PORT ANGELES — A daylong seminar put on by a marketing consultant will cost the city $4,000.
The City Council on Thursday approved 6-1 giving the Port Angeles Downtown Association the up-front payment needed to bring Jon Schallert’s symposium, highly touted by the group’s executive director, to town in June.
In her pitch to the City Council, PADA Executive Director Barb Frederick said that the $4,000 is needed to cover half of Schallert’s fee.
The event will cost $8,000 before other expenses.
The other half, she said, is expected to be covered by ticket sales and other sponsors.
Additional expense
An additional fee to cover Schallert’s meal, travel and lodging expenses is expected to be $2,000, she said, bringing Schallert’s total bill to about $10,000. The $2,000 will be paid by PADA, she added.
Council member Max Mania opposed the allocation, saying that more public entities should be contributing funds if the workshop is open to the entire region and not just Port Angeles, as Frederick said.
Frederick said that between 100 and 150 people are expected to attend. Tickets are estimated to cost between $50 and $75.
The day, time and location for the seminar have not been determined.
In an interview Friday, PADA Vice President Jan Harbick agreed that ticket sales, based on those estimates, could cover the entire cost of the seminar.
She explained that the $4,000 is needed to secure a date for Schallert.
Harbick said the organization would be willing to refund the city its contribution if ticket saels cover the cost and the city makes such a request.
(While the council approved the appropriation, a “task order” still needs to be negotiated with City Manager Kent Myers.)
She said PADA doesn’t have $4,000 available before tickets are sold.
While several council members expressed concern over the cost, Frederick assured the council that she thinks Schallert is well-worth the price.
“I think we always get what we pay for, and we could pay a lot less for maybe one or two people but we wouldn’t get what Jon Schallert teaches,” she said.
What he teaches is how to turn businesses into destinations like Wall Drug in South Dakota or even Swain’s General Store, said Frederick, who called Schallert the top business consultant in the nation.
She defined a destination store as a business that brings people to a community.
Schallert held a similar seminar in Port Angeles in 2000. His fee, paid by PADA, was $3,000.
“He was an exciting speaker [in 2000],” Mary Gotham, owner of The Toggery, told the council.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
