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Commission hears update on Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau

MARIETTA — The Washington County commissioners heard an update from the new executive director of the Marietta-Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau following their weekly meeting Thursday.

Deana Clark met with the commissioners to discuss how the bureau is planning to bounce back after suffering losses last year.

“I’m super excited to be here, to be in this position because we have so much to offer in the entire county,” she said. “2017 was a rough year for the CVB, they suffered a nearly 50 percent revenue loss and Jeri (Knowlton, the previous director) left to take another position, which left Shannon Folts there to take care of everything on her own for over four months.”

Clark officially started on Dec. 4 and said that she fully took the reins about mid-January.

“Despite all that, the bureau did a lot last year. They embarked on a new campaign that we will continue to use. The new logo and tagline has been well-received in the community and positions the area for growth in the outdoor recreation area while still honoring our amazing heritage,” she said.

The Stonewall Group has created most of the marketing materials, which Clark said accounts for more than 40 percent of their budget.

A significant loss in revenue and downsizing in staff was something that Clark knew she would need to contend with by taking over the position. Before she left, Knowlton shared that the bureau’s operating budget was $230,000 annually and they expected to see a $30,000 decrease.

Marietta’s City Council made changes in 2014 to a prior long-standing arrangement that split the city’s 6 percent bed tax 50/50 with the CVB.

Those changes included a reduction in the CVB’s take from 3 percent to 2.5 percent in 2015, followed by another half-percent reduction in 2016, leaving the bureau with 2 percent of the lodging tax.

“So this 50 percent loss in revenue, the bulk of which came from the hotel bed tax – what was 2017’s revenue?” Commissioner David White asked.

Clark explained that the bureau took in about $210,000 in revenue, with roughly $6,000 being from the county.

White also commented that, while Stonewall has done a good job with the logo, he felt that “Marietta: Ohio’s First Adventure” didn’t incorporate enough of the county.

“I think if it’s going to be the Marietta-Washington County CVB, it ought to have Washington County in there somewhere,” he said.

Commissioner Rick Walters, who lives in Beverly, echoed the sentiment.

“That’s part of the reason I ran for commissioner,” he said. “I own a business in Marietta and a business in Beverly … this idea that everyone in Marietta thinks that Washington County exists just within the city limits.”

Clark, who also lives near Beverly, said there are plans to reach out more to other areas of the county and to publicize more events on the website, mariettaohio.org.

Clark said the CVB is gearing up for the pending release of historian and acclaimed author David McCullough’s upcoming book, “The Pioneers,” which will focus on the first settlers of the Northwest Territory, as well as the Ohio Magazine designation of Marietta as one of Ohio’s Best Hometowns, both of which should shine a light on the area.

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