintain a “single point of contact” for Special Events
Demonstrate to the Town Council th at special events are a revenue
provider for the Town, not an expe nse, and that events can deliver
substantial sales and lodging tax revenues while simultaneously making
Vail a more exciting place to live and visit
ATTACHMENT A: CRITERIA FO R ALLOCATION OF CSE FUNDS
SPECIAL EVENT RATING GRID
EVENT NAME: ___________________________________________________
DATES: ___________________________ $$$ AMT. REQUESTED: _____________
New Event______ Existing Event________, if yes, # of years_______
The event is: (check all that apply)
Iconic _______ Participatory ________ Ambient _______ Community ________
CRITERIA:
RATING
(1-10)
Does the event have the potential to:
Benefit local restaurants
Increase room nights
Stimulate Retail Sales
Contribute to Vail’s sense of community
Promote Visitor Intent to Return
Timing: How well does it contribute to a balanced annual calendar of
events?
Demographic Fit: Does it match the profile of targeted visitors, in
alignment with the VLMD’s program?
Growth Potential: How big can it become? Will it be annual?
Leveraging Value: How great is the potential to attract sponsorships
and media exposure, thereby increa sing the impact of the CSE funds?
“Green Events:” How well does the event comply with Vail’s
commitment to environmental sustainability?
Producer Qualifications : Do they have the ability to produce an event
compatible with the image of Va il as a “world class” resort?
TOTAL SCORE:
CSE Member Initials: ___________ $ Amount of funding suggested: ____________