TDC Minutes 01/23/2023January 23,2023
MINUTES OF THE COLLIER COLINTY
TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL MEETING
Naples, Florida, January 23,2023
LET IT BE REMEMBERED the Collier County Tourist Development Council, in and
for the County of Collier, having conducted business herein, met on this date at 9:00
AM in a REGULAR SESSION in Building F of the Government Complex, Naples,
Florida, with the following members present:
Chairman: Commissioner Bill McDaniel
Vice Chairman: Clark Hill
Susan Becker
Kathleen Brock
Amanda Cox (excused)
Councilor Jared Grifoni
Nancy Kerns
Ed "Ski" Olesky
Councilwoman Beth Petrunoff
ALSO PRESENT: Paul Beirnes, Collier County Tourism Director
Colleen Greene, Assistant County Attorney
Blzzy Ford, Tourism Digital & Social Media Coordinator
Marissa Baker, Manager, Paradise Coast Sports Complex
Amanda Townsend, County Museums Director
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January 23,2023
Any persons in need of the verbutim record of the meeting msy request a copy of the video
recordtng from the Collier County Communications and Customer Relations Department or view it
online.
1. Call to Order
Chairman McDaniel called the meeting to order at 9 a.m.
2. Pledge of Allegiance
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited
3. Roll Call
Mr. Beirnes noted that there hadn't been a meeting since Thanksgiving, but he'd been emailing
updates to TDC members. Ms. Cox may join us by phone and Mr. Olesky is on his way.
A quorum of seven was established by those members present in the board room; an eighth
member arrived later.
4. Agenda and Minutes
A. Changes and Approval of Today's Agenda
Mr. Beirnes said that under Item 7.A, Construction, the third paragraph's consideration date
should be March 2023,not2022.
B. Approval of prior TDC Meeting Minutes
Regular Meeting November 28,2022
Ms. Becker made a motion to approve the November 28, 2022, meeting minutes. Second by Vice
Chairman HilL The motion passed unanimously, 7-0.
5. Presentations/Public Comment - (3 minutes each)
(None)
Mr. Beirnes provided updates since the last meeting:
. The last meeting, November 22,2022, was barely 60 days after Hurricane Ian.
o Since then, he's sent board members intercept surveys and data through December 31.
o Behavior in December continued to change and morph.
o We entered Ql - October, November, December - with a lot of trepidation and uncertainty.
o We focused on tonality throughout the quarter.
o Social media marketing was focused on making sure we were smart about what we were saying
and how we were carrying it forward.
. By November, we felt we could turn on social media and pushed that hard in December.
. By January, we're full steam ahead with all our media globally.
o That's not reflected in the numbers because it's happening right now.
. We were tracking fairly well but slipped a bit on our TDT in the last five days due to the cold
snap.
o Southwest Airlines wasn't bringing people in.
o What we saw coming into January and all metrics are extremely strong.
o Occupancy is strong, ADR is holding well and RevPAR is exceptional.
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a Where we are and where we're going is very solid.
6. Consent Agenda
All matters listed under this agenda item are routine and action will be taken by one motion
without separate discussion on each item. If discussion is desired by a member of the TDC, those
items will be movedfrom the Consent Agenda and considered separately under New Business or
Old Business.
A. Coastal Zone Management
None
B. Beach Park Facilities
None
B. Tourism Division
None
7. New Business
A. Recommendation to approve a work order with APTIM Environmental & Infrastructure
Inc. for $187,636.25 for the design and permitting required for the construction of an
emergency berm needed for the protection of upland structures left vulnerable by
Hurricane Ian in September 2022 and, make a finding that this item promotes tourism
(Fund 195, Project No. 50280).
[Mr. Miller detailed a PowerPoint presentation.]
Mn Miller said 7.A and 7.8 are tied together and reported that:
o Immediately after Hurricane Ian, we put together some emergency work orders.
o One was to get contractors for cleaning and another was to get our engineering consultant,
APTIM Engineering, to measure losses on our beaches.
o APTIM surveyed the beaches in October and November and put together reports for FEMA
about sand losses.
o The reports showed we had pretty significant losses on Collier beaches.
o The dunes really took a hit, so it left a lot of structures behind the dunes vulnerable to future
storms and flooding.
o Based on APTIM's report, we told them we needed to do an emergency berm design.
r Under FEMA's funding policy, the construction of emergency berms or temporary levees are
eligible for reimbursement.
o We have to get it done now because it's an emergency. FEMA gives us about six months after a
storm event to get the construction work in place.
o We're wrapping up APTIM's design. We took that to the BCC on December 13, which certified
the existence of a public emergency for surveying, design and permitting.
o There were 387,000-plus yards of losses to dunes, a significant amount. We probably did less
than half that last year and called it a major renourishment.
The first item is for a recommendation to approve a work order with APTIM Environmental &
Infrastructure Inc. for $ 1 87 ,636.25 for the design and permitting required for the construction of an
emergency berm needed for the protection of upland structures left vulnerable by Hurricane Ian in
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September of 2022 and to make a finding that this item promotes tourism. This is an after-the-fact
recommendation because APTIM is completing the design.
[Mr. Oleslqt joined the meeting at 9:09 a.m.J
Councilwoman Petrunoff said she'd make a motion and thanked staff and APTIM for their heroic
efforts.
Councilwoman Petrunoff made a motion to recommend the approval of a work order with
APTIM Environmental & Infrastructure Inc. for $187,636.25 for the design and permitting
required for the constructton of an emergency berm needed for the protection of upland
structures left vulnerable by Hurricane lan in September 2022 and found that the expenditure
promotes tourism. Second by Ms. Kerns. The motion passed unanimously, 8-0.
B. Recommendation to approve the expenditure of Tourist Development Tax funds in a not-to-
exceed amount of $2410001000 for the construction of an emergency berm necessary for
protection of upland structures left vulnerable by Hurricane Ian, authorize the necessary
budget amendment, and make a finding that this expenditure promotes tourism.
Mr. Miller provided details:
o This involves the construction of a huge truck haul totaling 387,000 cubic yards.
o We rounded it up to 400,000 yards at an average cost of $60 a cubic yard, which includes
engineering, permitting, hauling and the sand.
o We're in a rush to get this going and engineers are wrapping up bid packages today.
o We hope to put it out to bid within a week and get construction bids to haul sand to north Collier,
Naples and Hideaway Beach on Marco Island.
. The recommendation is to approve the expenditure of Tourist Development Tax funds and find it
promotes tourism.
Vice Chairman Hill asked about the cost for loss of sand for this at $60 a cubic yard, versus
$10.84 per cubic yard for Tigertail Beach. What's the difference?
Mr. Miller said the $60 per yard includes everything from design, permitting and 400,000 yards
of sand, the truck haul, placement and grading of sand on the beach. The $10 ayard for the dredge
is a whole different effort. The $60 is an all-in price for every cubic yard.
Chairman McDaniel said he still didn't understand the disparity in pricing.
Mr. Miller said the BCC pays the mine $11 per yard for truck haul sand, so the effort related to a
dredge is different. You don't have trucks andlor the payment for sand because you're picking it out of
the Gulf of Mexico and putting it on the beach. When item 7.C comes up, you'Ilhear from the
presenters that the $10.84 ayard is a change order for an increased volume of sand at a very good price.
They typically get $20 per yard for dredge sand. If we had the ability to use dredge sand for this project,
it would be a lot cheaper, but we don't have a sand source for 400,000 cubic yards. This sand source 30
miles offshore from Sanibel probably has a few million yards available, but it would take longer to
mobilize a hopper dredge and get that in place - and we've got a deadline.
Chairman McDaniel said he understood that the price has to do with the timeline and the emergency
status of the beach renourishment that's needed. He'd like to explore another sand source, either
offshore sand or in the Gulf of Mexico, especially with such a large disparity in this expense. We have
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January 23,2023
to do what's needed get reimbursed by FEMA and have the construction done within six months. The
use of upland sands has been our path, but you're adding the trucking expense.
Ms. Kerns noted that we haven't done a dredge from the Gulf of Mexico for many years due to the
unavailability and cost of getting equipment after the hurricane hit. The dredging equipment was
unavailable, so we went to a truck hall, which was a huge success.
Councilwoman Petrunoff said it would be helpful to breakdown the costs. How much is the truck, how
much is transportation, how much is the sand? That would help us compare apples to apples so we
understand what we are approving.
Mr. Miller agreed. We have a deadline and we have an emergency, so we're going to go ahead. The
BCC has authorized the county manager to execute contracts that will come up in the next several weeks
but those contracts will come back for ratification to the BCC, CAC and TDC, so you'll have a chance
to see what the numbers actually come in at.
Councilwoman Petrunoff said that will be helpful since they didn't understand that transportation was
alarge chunk of that.
Chairman McDaniel said it was $60 a ton. It's an enorrnous expense when you're bringing in upland
sands because normally, the closest sand source is off State Road 82 at the Stewart Mine and then for the
new Cemex mine, they have to drive down Corkscrew, so transport is close to $20 ayard and there's i.3
tons per yard so it's an enorrnous expense. He used to be a producer of beach sand, so he's intimate with
how sand travels.
He wants the TDC and BCC to explore paths to better service our beaches on a more regular basis,
especially when we have a comparison today between Tigertail's 60,000 cubic yards and our emergency
of 400,000 cubic yards with such alarge expense. There must be more in that sand source for Tigertail.
But we have to move forward with this.
Councilwoman Petrunoff mude a motion to recommend authorizing of the expendtture of
Tourist Development Tax funds in a not-to-exceed amount of $24,000,000 for the construction
of an emergency berm necessary for protection of uplund structures left vulnerable by
Hurricane lan, authorize the necessary budget amendment and found that the expenditure
promotes tourism. Second by Ms. Kerns. The motion passed unanimously, 8-0.
C. Recommendation to approve and recommend the expenditure of Tourist Development Tax
Fund 195 funding in the amount of $650,400 for Change Order #2 to t}ne City of Marco
Island's contract with Ahtna Marine & Construction for the2022 Tigertail Lagoon / Sand
Dollar Island Ecosystem Restoration Project and make a finding that this expenditure
promotes tourism.
Michael McNees, the city manager for the City of Murco Island, detailed the project:
o We have technical experts here to answer technical questions.
o It's rare for the City of Marco Island to talk to the TDC directly about funding.
o We're appreciative of the TDC reinvesting Tourist Development Taxes to benefit our
beach and the good work Andy has already done toward that.
. This is a unique situation.
. The only entity that's invested in recent years in the Tiger Tail-Sand Dollar Island
ecosystem has been the City of Marco Island through funding by the Hideaway Beach
Taxing District.
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o It's in Hideaway's interest, but there's an enornous collateral benefit to Tigertail Beach
Park.
o Without supplemental funding to deal with Hurricane Ian's effects, the portion of the
project underway there now that most directly benefits Tigertail Beach Park won't be done
because it requires additional funding,
. This affects tourism. A social media thread that appears regularly is not recommending
Tigertail Beach Park anymore. People say it's now terrible.
o The county has invested a lot in the last few years in bringing the Tigertail system, park,
lagoon and entire operation back to what it used to be after visitors dropped considerably.
. This is a huge step to supplement that investment to bring it back to what it should be.
. There is a direct effect between this incremental addition to the restoration project and the
effects on that park and the ecosystem.
Dr. Mohamed Dabees, the engineerfrom Humiston & Moore Engineers who designed and managed
the project, detailed the project that's underway:
. The project and location is on the northwest corner of Marco Island, a barrier island impacted by
Hurricane Ian.
o The project has been in the making since Hurricane Irma, which impacted that area.
. The project area is located on state lands, a Critical Wildlife Area that's in the red boundary, the
sandspit and lagoon behind it.
. The area fronts the northwest corner of Marco Island and includes the Hideaway Beach
community and Collier County Tigerttail Beach Park, one of two main beach access points on
the island.
. Work was initiated by the City of Marco Island, which obtained permits in2020 that were
funded by the Hideaway Beach Taxing District.
o The project was put out for bid and awarded a week before Hurricane Ian hit.
. We were disheartened by the damage, but relieved we'd secured a contractor to move more than
400,000 cubic yards at a unit price that's the lowest he's ever seen in Collier County.
o We had an area that was impacted by the storm that requires more sand than we put in our bid,
but we already have a bid and a contractor mobilized to do the work.
o Our bid documents included a contingency of having the use of the offshore borough area, a
permitted border area.
o That was permitted in 2005 for Hideaway Beach and we added it as a contingency, iust in case.
That became a lifeline we relied on. We reached out to the contractor to say we need 85,000
cubic yards of sand to make up the deficit sustained from Hurricane Ian.
. They gave us a change order. Given that the project was initiated by the city and bid by the city
through Hideaway Beach Taxing District funding, the district reviewed its available funds and
allocated those toward a change order they can afford, which would only buy them 25,000 of the
required 85,000 yards.
o We're asking for payment for 60,000 yards.
o This is a main beach access and it's a unique park that has a lot of tourist attractions, not only for
beachgoers, but through critical wildlife and nature.
o The birding community goes to that park, just like they do in Sanibel.
o There are boating activities there, especially on weekends.
o There were significant impacts during Hurricane Irma and they were further impacted by
Hurricane Ian, which caused the central part of the island to sit hundreds of feet away from the
mainland, over 400 feet.
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January 23,2023
o That severed the tidal lagoon in its center. Instead of being part of a two-mile long water body
that was wetlands and an environmental resource that attracts birds, wildlife and tourists, it no
longer exists. It's now less than a half-mile.
o The plan that was in the works was to restore the eroding part of Sand Dollar Island and protect a
water flow channel that will connect the lagoon.
. The source of the sand is an opportune source with an advantageous unit price.
o In addition to the erosion at the central part of the Sand Dollar Island, we have an excessive
accretion at the north end because the system is trying to die. It's in its decline and is closing in
from the center. Sand is eroding and accumulating at the entrance, choking the entrance and
eroding from the center.
o We're trying to balance that with an effective management plan that takes sand from where it
accretes. We had 15 acres of growth since Hurricane Irma. We'll put that sand back where it
came from and sustain a berm that will allow us to return the system to its best conditions.
o The project was reviewed over the past two years and was granted permits from the Florida
Department of Environmental Protection, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Florida Fish &
Wildlife Commission, the administrator of the Critical Wildlife area.
o The review and findings established that this was a project in the public interest and it serves the
wellbeing and health of the public because the improvements address water-quality problems in
the south part of the system.
o The project will serve as a resiliency project that will maintain multi-tier barrier from a sand
barrier island and a lagoon that filters out the energy of the storm before it hits the mainland.
. By restoring the system, we're also investing in our future by having a nature-based resiliency
project that will serve Marco Island as a coastal-defense system.
o We don't have to wait until the erosion exacerbates to a level where we're lulnerable, and then
have to put artificial hardened structures that not only will be not adequate during a storm, but
will take away the value of a barrier island with an ecosystem like Tigertail.
. The project promotes tourism in multiple ways and the main outlet is Tigertail Beach Park, a
county park.
. Shore birds are a main tourist attraction at that park, while the lagoon and its wetlands attract
manatee and other wildlife. That's why it's a protected area.
. This is the largest parking area on Marco Island and the main access by land is around the south
end of the lagoon. People also wade across the lagoon and there's a trail that leads to the beach.
o It once was a nice beach but is now eroded and impacted by Hurricane Ian.
o We are short 85,000 yards to complete the project.
. This will provide access to Sand Dollar Island because its only access is through the park. There
is no other land access. There's an attractive walk and water activities for tourists, but they're a
shadow of what they used to be.
o If we allow nature to take its course, it will completely decay.
o We must manage the resource next to our upland community so we can keep our recreational
resources and environmental benefits, while providing protection and resiliency to the upland
community.
o If no action is taken, we will have less sand to bring the project up to the resilient standard it was
designed to.
. We have a contractor already mobilized with a low unit price.
. If we do not act and this system gets impacted by another tropical storm, instead of coming back
and asking for a cost of $10 or $11 ayard, it will be at least $20 a yard.
o The direct benefit to the park is significant and restores a lot of the damage done by hurricanes
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Irma and Ian.
It will benefit public recreation and health by maintaining the flushing of the lagoon and
restoring the wildlife. That's the main reason we were able to obtain those very challenging
permits. Experts will tell you getting permits to work in a preserve is almost unprecedented.
We're asking for 60,000 yards while we're placing close to 100,000 cubic yards through already
allocated funds from the Hideaway Beach Taxing District and administered by the City of Marco
Island.
This will be an investment into the resiliency of the island.
The following points were made when Dr. Daheeb answered TDC members' questions:
. The sand source is in state lands and is available.
o Collier County uses the area as a sand-disposal area when it dredges excess sand in Collier
Creek, but we're taking sand out of it.
. Florida's inlet program doesn't allow you to take sand from a system to serve another system
because that will affect the system's sand balance, so we can take sand from that border area as
long as we put it within the inlet area of influence.
o We can take sand and put it on Keewaydin or Marco Island, but not on Park Shore. That's the
challenge the county has gone through for offshore sand searches.
o The closest hydraulic sand or sand from the Gulf to serve Collier beaches is 20 miles away. That
comes at a significant cost and mobilization.
o The best management practice is to bring sand from upland sources at a much higher cost.
o Coastal Zone is working on integrating inlet management with beach needs.
o Permits are issued based on statutes and rules and inlet management studies and plans.
o If there is justification for permits, it must go through an effort like we did with this system. We
started with the analogy that this cannot be done.
. If you demonstrate to the agencies where the sand came from and you're collecting it from an
area to serve where it came from, there is arange.If you go 10 miles from the same source, the
state might not buy into that.
o lt's imperative that we elevate our beach renourishment projects.
o All environmental agencies reviewed this project and found it would improve habitat because
we're creating additional acres and a sand trap to mimic the island's natural tip.
o All agencies will closely monitor this.
. We're required to finish by bird-nesting season.
. They did models for this project, such as ACUNE (Adaptation of Coastal Urban and Natural
Ecosystems).
. The models looked at the added resiliency through high-frequency storms and a 10-year storm
and will provide for that without needing maintenance after a storm.
. If we get hit by a storm like Irma, instead of having a project like this, where you need 400,000
cubic yards, you may need a maintenance project to fix a local problem that would be a lot
manageable.
o This is not eligible for FEMA reimbursement because there aren't upland structures.
o The county could argue that it's an investment for the indirect protection, but FEMA is
reviewing many asks and that likely wouldn't pass.
o Marco Island City Council and residents support this project.
. The Hideaway Beach Taxing District has already spent nearly $4 million on these projects.
o The change to the work order will benefit the lagoon and county park.
. Why not consider reimbursing the tax district for its funding?
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a Because the project is already under construction, they wanted to make sure they could engage
with the contractor using all the tax district's reserves and that's how it came up with 25,000
yards to do the project the best we could to design standards. The amount was a contingency if
the county didn't approve it.
Councilor Grifoni noted that this benefits a county park and said he'd make a motion to approve the
$85,000 in TDC funds and recommend reimbursing Hideaway Beach Taxing District for the initial
25,000 yards through the change order.
Chairman McDaniel said that wasn't unreasonable.
Ms. Brock said she'd second it.
A discussion ensued and the following points were made:
o This isn't like Pelican Bay's projects because it involves a county park that had 200,000 visitors
annually, while Pelican Bay sand is placed on private beaches.
o This will boost tourism numbers.
o The entire project is on state lands and areas accessible to the park. This sand benefits a public
beach.
Chairman McDaniel asked that the motion be amended to say the funds will be provided after an
accounting of the available funds.
[Councilor Grifoni and Ms. Brock amended the motion and second.J
A discussion ensued and the following points were made:
o There is an indirect benefit to Hideaway Beach.
o There would be many more visitors to Tigertail Beach Park if the lagoon area was maintained
o It's better for that neighboring area to be a vibrant area versus an area with water-quality
problems and a deteriorating ecosystem.
Linda
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Columbo, Friends of Tigertail Beach, said:
We are a non-profit organrzation and are celebrating our 25thyear.
Our mission is to preserve and protect the Tigertail area.
The group's first event this year was on Saturday and drew more than 50 attendees and the our
board members.
We've been informed about the situation and need for the project to restore the area adjacent to
Sand Dollar Spit and leading into the lagoon at Tigertail Beach Park.
The approved project is in progress, but there's a need for supplemental funding of the overrun
due to Hurricane Ian, which reduced the sand available in the permitted dredge template, and for
increasing the sand required to build a protective berm on Sand Dollar Island, as it was designed.
The CAC has recommended spending the extra cost for the berm, which will provide storm
protection from the newly reopened lagoon-flow channel connecting the southern lagoon
adjacent to the park with the northem gulf entrance.
This flow enhances tidal flow and water quality needed to protect the Florida Fish & Wildlife
critical area, an important recreational area for residents and visitors, who enjoy bird watching,
kayaking, paddleboarding and fi shing.
The beach berm restores a large section of Sand Dollar Island's shoreline within the county park.
For a while, walkers couldn't enjoy the two-mile-long Sand Dollar Island coastline to the end of
Sand Dollar Island.
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o The supplemental funds are being requested from Tourist Development Funds. We know this
area is eligible for funding, according to the minutes of the December 12th Coastal Advisory
Committee. Assistant Collier County Attorney Colleen Greene said that pass and inlet
maintenance and lagoon maintenance are all authorized expenditures of the Tourist Development
Tax. The key question is the benefit to the county, the promotion of tourism and public access.
o This area is accessible from Tigertail Park, from walkers entering the Collier County south
beach, as well as hotel beach accesses.
o Recreational boaters use Sand Dollar Island at the northern point to gain access.
o In the Friends of Tigertail Beach's eyes, this project is tourist and resident driven. The park has
had over 200,000 visitors in some years.
. Collier County must recognize the negative impact of not completing this project correctly. It
would greatly impact tourist visits, their willingness to return and county revenue.
o To not properly complete the project would be like trying to stop an open, bleeding wound with
Band-aids instead of sutures.
. If the berm is not built intelligently with the needed sand, it will erode more quickly and require
maintenance sooner. We need to get it right the first time.
Councilor Grifuni made a motion to recommend the expenditure of Tourist Development Tax
Fund 195 funding in the amount of $650,400 for Change Order #2 to the City of Marco
Island's contract with Ahtna Marine & Construction for the 2022 Tigertail Lagoon / Sund
Dollar Island Ecosystem Restoration Project; to consider reimbursing Hideaway Beach Tax
District for the initial 25,000 yards; to provtde the funding only after an accounting is
provided; and found that the expenditure promotes tourism. Second by Ms. Brock The motion
passed unanimously, 8-0.
8. Old Business
None
9. Marketing Partner Reports
These reports (Marketing Partner Reports - Downs & St. Germain Research; Paradise
Advertising & Marketing, Inc.; Lou Hammond Group; Convention & Visitors Bureau PR Team;
Collier County Tax Collector - tourist tax collections; Miles Partnershtp - Website Analytics,
Digital & Social Media; County Museums) are provided to TDC members on a digital link to the
County website. The Research Data Services report will be presented monthly, and the other
reports will be presented at TDC meetings on an-as-needed basis. TDC members may request a
presentation by the marketing partner representative or by tourism staffat each TDC meeting.
Part 1. Marketing Partner Report
A. Downs & St. Germain Research - Joseph St. Germain
"Collier County Tourism Research - December 2022 Metrics - Monthlv Snapshot"
Mr. Beirnes noted that he and Joseph have been talking about the perception of readiness by
visitors. That's critical to our efforts going forward. The first phase was done by those already in
the market. It's kind of an anomaly. They already decided to come here. What's important is that
we survey the Northeast and Midwest to understand any barriers, considerations and
misperceptions about our readiness to accept visitors in the market.
[Mr. St. Germain detailed a PowerPoint presentation.J
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January 23,2023
Mr. Clark noted that he mentioned that this is the perception of a broad swath of Southwest
Florida. Can he provide details about the recovery for Collier County versus Lee County?
Mr. St. Germain said in the upcoming study, when we talk to consumers in other areas, we're going to
get general feelings on the area, but will break it down to each area to see if there are differences in
perception. We have some ideas, but don't know. We want to support that with data, which will be
forthcoming.
Mr. Beirnes clarified that the data set it's based on involved those who were in-market. When we ask
when will it return to normal, the keyword is normal. That's the differentiator. When will it look like
September 15,2022? We have some feedback. It will take time, the beach renourishment. These people
were already here, knew it was open and experienced the beaches. Normal is the differentiator. Now
we're modiffing it for those who are out-of-market, what their perceptions are of when we can welcome
visitors back.
Mr. Clark noted that there's a timing issue and his concem is how we're stating our readiness to
influence that perception.
Mr. Beirnes said we started rolling out very purposefully through December, heavy duty social media
resilience and recovery. We're open for business with a monthly rollout and starting January 1, we told
our agencies to act as if the hurricane never happened. We are fuIl steam ahead and open. You'll see a
very bold creative that we teased in September, an evolution of our "Only Paradise Will Do" campaign
by Paradise Advertising. It's running now across the Northeast and Midwest.
Mr. St. Germain agreed that was an important question. We need to get the perception of people
who weren't here. He lives in Tallahassee and when the hurricane was coming through, his
friends and family were asking if he was OK. He told them he was seven hours away and it was
sunny. The question is just to help you understand.
Mr. Beirnes noted that Hurricane Ian was a Jeopardy question and the contestants went silent.
They didn't know about it.
[Mr. St. Germain continued his PowerPoint presentation.J
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked how he calculates the RevPAR.
Mr. St. Germain said we collect data from an occupancy study, data on vacation rentals and the Star
Report to get occupancy and average daily rate, RevPAR. It's occupancy multiplied by the average daily
rate.
Ms. Becker noted that the Naples Daily News published a report that Naples has the highest number of
remote workers.
Mr. Beirnes said Paradise Advertising reported on remote workers, called digital nomads, last summer.
We started targeting that audience some time ago and it seems to be working. Another trend we're
seeing is the rise of "hush trips," where remote workers stay here for a week or two and go home for a
while to change it up. That's something we probably will continue to see. It's one of the 2023 travel
trends.
Ms. Becker said she worked with the Tourism & Visitors Bureau and found that to be true. They can set
their own hours and work in a nice climate.
Vice Chairman Hill asked about the exchange rate with the Euro. When do you see Europeans starting
to come back to United States?
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Mr. St. Germain said that of all the markets, Europe is the one they expect to come back quicker than
others in2023. China is interesting given all its restrictions. Central and northern Europe is where we
expect to see the most retum in 2023.
Mr. Beirnes provided an update:
o He and Joseph spend a lot of time going through these numbers.
. There were a lot of contractors still here in December. We saw a normalization during the
holidays, when contractors went home and then returned.
o His focus was continued anxiety with the holidays. What was going to happen?o As soon as temperatures warmed up and flights started coming back, we saw occupancy go
through the roof, anorrnalization of our seasonal pattern.
o A significant impact was felt in Lee County and he regularly speaks with his counterpart there.o Lee County is at about 690/o and soon expects 79o/o of its hotels will back up and running. Most of
those are inland.
o Most impacted was Fort Myers Beach. The access and the readiness of having visitors on beaches
is a concern.
. Our role as a CVB is to be neighborly for the long term resilience of our destination.. We don't want to see tourists who normally would have gone to Sanibel, Captiva and Fort Myers
Beach leave for other destinations because their favorite destination isn't around.o It's our obligation to do everything we can while Lee County cannot absorb them and bring
visitors here. We'll market to that audience and they can return to Lee County, but we want to
keep them in-market.
o RSW is an incredible airport. We cannot afford to have any short- or long-term diminishment of
airline service. It's an important regional focus.
o The Star Report, which we monitor weekly, shows the occupancy and ADRs starting to increase.
When you compare it to last year, we had never seen historic levels like that. But the last ADR
was already five points ahead of last year, so we're starting to see momentum heading into
season.
o We've navigated the pandemic and recovery with our advertising campaign, "Only Paradise Will
Do." It was a distinct, specific message and an uncompromising elevation.o Our strategic marketing plan for 2023, when we decided to be bolder, was released one day before
the hurricane hit, but it's a strategy, so the campaign has evolved.o We were going to roll it out with a new photo shoot in October, but the hurricane delayed that.o We're still utilizing our curent imagery, a"campaign on light," but felt it was spot-on to take us
to the next level.
B. Paradise Advertising - Tom Merrick, Chief Creative Oficer
[Mr. Merutck detailed a PowerPoint presentation, "2023 Only Paradise Will Do Brand
Evolution."J
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked if the temperature on the billboards could flash to catch people's eyes.
Mr. Merrick said they could look into that.
Mr. Beirnes said they wanted to focus on some EV-charging stations. Above where you plug in, it says,
it's the only place to recharge yourself. The only place, the only cure for the winter blues.
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked if they were looking at Metro North stations with high-income
residents.
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January 23,2023
Mr. Beirnes said absolutely. The only thing we didn't do this year was the El warming stations because
we were so successful last year that the price is now too high. The placement in each market, whether
Toronto or Hartford, is specific to where the more affluent, upscale residents are.
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked about Hinsdale, Illinois.
Mr. Beirnes said he relies on their Chicago experts.
Paradise Advertising staff member said they are in the suburbs. They're in the metro New York
area going up the main line to Fairfield County, Connecticut. They're also on the main line in
Hartford.
Mr. Beirnes said that digitally, we're targeting the entire Northeast and Midwest, our takeovers.
We chose Chicago and it was cost effective. What we were seeing last year in Hartford caused us
to really focus on Hartford after we hadn't spent any money there. For the last five or six years, it
was creeping up to one of our lead markets. Because it was organically creeping up, we decided
to push it over the top. We're not doing takeovers in Manhattan or Westchester because they're
very expensive. We're looking at where we can get the biggest retum. We're doing the Northeast
and Midwest and geotargeting toward digital and billboards to affluent residents there.
Ms. Becker asked about a photo of a man with a prosthetic leg jumping on a rock.
Mr. Merrick said that was a stock photo that illustrated adventures.
Mr. Beirnes said they wanted to be more inclusive in our messaging. They're for the TDC's eyes
only and won't leave this room. Other photos will be taken and we've tweaked fonts and sizes.
Councilwoman Petrunoff said she understands we want to be inclusive, but we also want to be
profitable. You might target look-alikes who are spending the most money, regardless of who
they are.
Mr. Merrick said we do target our primary visitors, but we do want to be more inclusive.
Mr. Beirnes said that last year 60Yo of Baby Boomers had some sort of mobility challenge.
Chairman McDaniel suggested photos of Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary for adventures, diversity
and inclusion. There are three miles of boardwalks at the bird sanctuary and many other things to
do besides beaches.
Ms. Becker said there's also Mr. Olesky's airboat.
Mr. Merrick said he appreciates the suggestions.
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked what the QR code brings up.
Mr. Beirnes said they started doing it lY, years ago and it drives valuable traffic to our website.
QR Code popularity has come back because technology caught up. There wasn't paid media in
December, but a lot of social media.
C. Lou llammond Group - Mackenzie Comerer
[Ms. Comerer detailed a PowerPoint presentation, "services Conducted in December 2022."
Ms. Becker noted that the report led with a visual of Naples Pier and asked if they'd pulled that.
Mr. Beirnes said they had pulled Naples Pier photos but did show that the pier is still there. Until
we have a vision of what it will be, we aren't using the pier because it wouldn't be authentic.
Ms. Becker agreed that wouldn't be authentic. It would be false.
Mr. Beirnes reported that:
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January 23,2023
He was at the Emergency Operations Center during the hurricane and was having conversations
with VISIT Florida, which was rallying a recovery campaign for the state, saying we're fine and
we're open. He called to say we're not and it will take some time.
We have a strong partnership with VISIT Florida, which agreed to earmark and set aside for our
use, $200,000 upon our discretion.
Last year, we tried a nominal campaign in Canada and saw significant refurns, so we've
increased that this year.
We're using the VISIT Florida money to bring a crew down from the Weather Network, which
Canadians rely on. That willrun the entire month of March into early April. It's on-air
integration, four "look-1ives." We'll videotape one-minute segments that will rotate during the
moming broadcast.
There will be a significant amount of destination and eco segments, as well as dining, arts and
culture that will be woven into the month-long campaign on their digital platform and app.
Paradise Advertising's media team and analytics team are coming to next month's TDC meeting
to go over details, click-throughs and photos involving target markets.
Part2. Marketing Partner Reports
D. Collier County Tourist Tax Collections - Paul Beirnes
[Mr. Beirnes detailed the "December 2022 TDT Collections Report" PowerPoint
presentation.J
Mr. Beirnes reported that:
o TDC collections ayear ago were record setting. We were trending very well, but the bottom fell
out at the end of December because people couldn't get down here.
o To put that into perspective, if we were off $284,000 on a $7 million collection, Lee County
reported last week that they typically collect $66.5 million over the year and the first quarter they
collected $2.1 million compared to $7 million for Collier County, so the perception of being
open and readiness is there.
o He expects Collier will fare well, based on weekly Smith Travel Reports, which are positive.
o Next month, we'll probably see the red getting pretty close to black.
o We're seeing a return to normalcy going forward.
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked what allocated versus distribution category was and if he has the
cumulative amount.
Mr. Beirnes said there was a delay in getting the distribution and percentages from finance, but he'll
send it to the TDC when he receives it.
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked about the difference between allocated and spent.
Mr. Beirnes said he'd look into that. That comes from the Tax Collector's Office, which also
experienced a delay. There's usually more detail in the report.
Councilwoman Petrunoff said she'd be interested in the profits and losses.
Mr. Beirnes said there's a spreadsheet for budgeted and then how the funds are being distributed. That
hasn't come in yet, but he'll send it to TDC members once it arrives.
E. Miles Partnership - Enriqueta Balandra
[Ms. Balandra detailed a PowerPoint presentation, "Paradise.com Monthly Report
December 2022 "J
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January 23,2023
Councilwoman Petrunoff asked if they were tapping into the special events in the cities and county to
populate this real time.
Mr. Beirnes said they do. But then they reach out to our database and newsletters and he asks Enriqueta
to dig a little deeper into what Atlanta is looking at. They really dissect it. There are a lot of
conversations about content. Btzzy also does live streams of sunsets, pet parades and other things
visitors like.
F. Paradise Coast Sports Complex/Sports Facilities Companies - Marissa Baker, Adrian Moses
and David Wasson
Mr. Beirnes said they're working with the County Manager's Office to align the sports complex
more with tourism. The Paradise Coast Sports Complex now falls under Tourism's oversight. It
was definitely built for sports tourism and it's been an incredible success and we want to amp it
up to the next level.
Ms. Baker said that once a month, Sports Facilities Companies gives a high-level overview of
everything occurring at the sports complex, including details about marketing, financials and overall
programming. She reported that:
o December is a notoriously busy month for sports, especially at the Sports Complex.
o We started December with Snowfest, partnering with Parks & Recreation to host their annual
winter event.
o We increased participation by about 2,000 from the prior year.
o We went directly into the Football University nationals event. FBU will be here at the next
meeting to talk about the results.
o The Soccer Youth Golden Cup took us through the new year, so we've been very busy.
. Sports Facilities is doing an amazingjob managing the asset.
o I couple of months ago, we announced that we secured an agreement with American Youth
Football to bring their national championship event here, so December will get busier. We're
anticipating about 20,000 room nights over the course of that event
[Mr. Wasson, Paradise Coast marketing manager, detailed a PowerPoint presentation on year-
to-date marketing.J
Ms. Kerns noted that during Snowfest weekend, there also was a big event on 5th Avenue South, so that
contributed to the numbers.
Mr. Wasson said it also was Swamp Buggy time. We were arnazed by the number of people who
showed up. We like to maximize events. In the future, they'll look at calendar dates, but there's always
something going on.
Ms. Kerns said that makes the numbers even more significant.
Mr. Moses, Puradise Sports Complex general managery reported that:
. Every month, we've been filling the calendar with events we call "prestige over plastic," which
aligns with "Only Paradise Will Do."
o We're bringing in national and regional events that align with the impact we're trying to have
with this facility.
o Snowfest brought in 6,500 people, the most in any single event for any single day.
o A week earlier, we had 3,500 people on Thanksgiving Day for a 5K run we took from the City of
Naples because the Gulf Coast Runners couldn't hold their event there.
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January 23,2023
. We started this quarter with a hurricane and canceled everything we had booked but rebooked it
all.
o At the end of the quarter, we're going to show we ran a profit for the first quarter of the year,
despite challenges. We were supposed to be operating at a loss of about $100,000.o We have five fields to rent, rather than the 10 that we're waiting to complete.o We've had an impact in the community because we're a flexible facility that hosted govemment
agencies during hurricane recovery, including food service and food stamps, while operating a
successful sports complex.
o We wouldn't be able to do this without support from Marissa and Paul's teams.
o We were able to go from FBU to NXT Lacrosse and Soccer Youth Golden Cup within three
weeks while operating efficiently, which is a testament to what this facility is capable of.
. This is the impact that this facility can have and this is just our financials, not the economic
impact for the whole community.
o More good things will come this year.
Mr. Beirnes urged TDC members to visit the sports complex. Four more fields are being put
down.
Mr. Moses said the turf was put down and those new fields will be important to the success of
facility.
G. County Museums - Amanda Townsend
[Ms. Townsend detailed a PowerPoint presentation, "Collier County Museums - Visitation
December 2022"J
Ms. Townsend also reported that:
. The Naples Depot Museum is closed for recovery and may be for some time, so that
affects visitation.
o Facilities has prioritized that over other county projects, but it will still take time due to
FEMA reviews and others because it's on the National Register of Historic Places.
Mr. Beirnes said ;ARTE VIVA! is occurring now. John Melleky is giving an overview and
training for the next grant program, which will support next year's iARTE VIVA! Because of his
work, it's been taken from a manual process to an online application that focuses on metrics and
measurements. That will build a history and enable us to see the retums each year.
10. Council Member Discussion
Mr. Olesky asked about the Parks & Rec report. He wanted an update.
Mr. Beirnes said Olema Edwards presented that last month and will be returning next month.
We're working with the U.S. Open Pickleball, so we're doing a lot together to ready the park for
that event. Olema will provide a joint update.
Ms. Becker complimented Dr. Dabees for explaining the complicated Tigertail Beach issue in
layman's terms.
Mr. Beirnes said it gave him an appreciation for the evolving landscape there.
Ms. Kerns complimented Paul and his staff and asked if individual staff members could come to
TDC meetings for five minutes to introduce themselves.
Mr. Beirnes said they could do that.
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January 23,2023
Chairman McDaniel said he wanted to switch the order of 10 and 11 to move staff reports up in
the regular agenda, so staff can come, those items would finish earlier and we could rotate them.
Ms. Brock said the Historical Society took over the Bank of Everglades and it was a challenge to get it
open. They opened, but then the pandemic happened. But we rebounded and in the last appropriations
bill, the bank was awarded $3 million from the state for the renovation. It will have avery grand visitor
center, probably within 24 months. She asked everyone to remember the Seafood Festival from
February 16 through 18. The Marshall Tucker Band will be the headliner. She noted that the sand-
moving presentation was very informative.
Chairman McDaniel asked if they could take a break during TDC meetings, possibly at 10:30 or
10:45.
Councilwoman Petrunoff agreed that would be good.
Chairman McDaniel asked for a report of statutory delineation of the TDT tax. Every penny is allotted
for something and we need to go through that and discuss those delineations. Some of it is discretionary
money and some is statutorily protected. We want a review of our accounts. Paul showed him the
increases in our budget and where it's all going. It's important for us to have discussions on where that
money's coming from and where it's going.
Mr. Beirnes agreed, saying he has a document he can share.
11. Tourism Staff Reports - Director
(Submitted)
12. Detailed Staff Reports
(Submitted)
13. Next Scheduled Meeting Date/Location - 9 a.m. February 27,2023
Collier County Government Center, Administration Building F,3rd Floor,
3299 East Tamiami Trail, Naples, Florida 34112
There being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned by
order of the chairman at 11:43 a.m.
URIST D OPMENT COUNCIL
Bilt an
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These minutes were
presented, f
approved by the Council on
or as amended
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