The Chattanooga Convention & Visitors Bureau last week hosted its 72nd annual luncheon at the Chattanooga Convention Center. The CVB was privileged to have the Governor of the great state of Tennessee, Bill Haslam, as the keynote speaker.
“I want to applaud the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau and everyone in Hamilton County for their hard work to increase tourism in the area,” Haslam said. “We have a lot to offer visitors to Tennessee, making tourism incredibly important to the state as one of our largest industries and specifically, Hamilton County, with 8,500 full-time tourism jobs.”
A record sold-out crowd of 1,000 guests attended this year’s meeting. The CVB discussed the state of the tourism industry; announced the newly elected annual board members; and recognized local ambassadors for being instrumental in bringing meetings, sporting events and reunions to Chattanooga. Guests were once again charmed by an entertaining video.
“We were honored to have Governor Bill Haslam as our guest speaker,” said Bob Doak, president and CEO of the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau. “His presence is a testament of his ardent support of the tourism industry. Governor Haslam collaborates with city, county, private and state organizations to make our industry thrive throughout the state. He truly understands the importance of the tourism dollar and how investing money into our industry will reap a sound return.”
The CVB reported that they had a record number of hotel rooms - more than 156,000 - booked for fiscal year July 1, 2012-June 30, 2013 for Chattanooga area conventions. This number does not include the two new pieces of business recently finalized: The American Quilting Society and the IRONMAN Triathlon. Those two groups together will have an estimated economic impact of $70 million over the next five years.
Doak attributes the successes of the tourism industry to the dedication of civic and public officials. He said, “They understand the power of cooperation and economic benefits of investing in the industry – the idea that working together works, and we’re all better off when our city, county and state leaders are collaborating. Tourism is an economic development engine, and if your community is worth visiting, then it’s worth investing in.”
Visitors to Chattanooga spend nearly one billion dollars in Hamilton County, which generates more than $19 million in local sales tax revenues. This money also supports 8,500 full-time jobs in the tourism industry.
Convention and Visitors Bureau Chairman Jim Bambrey presented former Chattanooga Mayor Jon Kinsey and former Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey with the prestigious Chairman’s Award. They were praised for their contributions to strengthening Chattanooga’s economy as well as their significant support of the tourism industry, both individually and as a team.
A recent study by the University of Tennessee estimated that each Hamilton County household pays $500 a year less than they would if visitors weren’t paying into the economy.
Source: Chattanooga Convention & Visitors Bureau