|
Certified tourism bureaus are eligible
to write a grant from the state's
Local Tourism and Convention Bureau Program. This fund is set
aside for convention and visitors bureaus that have followed the
proper procedures to be eligible.
The intent of the program is to
generate increased hotel-motel occupancy and travel into and
throughout the state of Illinois, stimulating the economic growth of
the trade industry.
The local bureau must provide a
dollar-for-dollar match, and the grant must be used in a radius of
over 50 miles. In past years it had to be over 100 miles. The grant
is to be used for promotional costs.
The largest portion of this year's
grant will go toward reprinting the local tourism bureau's visitors
guide.
Magazine advertising has been very
productive and has generated thousands of labels to people who have
requested information about Logan County.
[to top of second column in
this article]
 |
Prior to funds being awarded, the
bureau must employ a full-time paid, professional chief executive
officer with authority and qualifications to manage and implement
the grantee's marketing plan and fulfill all requirements under the
program grant and whose sole purpose shall be to promote, while
devoting at least 35 hours per week to the development of growth for
tourism.
The formula for the grant is based on
weighted factors: population, 5 percent; hotel and motel tax
collected, 65 percent; and food and beverage tax, 30 percent.
Board members for the local bureau are
Charles Ott, Lincoln, chairman; Gillette Ransom, Elkhart, vice
chair; Lucille Pech, Atlanta, secretary; Roseann Coers, New Holland;
Gail Apel Sasse, Beason; Bob McCue, Mount Pulaski; Ron Keller,
Lincoln; Paul Gleason, Lincoln; Kathy Sommers, Middletown; and
Thressia Usherwood, director.
The local
tourism bureau became a certified bureau in 1987.
[News release from the Abraham
Lincoln Tourism Bureau of Logan County]
|
