PORT ANGELES — Clallam County commissioners are expected to ink a $459,000 agreement with the Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau when they meet next Tuesday.
The visitor bureau would continue to market the area with county revenue from hotel-motel taxes if the professional services agreement is renewed for 2016.
The county Lodging Tax Advisory Committee recommended the board approve the agreement for the budgeted amount, officials said.
Commissioner Bill Peach, who sits on the committee, said it takes two months for the county to receive lodging tax revenue.
“So based on the idea that there’s some additional monies that may be made available, there’s a couple of outstanding projects they could get involved in the conversation,” Peach said.
Shuttered theater
One such project is support for the shuttered Lincoln Theater in downtown Port Angeles, Peach said.
A community group is raising funds to purchase the moviehouse for $235,000.
Another request came from the Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau to upgrade its website.
“They also want to do a study to answer the question: ‘How much do the tourists actually spend when they come into Clallam County?’ ” Peach said.
“And there’s a rule-of-thumb number that we work with that comes out of Olympia. I think it’s $126 a day. But they’d like to verify it. So they’re going to be proposing to do a study on that.”
The committee will discuss the funding requests at its meetings in February and March, Peach said.
More information
While he favors promoting the tourism industry on the Olympic Peninsula, Commissioner Mark Ozias said he wanted more information from the visitor bureau.
“When I look through their scope of work, I don’t see any deliverables,” Ozias said.
“I don’t see any measurable outcomes or anything like that. I’m interested in working over the course of time to try and tighten this up a little bit so we understand better what we’re getting for this significant investment.
“I will be pursuing that for sure.”
Commissioners will consider the agreement with the Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau in their business meeting at 10 a.m. Tuesday in Room 160 at the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
