Last Updated on 12/1/2008

Published on 5/11/2008

By Clayton Stairs

cstairs@gtowntimes.com

Many questions about tourism are circulating throughout the county as it enters what should be the busiest season of the year.

With the recent transition of the tourism marketing arm for the county -- from the Georgetown County Visitor's Bureau (GCVB) to the new Chamber of Commerce Tourism Management Commission (TMC) -- businesses involved in the tourism industry are very concerned about the prospect of losing an unprecedented S.C. Parks, Recreation and Tourism (SCPRT) grant. Awarded in April 2007 to the GCVB in the amount of $169,229, this grant was to be used for marketing of tourism-related businesses and events through June 30, 2008 -- of which, the disbanded GCVB has only spent $28,800.

Kathi Grace, chair of the Georgetown County Accommodations Tax (A-Tax) Advisory Commission and director of marketing for Myrtle Beach National Company which owns Litchfield Beach and Golf Resort, Willbrook Plantation, Litchfield Country Club and River Club in Georgetown County, held a town hall meeting Friday at the Tara Theatre in Litchfield to discuss options to use all or even part of the remaining $140,429 before that June 30 deadline.

"I don't know of any entity or mechanism that can spend that kind of money in that short period of time," Grace said.

"Some amount of that money will be going back to Columbia. The question is, how much of it will go back?"

She is calling for local businesses and festival organizations to band together and come up with the required matching funds for this grant, which equal $328,503 (two-to-one match).

"Here is the bottom line: Is your organization or company willing to make a $500 to $1,000 investment toward tourism?" Grace said. "I don't want to see the majority of that money go back to Columbia."

She is hoping that the TMC will be the group to lead this charge, but she realizes that this new organization is still working out the details of its procurement. She had invited TMC Chair Melissa Newsom and other members of that group to the town hall meeting, but they were not present.

Matching funds

Grace says that approximately $70,000 in Georgetown County A-tax dollars have been in the county's account since February, and those dollars can and should be used to match SCPRT funding. In addition, she says, there is $15,000 in Pawleys Island Litchfield Business Association (PILBA) grant dollars, which are public funds, and $10,000 in Waccamaw Golf Trail dollars, which are private funds.

"That would total $95,000 in matching funds, which would net $31,667 from the SCPRT grant money," Grace said.

She further recommends that local businesses and festival organizations establish a co-op advertising program for private/non-profit industry participation. Grace estimates that $10,000 could come from the accommodation industry, $5,000 from festivals and events, $5,000 from attractions and services, and $10,000 from the real estate industry.

"That adds up to $30,000, and would net $10,000 from SCPRT," Grace said.

If all goes according to this plan, the total amount from the grant would be $156,667 (out of the total grant of $169,229).

Spending grant

Grace also has a plan for spending this amount of money from the grant in the time allotted. First, she proposes that some of the money be spent on collateral materials such as rack brochures, golf brochures, history brochures, and festival/calendar of events brochures, totaling $65,847.

Next, she suggest spending some money on newspaper inserts in regional newspapers, totaling $3,385. Next would be newspaper ads, with cost based on a four column by 10 inch black and white ad with Sunday insertions, totaling $48,706.

Then, she suggests investing in a pay-per-click Internet marketing campaign for $30,000, creating five splash pages for the five groups who sign up for the campaign. Individual investments would vary based on the level of participation per group.

Other marketing campaigns could include online advertising with regional newspaper Web sites. The cost of that has not been determined, she said.

"As a business owner, if I knew that a $1,000 investment would have a $140,000 return, I would jump at the opportunity," Grace said. "That is better than the stock market."

PILBA Survey

There have also been other communications about the plight of tourism between business owners in Georgetown County. One example of this is a recent survey sent out to PILBA members via e-mail by Robert Jayroe, PILBA Board chairman.

The e-mail explains that PILBA was founded by local retailers more than 30 years ago, with a mission to promote the products and services provided by PILBA members and to enhance member businesses in ways that stimulate the community's economic growth and stability. It further explains that PILBA has always relied on State Accommodations Tax grants to match membership dollars and create a leveraged marketing plan throughout the year.

In February 2008, as in 2007, the Georgetown County Accommodations Tax committee approved a $50,000 application from PILBA," Jayroe wrote. "Regrettably, County Council overturned that request in March, and the unallocated funds remain in the A-tax account. Without this funding, PILBA is grappling with how to best move our organization forward to the benefit of our members."

The survey, which "will be used to better understand the current needs of our membership and how PILBA can best serve the Waccamaw Neck in concert with neighboring county entities and SCPRT," includes the following questions:

* Given tourism is the No. 1 industry on the Waccamaw Neck, and generates an economic impact of more than $84 million in our area, is your business impacted by tourism?

* If yes, please estimate what percentage of your business is generated by tourists?

* If yes, how?

* Do you have a marketing budget?

* If yes, is it a percentage of business income or a fixed annual amount?

* Do you advertise your business out of market?

* What expectations do you have of PILBA?

* Are you knowledgeable about recent developments relative to tourism marketing at the county level?

* Are you knowledgeable about recent developments relative to tourism marketing at the state level?

* Would you like to know more?

* Are you interested in attending a "Tourism Town Meeting" in the near future?

In Columbia

Tourism is also a topic of discussions in the state legislature. As of today, a three-member conference committee from both chambers, the Senate and the House, are discussing tourism promotion funding and other projects.

The Senate took these items out of its proposed $7 million budget, and the House restored them to the budget by cutting education programs and borrowing from reserves. The conference committee will have to iron out the differences, according to Sen. Ray Cleary (R-Murrells Inlet).

"This is just part of the budgeting process," Cleary said. "Last year were able to fund, I believe, up to $15 million for tourism with a two-to-one match."

He says it was an extremely successful program and the Grand Strand received 70 to 80 percent of that money because "they were prepared to do the match."

However, because of a $15 million budget shortfall this year, the legislature is forced to cut many programs, he said. These include the Boys and Girls program, Special Olympics, Spoleto and the Beach Ball Classic, just to name a few.

"Many of these programs were those that government felt may not have been the responsibility of the state in the first place," Cleary said.