[1. Call to Order]
[00:00:10]
ORDER THE TIME OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND, FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING OF APRIL 19TH, 2020 KRISTA.
ARE WE IN, IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT? YES, SIR.
WOULD YOU CALL THE ROLL? CERTAINLY, SIR.
MR. BROWN, MR. HARKINS HERE, MR. STANFORD.
[5. Approval of the Minutes]
MINUTES FROM THE REGULAR MEETING OF MARCH 15TH, 2020.IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE? SO MOVED SECOND, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
[6. Appearance by Citizens]
DO WE HAVE A PARENTS BY CITIZENS? YES, SIR.MR. SKIP HOAGLAND IS SCHEDULED TO SPEAK TO COUNSELOR THE COMMITTEE.
MR. HOECHLIN, SKIP HOAGLAND WINDMILL HARBOR.
MR. LENNOX, WHY DO YOU ALL KEEP SAYING THE CHAMBER AND BILL MILES DOES A GREAT JOB.
PROMOTING TOURISM WOULD MILLIONS OF TAX FUNDS WHEN THIS IS A LIE AND FRAUD AND ZERO ACCOUNTING AND FOIL, AND YOU'RE IN FOIL VIOLATION.
FIRST, THE PRIVATE CHAMBER LOCAL BUSINESS LEAGUE IS NOT SUPPOSED TO DO A GOOD JOB, NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HIRED DMO TO PROMOTE TOURISM.
THAT'S AN AD AGENCY, A LOCAL MEDIA JOB, A LOCAL CHAMBER UNDER NATIONAL GOLD STANDARDS IS ONLY SUPPOSED TO SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS MEMBERS LIKE ELECTRICIANS, PLUMBERS, BEAUTY SALONS, ET CETERA, NOT BEING BUSINESS WHATSOEVER AS A 5 0 1
SECONDLY, A HIGHER DM OWNER NATIONAL GOLD STANDARDS UNDER SOUTH CAROLINA, EIGHT TAX LAWS IS ONLY SUPPOSED TO USE EIGHT TAX FUNDS TO PROMOTE AND MARKET TOURISM AND NOTHING ELSE.
A TAX COMMITTEE RECOMMENDING FUNDING IS IN VIOLATION OF EIGHT TAX LAWS AND ILLEGAL USE OF NONPROFIT CHAMBER, LOW COUNTRY, UH, OF THE NONPROFIT CHAMBER, LOW COUNTRY GOLF OWNERS ASSOCIATION, EVEN THE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB.
THEY CANNOT BE A TAX FUNDED CHAMBER, HIJACKED OWNERSHIP OF R D MOA TAX FUNDED APP AND WEBSITE.
AND IT MUST END TAXPAYER'S OWN THIS BILL, MILD SELLING ADVERTISING TO GENERATE HIS WHATEVER WE 500, 600,000 SALARY PAY PACKAGE IS INSANITY.
IT MUST END TOWN VIOLATION TO PROCUREMENT BIDS, ALLOWING BILL MILES TO ROB OUR COMMUNITY FOR 35 YEARS.
UH, FOR THE, AS A NEW, AS A DMO MUST END, WE MUST HIRE A NEW DMO, $1 MILLION PLUS GOING TO CANADA, UH, TO DEVELOP THE APP.
AND THE WEBSITE MUST END THAT THE TOWN ILLEGALLY USING TAX MONEY TO BECOME CHAMBER MEMBERS MUST END.
YOU USE TAX MONIES, MR. LENNOX, IT'S QUID PRO QUO.
THE TOWN VIOLATION OF SOUTH CAROLINA NONPROFIT CORPORATION ACT LAW WAS IN THE TOWN CHAMBER VIOLATION OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
CONSTITUTIONAL LAWS MUST END BILL MILES VIOLATION TO THE IRS 5 0 1
EVEN THE ISLAND PACKET MUST END BILL MILES, BRIBERY, CORRUPTED TAX RETURNS, MONEY LAUNDERING WITH, WITH, WITH RE DEAL.
FRAUDULENT AUDITS MUST END HARKINS MCCANN LENNOX COMMITTED CRIMINAL FRAUD BY CLAIMING THE SAW CHAMBER ACCOUNTING AT THE CHAMBER OFFICES.
MR. MR. LENNOX, A DMO IS AN OLD FAILED BUSINESS MODEL.
AND NO MATTER WHO OPERATES IT, TOURISM IS GENERATED BY TECHNOLOGY FOR FREE LOCAL SEARCH, SOCIAL MEDIA, A THOUSAND FACEBOOK ACCOUNTS, LOCAL RESIDENTS, WORD OF MOUTH, FAMILY GUESTS, 70% REPEATS AND INDEPENDENT MARKETING EFFORTS OF LOCAL BUSINESSES.
NOT THIS DMO CHAMBER TAX SCAM.
THE FRAUD CHAMBER IS RUN AS A FOR-PROFIT CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE DISGUISES AS A NONPROFIT CHAMBER TO TRICK OUR COMMUNITY AND EVEN IRS BY COMMITTING THIS TAX EVASION, OUR COMMUNITY IS BEING ROBBED BLIND BY THIS EIGHT TAX COMMITTEE, THIS COUNCIL AND ALLOWING THIS CHAMBER TECH SCAM TO CONTINUE THIS HAPPY HORSE MANURE AND THEFT BY BILL MILES MUST END ALEX.
I'M AFRAID THAT YOU'RE PROBABLY NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO, BUT SOMEBODY HAS GOT TO DO SOMETHING CRUSHED UP.
ANY OTHER CITIZEN COMMENTS? YES, SIR.
THAT CONCLUDES THE PARENTS BY CITIZENS.
[00:05:01]
UNDER NEW BUSINESS.[7a. Presentation of the 2021 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce Destination Marketing Organization Industry Metrics]
UH, WE HAVE A REPORT FROM THE HILTON HEAD ISLAND, BLUFFTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN THEIR ROLE AS DMO FOR THE TOWN ON INDUSTRY METRICS, UH, FOR THE YEAR 2021.UH, AFTER THIS REPORT, UH, WE ARE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO TOWN COUNCIL, UH, AS TO THE ACCESSIBILITY OF THE PERFORMANCE VERSUS THE METRICS.
AGAIN, MY NAME IS ARIANA BERNICE.
I'M WITH THE HILTON HEAD ISLAND, BLUFFTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE REPRESENTING, UM, THE ORGANIZATION TODAY AND EXPLAINING THE DMO METRICS FOR PORT FOR 2021.
SO EACH OF YOU HAVE RECEIVED THIS DOCUMENT AND, UM, I HOPE YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO GO THROUGH IT.
I'M HERE TO WALK THROUGH KIND OF THE HIGH LEVEL AND ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UM, FOR YOU AND I'LL GET THE POINTER AND SEE IF I CAN DO THIS.
SO AS A RECAP, WE HAVE OUR 13 METRICS IN FRONT OF US AND THOSE ARE IN OUR CONTRACT, BUT LET'S DIVE A LITTLE DEEPER INTO WHAT EACH ONE OF THOSE REQUIREMENTS ASKED OF US.
AND, UM, WHAT'S FIRST, WE WANT TO START WITH THE RESIDENT SATISFACTION SURVEY.
THAT SURVEY WAS IN MARKET FROM, UM, JUNE 14TH TO JUNE 25TH OF 21.
THERE WERE NEARLY, UM, 3000 RESPONDENTS, BUT I THINK MOST IMPORTANTLY, WHAT WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS THE OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY ENGAGE AND UNDERSTAND THE COMMUNITY, UM, AND THEIR, UH, RELATIONSHIP WITH TOURISM.
THIS IS OUR OPPORTUNITY TO DIVE DEEPER, TO BUILD A LASTING AND, UM, THRIVING RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR COMMUNITY REGARDING TOURISM.
AND THIS WAS OUR FIRST TOUCH BASE WITH THAT.
SO WE'LL HAVE A STRONG FOUNDATION.
UM, IMPORTANTLY, WHAT WERE THOSE FOUR PIECES THAT WE'RE GOING TO USE TO KIND OF DRIVE THAT, UM, OPPORTUNITY GOING FORWARD? AND SO WHILE WE LOOK QUICKLY AT THOSE FOUR, THERE'S THE DEEPER PRESENTATION, UM, WITHIN YOUR DOCUMENT.
SO WE'LL START HERE WITH THE FACT THAT THOUGH THEY KNOW, AND ARE KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT TOURISM AND ITS BENEFITS, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO EDUCATE, UM, AND FURTHER ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY WITH ALL THE BENEFITS THAT SURROUND TOURISM THAT WE AS COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UM, HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPERIENCE EVERY SINGLE DAY.
AND THEN WHILE WE, UM, WILL WORK HARD AND UNDERSTAND THE, THE RESIDENT, UM, OPPORTUNITY FOR EDUCATION.
WE ALSO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE ARE, UM, KIND OF WAVERING UNDERSTANDINGS OF OUR, I GUESS, ENTHUSIASM, RIGHT REGARDING TOURISM.
IT PROBABLY FLUCTUATES WITH TIME OF YEAR.
AND, UM, WE ALSO HAVE, UM, THE FEEDBACK THAT THE RESIDENTS FEEL PRIDE OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND.
SO I LOVE THAT SENSE OF PRIDE THAT WE CALL IT HOME CAMPAIGN THAT WE HAVE OUT THERE NOW REALLY RESONATES WITH THAT.
AND THEY OFFER HIGH QUALITY EXPERIENCES, DINING AND SHOPPING.
WE AS RESIDENTS GET TO EXPERIENCE IT EVERY SINGLE DAY BASED ON THE, ON THE FACT THAT WE ARE OUR NUMBER ONE ECONOMY IS TOURISM.
UM, AND WITHOUT THAT, WOULD WE BE HAVE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES EVERY SINGLE DAY TO SHOP AND EAT AT SOME OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY RESTAURANTS AND RETAIL SHOPS.
UM, AND WE KNOW THAT THEY CONSIDER THE RESIDENTS CONSIDER, WE CONSIDER HILTON DENIAL'S LOCAL ECONOMY SO IMPORTANT.
UM, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE COMMUNICATE HOW IT EBBS AND FLOWS.
AND, AND AS WE PREPARE FOR RESIDENTS TO COME IN FOR THAT SUMMERTIME FRAME, HOW DO WE DO THAT TO THE, OF OUR ABILITY? SO WITH ALL OF THIS INFORMATION, WHAT DO WE DO, RIGHT? AND THAT'S WHY IN THE MASTER PLAN THAT YOU'VE SEEN IN OUR MARKETING GMO ANNUAL PLAN, YOU'LL SEE THAT THERE'S A HEAVY EMPHASIS ON COMMUNITY.
THERE'S A HEAVY EMPHASIS ON OUR, ON OUR COMMUNITY CAMPAIGN, WHAT ALL BUBBLES INTO OUR CORNERSTONE.
AND SO THAT CORNERSTONE PIECE FOR US IS OUR LEADING EFFORT.
WHEN IT COMES TO MARKETING THE DESTINATION, WE'RE ENGAGING BOTH THE COMMUNITY, LEADING WITH COMMUNITY STORIES, THE HEARTBEAT OF THE COMMUNITY, AND, UM, ENSURING THAT THEY'RE EDUCATED AND HAVE IN THEIR HIP POCKET, THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE POWER OF TOURISM.
AND SO WE'RE EXCITED TO HAVE THAT FOUNDATIONAL PIECE IN PLACE IT'S BEING LED BY THE CORNERSTONE CAMPAIGN.
UM, AND WE'LL CONTINUE FORWARD ON AN ANNUAL BASIS WITH THAT TO BE FOLLOWED BY THE VISITOR SURVEY THAT WE DO ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.
AND THAT AGAIN IS IN MARKET FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.
WE SURVEY ON A ROLLING BASIS EVERY SINGLE MONTH AND BASED ON PEOPLE'S, UM, TRIP PREFERENCES ON WHEN THEY'RE GOING TO VISIT, WE'LL FOLLOW UP WITH THEM WITH AN EMAIL, UM, SURVEY ABOUT TWO WEEKS, UM, PRIOR TO WHEN THEY STATED THEY WERE GOING TO VISIT.
[00:10:01]
SO AS A ROLLING SCALE, WHAT DID WE HEAR FOR THEM FOR THE PAST YEAR, WE HAD ROUGHLY 2000, JUST OVER 2000 VISITOR RESPONDENTS, AND WE KIND OF BROKE IT INTO FOUR CATEGORIES FOR YOU.AND AGAIN, THIS ISN'T A DEEPER PIECE WITHIN YOUR BOOKLET, BUT WHY ARE THEY CHOOSING HILTON HEAD ISLAND? AND AGAIN, THIS IS KIND OF THAT INTERESTING TIMEFRAME, RIGHT? CAUSE WE WENT FROM 2019, WHICH WAS KIND OF OUR NORMAL EXPERIENCES AND PEOPLE UNDERSTANDING THE DESTINATION AS THEY ALWAYS HAVE.
THEN WE HIT 20, 20, AND THEN 2021 WAS COMING OUT.
AND WHAT DOES TOURISM LOOK LIKE AND HOW DID PEOPLE DIGEST AND INTERACT AND ENGAGE WITH OUR DESTINATION AND HOW WAS OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGING WITH VISITORS? SO THIS AGAIN IS SOME FEEDBACK BASED ON KIND OF THOSE LAST FEW YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, BUT WHAT WAS RESONATING FOR 21? SO THEY CHOSE HILTON HEAD ISLAND, THE VISITORS, BECAUSE THEY'D BEEN HERE BEFORE, BECAUSE WE'RE A BEACH, WE'RE AN ISLAND FOR BEACH DESTINATION, WHICH HAS WONDERFUL WORD OF MOUTH RECOMMENDATION.
WE'RE WITHIN DRIVING DISTANCE.
WE WERE SAFE, RIGHT? SO THAT PATH FORWARD CAMPAIGN, EVERYTHING WE DID AS A COMMUNITY TO ENSURE THAT NOT ONLY OUR COMMUNITY, OUR BUSINESSES, UM, OUR, OUR WORKFORCE WERE SAFE, BUT OUR VISITORS FELT SAFE AND THEY FELT COMFORTABLE COMING HERE.
SO THAT'S A HUGE, HUGE OPPORTUNITY FOR US.
AND ONE THAT REALLY, UM, PAID FOR IT FOR US AS WE KIND OF LED THE CHARGE FOR RECOVERY AND TOURISM AS A NATION FOR THE NATION AND OUT OF THAT, ALL THAT WERE SURVEYED 89, ALMOST 90% PLAN TO RETURN.
AND THAT'S, WE'VE ALWAYS HAD THAT REALLY STRONG CALL TO COME BACK TO THIS DESTINATION.
PEOPLE LOVE HILTON HEAD ISLAND, AND THEY FEEL PART OF THIS COMMUNITY.
IT'S PART OF THEIR DNA AND SOME, A FAMILY MEMORY THAT THEY'VE MADE AND CONTINUE TO MAKE.
SO THEIR BEHAVIORS, THEY ARE LOOKING FOR NATURAL BEAUTY, EASE OF ACCESS, QUALITY OF LODGING AND DINING AFFORDABILITY, DIVERSITY AND LODGING AND DINING, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THEY HAVE EASE OF GETTING AROUND THE ISLAND, BUT WHERE ARE THEY LOOKING WHEN THEY'RE LOOKING TO LAY THEIR HEAD, THAT LEADING THE CHARGES THAT VRVO PLATFORM, THE LOCAL VACATION RENTAL RENTAL MANAGEMENT COMPANIES, UH, AND THEN THE LOCAL RESORTS ONLINE BOOKING PLATFORMS, SUCH AS THE SEA PINES REWARD RESORT, PALMETTO DUNES.
THEY REALLY LIKED THAT OPPORTUNITY TO SEE WHAT THEIR, UM, OPTIONS ARE.
AND THEY DIVE RIGHT INTO, UM, FINDING THOSE HOME AND VILLA OPPORTUNITIES.
AND WHO'S LOOKING THE 3.8 AVERAGE GROUP SIZE.
AS WE KNOW, UM, AS WE WERE BUILT ON THIS OPPORTUNITY WHERE IT WAS A DRIVE TO THE DESTINATION OPPORTUNITY, WHICH IS GREAT.
UM, SO CAR STILL REMAINS, UM, A TOP FORM OF TRANSPORTATION WHEN THEY'RE STAYING IN A HOME IN VILLA IT'S ON AVERAGE 7.9 NIGHTS IN A HOTEL 5.5 AND THEN THE HOME AND VILLA CONTINUES TO BE THE MOST POPULAR CHOICE.
AND WE KNEW THAT JUST BASED ON OUR PORTFOLIO, RIGHT? SO REALLY GOOD FOUNDATIONAL PIECES.
AS WE CHART FORWARD TOGETHER IN THIS TOURISM EFFORT, HILTON HEAD ISLAND, LODGING PERFORMANCE, AS YOU SEE HERE, IT WAS ALL ARROWS UP IN TERMS OF YOUR OVER YEAR PERFORMANCE.
WE LOOK AT THAT TWO SOURCE REPORT, WHICH IS THAT LEFT COLUMN OR YOUR RIGHT COLUMN IF YOU'RE LOOKING FROM THE DIET.
UM, SO WE'RE UP IN REVENUE PER AVAILABLE ROOM 44.9% OCCUPANCY WAS UP 26.9%.
AND WE HAD, UM, OUR AVERAGE DAILY RATE AT 14.2%.
I REMEMBER LOOKING AT THAT, I CHOOSE THAT TO SOURCE REPORT IS KIND OF THE, UM, PIECE THAT THE COLUMN THAT WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT, CAUSE IT'S THE COMBINED HOME IN VILLA AND THE HOTEL REPORT TOGETHER GOING TO OF COURSE, YES, SIR.
I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT THE, THE ADR NUMBER, UM, WITH 2021 IS THREE 17 UP 8% AND YOU'RE IN 20, YEAH, 2020.
SO I JUST NEED A LITTLE HELP WITH THE FORMULA AS TO HOW WE GET UP IN THAT SITUATION.
IF THE ACTUAL NUMBER IS DIFFERENT.
CAN YOU REPEAT THE NUMBERS THE YEARS YOU'RE LOOKING AT, SIR? I'M SORRY.
THE 2020 NUMBER WAS $335 ON HOW MANY VELA, ONLY THE ADR AND WE SHOULD WANT 317 AS THE 2021 NUMBER.
RIGHT? SO THIS IS AN INTERESTING QUESTION AND I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLAIN THAT.
SO AS WE GO FORWARD THROUGH OUR OPPORTUNITY OF REPORTING, ALL NUMBERS ARE ACCURATE.
HOWEVER, THEY DO THE ORGANIZATION, IT WAS IN TOPIA DESTINED METRICS THAT IN THIS, FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS THAT WE REPORTED ON DID, UM, ALL OF OUR REPORTING FOR US THAT THIRD-PARTY.
AND, UM, WHEN WE REPORT IT AT THE TIME OF REPORTING, IT WAS ACCURATE AND THEN THEY RIGHT-SIDED THOSE NUMBERS OR ADJUSTED THEM BASED ON, UM, CLOSING OUT THEIR, THEIR NUMBERS FOR THE YEAR AND THEY ADJUSTED IT TO MAKE IT THE APP.
SO THERE WAS A SLIGHT ADJUSTMENT IN THOSE NUMBERS.
SO THE PERCENTAGE UP AND DOWN WILL WILL CHANGE.
BUT, UM, THE NUMBER THAT ARE SHOWING UP ON 21 AS UP 8% WAS ADJUSTED SLIGHTLY BASED ON SOME ADJUSTMENTS
[00:15:01]
THAT INTO THAT'S THE METRICS AND TOPIA DID ON THEIR SIDE.SO WE WILL PROVIDE THOSE NEW NUMBERS FOR YOU, BUT AT THE TIME OF REPORTING, THOSE WERE ACCURATE.
SO VISITOR SPENDING STUDIES ECONOMIC IMPACT WITH ALL OF OUR VISITORS HERE ON THE DESTINATION, WHAT WAS THE IMPACT THAT THEY BROUGHT FOR ALL OF SOUTHERN OR ALL OF BUFORD COUNTY, EXCUSE ME.
AND THAT WAS AN ECONOMIC IMPACT OF 2.8 BILLION, UM, IN TERMS OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND TOURISM IN 2021, UM, AS YOU CAN SEE THAT THAT NUMBER, UM, IS QUITE, IS SUBSTANTIALLY HIGHER THAN YEARS PRIOR.
BUT WHEN WE LOOK INTO THE REPORTING FOR, UM, 20, 20, 19, 20 18, THOSE WAR WITH NO SIGNIFICANT EVENTS THAT HAD HAPPENED IN TERMS OF WHETHER THAT BE A WEATHER EVENT OR SOME OTHER, UM, INITIATIVE THAT WOULD HAVE BROUGHT IN ADDITIONAL FUNDING.
AND SO WHEN WE HAD THE, UM, YOU KNOW, COVID-19 PANDEMIC, THAT WAS A GLOBAL PANDEMIC, WE DID RECEIVE ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THAT.
AND WITH THAT FUNDING, UM, WE RESULTED IN MORE MARKETING, MORE PEOPLE ARE HERE AND SO THE HIGHER IMPACT.
SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE NOTED THAT.
SO IF WE BREAK THAT DOWN FOR EVERY DOLLAR, THAT'S INVESTED THE RETURN FROM THE VISITOR COMING IN, AND THAT IMPACT WAS FOR EVERY DOLLAR THAT WE, AS A COMMUNITY, AS A DMO INVESTED INTO MARKETING WAS $1.
THE OUTPUT OF THAT WOULD BE 38, 30 $8 AND 1 CENTS AS THE RETURN.
SO THE RECEIPTS WE REALLY TALK ABOUT IN THIS, UM, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE TOWN WE WANTED TO REPORT ON IN FIVE YEARS, WHICH YOU'VE SEEN THIS, UM, REPORT FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS IN TERMS OF THE FIVE-YEAR AND THE FOUNDATION YEAR THAT YOU SEE THERE AS YOUR BASE YEAR OF 16, THIS JUST SHOWS THE COLLECTIONS, UM, ACROSS ALL OPPORTUNITIES.
SO BEACH PRESERVATION, HOSPITALITY, LOCAL ACCOMMODATION, AND STATE ACCOMMODATION TAX.
SO FOR THIS, UM, PRIOR YEAR, WE WERE UP 60% IN ACCOMMODATION AND HOSPITALITY TAX COMBINED.
SO NUMBER OF VISITORS, 3.1, 3 MILLION NUMBER OF VISITORS ON HILTON HEAD ISLAND, WE'VE BEEN AVERAGING AROUND 2.6 FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS.
THIS, THIS PAST YEAR FOR 21 WAS 3.1, 3 MILLION.
AND WE LIKE TO JUST PUT WHO WAS IT THAT WE WERE TARGETING THAT WE WENT AFTER AND WHO WE RECEIVED.
SO SHE SKEWS A BIT FEMALE, SHE'S AN AFFLUENT TRAVELER, THEIR UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE, OR HIGHER TWO TO FOUR TRIPS PER YEAR IN SEVEN NIGHTS ON AVERAGE LENGTH OF STAY.
SO WE, UM, USE OUR HILTON HIGHLAND.ORG WEBSITE AS OUR VIRTUAL FRONT DOOR.
AND OUR OPPORTUNITY IS TO CREATE HANDSHAKES TO OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES.
AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR WEBSITE VISITS, WE HAD OVER 3.4 MILLION TO THE WEBSITE IN 21, CONVERTING OR HANDSHAKES CREATIVE, OR 1.7 MILLION OUT TO OUR PARTNER BUSINESSES.
THE OTHER PIECE THAT WE'RE VERY PROUD OF AND THAT WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH OUR COMMUNITY ON IS THE MAIL FULFILLMENT.
AND THERE'S THE BOOK THAT TO YOUR LEFT, MY LEFT, YOUR RIGHT, WHICH IS THE, UM, OFFICIAL HILTON HEAD ISLAND VACATION PLANNER.
AND WE HAD OVER 68,000, UM, FULFILLED THROUGHOUT.
AND THAT COMES THROUGH THOSE THAT WALK IN THOSE THAT REQUEST IT VIA EMAIL TO BE MAILED TO THEM.
IT'S AT ALL OF OUR SOUTH CAROLINA WELCOME CENTERS TO AAA OFFICES.
IT'S TAKEN TO EVERY CONFERENCE THAT WE GO TO OR TRADE SHOW AT SENT TO OUR MEDIA POINTS OF CONTACT.
UM, WE LIKE TO KEEP THIS BOOK TOP OF MIND.
IT'S ALSO IN OUR HOTEL ROOMS WHEN PEOPLE, UM, ARE RESTING, THEY CAN SEE THE BEAUTIFUL BOOK THERE.
UM, AND THAT'S COMPLIMENTED ALSO BY THE GOLF GUIDE.
AND WE LIKE TO BRING THIS AGAIN TO YOUR ATTENTION BECAUSE IT'S NOT US SAYING THAT WE'RE NUMBER ONE, IT IS THE READERSHIPS AND, UM, THE COMMUNITY.
AND THE OUT-MARKET SAYING THAT WE'RE NOT, THIS IS JUST A SMALL HANDFUL OF THE ACCOLADES THAT WERE, UM, AWARDED TO THE DESTINATION.
CONDE NAST TRAVELER COMMENTS FROM MSN IS 25 MOST POPULAR BEACHES IN AMERICA.
AMERICA'S BEAUTIFUL SEASIDE TOWNS.
UM, AND AGAIN, COMING IN AS FROM FORBES, SOUTH CAROLINA'S HAS TO UP AND COMING FOOD AND DRINK DESTINATION.
SO AGAIN, PUTTING SOME, A DIFFERENT TAKE ON ACCOLADES THERE, AND I LOVE TO SEE THAT, BUT WHAT DOES TOURISM DO FOR THIS ECONOMY? WE OFTEN SAY, IT'S OUR NUMBER ONE ECONOMY, BUT HOW ARE WE SEEING THAT IN NUMBERS? AND SO WHEN YOU PUT THAT IN TERMS OF NUMBERS AND JOBS, IT GENERATED FROM HILTON HEAD ISLAND, TOURISM FOR BUFORD COUNTY, 36,919 JOBS.
THAT'S KIND OF, IT'S 34% OF JOBS WITHIN BUFORD COUNTY.
AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THAT, WE'RE THINKING FRONTLINE, FRONTLINE MEMBERS OF TOURISM, RIGHT? SO IT'S THE PERSON AT THE HOTEL OR AT THE RESTAURANT, BUT IT ALSO COULD BE THE
[00:20:01]
PERSON DRIVING IN THE LINENS FROM ANOTHER STATE OR ANOTHER COUNTY.IT COULD BE SOMEONE, UM, SECONDARY OR, YOU KNOW, THIRD IN LINE IN TERMS OF HOW IT TOUCHES TOURISM.
IT ISN'T ALWAYS JUST THE FRONTLINE PERSON TOUCHING TOURISM.
WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT IT COMPREHENSIVELY AND THAT, AND THERE IS A REQUEST FROM THE FRONT LINE THAT NEEDS A TOUCH POINT.
THAT IS 60, THAT ACCOUNTS FOR BEING TIED TO TOURISM, WE ARE PARTICIPATING AND WE ARE CONNECTING WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND WE DONE THAT IN 2021 WITH 70 PLUS IN-PERSON AND COMBINED VIRTUAL CHAMBER EVENTS.
AND WE DID OVER 50 RIBBON CUTTINGS AND GROUND BREAKING CEREMONIES, WHICH IS EXCITING, RIGHT? WE'RE BRINGING THAT OPPORTUNITY FORWARD.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ALL THE NEW BUSINESSES AND THE COMMERCE HAPPENING HERE, UM, LOCALLY, WHICH IS EXCITING, UM, TO BE ABLE TO, TO CELEBRATE THOSE WITH THE, WITH THE BUSINESSES AND THE COMMUNITY, CHARLIE CLARK AND HER TEAM ARE WORKING HARD TO ENSURE THAT OUR, UM, DESTINATION IS FRONT AND CENTER.
WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PLACES TO TRAVEL TO, UM, HER TEAM DOES A WONDERFUL JOB WITH OVER, UM, IN 21, 2,316 STORIES AND MENTIONS, AND THAT WAS IT.
AND THE DEEPER DIVE I WAS OBVIOUSLY IN FRONT OF YOU, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON HERE AND TAKE ANY ANSWERS, QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE.
THANK YOU, ARIE, UH, QUESTIONS, COMMENTS FROM COMMITTEE, BILL ARIANA, UH, FIRST, THANKS FOR THAT GREAT REPORT.
THE, UH, IF YOU LOOK AT THE AVERAGE, UH, TOTAL EXPENDITURE, AN INDIVIDUAL OR A FAMILY, UM, UH, SPENDS HERE, ARE WE ABLE TO TRACK WHERE THEY SPEND IT? UH, I KNOW OBVIOUSLY A HOTEL OR LODGING WOULD BE BIG FOOD WOULD BE BIG, UH, BUT IF I'M RUNNING A LITTLE BOAT TEAK OUT THERE, AM I, ARE WE ABLE TO CREATE EYE TRACKING? I WILL WORK WITH OUR, UM, COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON POINT OF CONTACT FOR THESE OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE SURE WE CAN BREAK FURTHER DOWN PAST A CATEGORY AND I'LL SEE HOW REFINED WE CAN GET WITH THE OPPORTUNITY.
I'LL MAKE THAT NOTE AND ASK THAT QUESTION BECAUSE IT JUST COULD BE SOME KIND OF A LITMUS TEST TO START TO SEE CHANGING TASTE, NO CHANGING TRENDS.
OTHER IF I MIGHT JUST, THE OTHER COMMENT IS, UH, WHEN YOU STARTED YOUR PRESENTATION, YOU, YOU SPENT, UH, I THINK INAPPROPRIATELY, SO TIME ON, UH, SHARING WHAT THE REACTION OF THE COMMUNITY IS TO THIS TOURISM ENGINE.
UM, I MAY HAVE MISSED IT, BUT I DIDN'T HEAR ANYTHING FROM AN EDUCATIONAL STANDPOINT THAT WE COULD SHARE WITH THE COMMUNITY, UH, IN TERMS OF WHAT POSITIVE IMPACT THIS INDUSTRY DOES HAVE, UH, ON THEIR TAXES.
THERE IS A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF WORK BEING DONE BASED ON THAT CORNERSTONE CAMPAIGN, UM, THAT WE TALK ABOUT IN OUR MARKETING PLAN.
AND, UM, WE ABSOLUTELY HAVE THOSE PIECES IN PLACE REGARDING EDUCATION, THE BENEFITS OF TOURISM.
UM, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO SHARE SOME OF THAT DETAIL WITH YOU, UM, AS WE GET CLOSER, BUT THERE ARE STRONG BENEFITS OF HAVING OUR NUMBER ONE ECONOMY, TOURISM.
SO WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT WE GET THAT DETAILED BACK TO YOU, BUT, UM, THERE HAS BEEN A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF MT OF EFFORT RE BEYOND, UM, YOU KNOW, EFFORTS OF, WE CALL IT HOME CAMPAIGN.
WE ARE MEETING REGULARLY WITH DIFFERENT GROUPS AROUND THE COMMUNITY TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE INFORMED OF THOSE DETAILS THAT, UM, SUCH AS THE BENEFITS OF TOURISM, BUT ALSO JUST HOW THE FUNDING IS GENERATED AND HOW IT FLOWS.
UM, SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO GET THAT INFORMATION OUT TO YOU JUST SO IT'S ALSO WITH YOU.
AND, UH, JUST ONE LAST QUESTION, ARE WE TRACKING THE AVERAGE, UH, INCOME OF THE PERSON OR FAMILY THAT COMES HERE SO WE CAN DO TRENDING? YES, SIR.
AND HOW IS IT TRENDING? WE ARE TARGETING AND THAT HUNDRED AND $50,000 HOUSEHOLD INCOME, AND WE ARE RIGHT ON PAR AND WE'RE DOING THAT WITH OUR SURVEYING.
UM, AND IT'S A PART OF THE QUESTION WITHIN THE SURVEYS THAT WE ASK, UM, IN THE VISITOR PROFILE STUDY THERE.
SO THAT IS, WE ARE PITTING ON TARGET.
WELL, THANK YOU VERY ANA FOR A NICE REPORT.
UM, THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS WE'VE BEEN FOCUSING
[00:25:01]
ON TRYING TO BRING IN THE HIGHER END TRAVELER, THE $150,000 OR GREATER, UH, FAMILY INCOME.IF I'M READING THE STATISTICS THAT I'VE SEEN IN THESE REPORTS CORRECTLY, ABOUT 25% OF THE TRAVELERS THAT COME HERE, FALL INTO THAT CATEGORY.
UM, I'M WONDERING WHAT WE HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY IN THE PAST YEAR, FROM IN THE PAST TO TRY TO DRAW THOSE, THAT TYPE OF FAMILY VISITOR HERE TO THE ISLAND.
AND THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLAIN IT.
SO OUR OPPORTUNITY HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO FOCUS ON THAT $150,000 HOUSEHOLD INCOME.
AND THEN WE DO THAT THROUGH OUR REFINED MESSAGING AND, UM, ENSURING THAT WE'RE TOUCHING ON DIFFERENT ASSETS THAT THEY MIGHT ENJOY, UM, STARTING WITH ACCOMMODATIONS FIRST AND FOREMOST, AND THEN GOING OVER TO EXCURSIONS OR EXPERIENCES.
AND THERE'S A WIDE RANGE OF THOSE.
UM, AS WE DEVELOP NEW TECHNOLOGY AND WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO UTILIZE THAT TECHNOLOGY, IT ALLOWS US TO BE EXTREMELY LASER-FOCUSED IN OUR EFFORT TO REACH THAT TARGET AUDIENCE, AND WE SEE THEM CONVERTING, RIGHT? SO IT'S NOT ONLY JUST BRINGING THEM IN THROUGH THE WEBSITE AND TURNING IT INTO A HANDSHAKE FOR OUR BUSINESSES, BUT WE'RE ALSO CONTINUING THAT CONVERSATION WITH THEM THROUGH SEVERAL DIFFERENT TOUCH POINTS, WHETHER WE'RE ENGAGING THEM WITH EMAIL OR SOCIAL MEDIA, UM, OR AN ON ISLAND EXPERIENCE, THAT THEY ARE GETTING THAT CONSISTENCY THERE.
SO TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS US THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION AND FIRST AND FOREMOST REFINE.
AND SO WE ENSURE THAT WE'RE GETTING INTO THAT TARGET AUDIENCE THAT WE'RE, UM, THAT IS THE MOST DESIRED.
IT SEEMS TO ME THAT, UH, PEOPLE THAT FIT INTO THAT CATEGORY HAVE PARTICULAR INTERESTS IN LIFE.
GENERALLY THEY SUBSCRIBE TO CERTAIN MAGAZINES, WHICH MAY NOT BE THE SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH LESS INCOME.
SO WHAT I'M GETTING AT HERE IS, IS THERE AN EFFORT TO TRY TO REACH THOSE PARTICULAR SOURCES ALSO OCCURS TO ME, UM, THE UNIVERSITIES, THE MAJOR UNIVERSITIES AND THEIR ALUMNI RELATIONS.
WHAT ARE WE DOING IN TERMS OF REACHING OUT TO THOSE SOURCES? ABSOLUTELY.
SO IN TERMS OF THE MEDIA THAT WE'RE PLACING, WE HAVE THE DIGITAL OPPORTUNITY, WHICH AGAIN, IS LASER FOCUSED INTO THE LITERALLY THE HOUSEHOLD THAT WE DESIRE WE CAN GET INTO THAT GRANULARITY OF PRECISION.
SECONDLY, IT IS HAVING A STRONG MIX OF MEDIA PLATFORMS, WHETHER THAT BE A DEPARTURES, YOU KNOW, HIGH-END AMERICAN EXPRESS CARDHOLDER, OR WE ARE, UM, TARGETING MESSAGING WITHIN A BROADER REACH OF MEDIA, WHETHER THAT BE TRAVEL AND LEISURE OR GARDENING GUN.
SO YOU NEED TO, UM, WE TARGET READERSHIP BASED ON CONTENT, BUT WE ALSO TARGET MEDIA BASED ON THEIR CONSUMER.
SO WE HAVE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES LAID OUT IN FRONT OF US AND WE, AND WE WORK WITH THOSE PARTNERS TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE GETTING TO THOSE.
WE ALSO WORK WITH OUR PARTNERS LOCALLY ON THEIR EVENTS TO ENSURE WHETHER IT BE AN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION, UM, OR A DIFFERENT FACET OF INTEGRATION OF, YOU KNOW, MAYBE IT IS A SORORITY OR FRATERNITY OR SOME OUTREACH IN THAT REGARD THAT WE'RE WORKING TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE THOSE TOUCH POINTS.
UM, AND THAT IS WHERE OUR, UM, WE'RE WORKING INTERNALLY TO REFINE THOSE AND HAVE THOSE CONTACTS.
AND SO WE'RE CONSTANTLY WORKING ON THOSE OPPORTUNITIES WHEN WE HAD A RECENT, UM, DERRIUS RUCKER INTERCOLLEGIATE EVENT HERE, WE WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH THAT PARTNER TO ENSURE THAT WE HAD THOSE OUTREACH OPPORTUNITIES TO ALUMNI, UM, PARTNERS.
UM, IN ADDITION, WE'VE WORKED ON OUR MEETINGS AND GROUPS SITES TO INVITE AND ENCOURAGE THOSE SORORITIES AND FRATERNITIES OR REUNION OPPORTUNITIES TO COME INTO THE DESTINATION TO, UM, CHOOSE US FOR THEIR, THEIR SPOT FOR GETTING BACK TOGETHER.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE CONTINUED REPORTING ON THAT.
UM, IN THE, IN THE RESIDENCE SURVEY, UM, I NOTICED ONE OF THE CONTINUING THEMES WAS OVERCROWDING, UM, AND TRAFFIC CONGESTION.
UM, THIS MAKES THE 2 78 CARTER PROJECT EVEN MORE IMPORTANT TO US, I THINK, BUT I'M INTERESTED IN, WHAT ARE YOU HEARING FROM OUR VISITORS ABOUT? IS THERE A PERCEPTION OF OVERCROWDING? IS THERE A PERCEPTION OF TRAFFIC INGESTION THAT IS TURNING PEOPLE AWAY? NOT IN OUR CURRENT, UM, EFFORTS, BUT WE'LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THAT AND ASK THOSE QUESTIONS AND BRING THOSE FORWARD AND, AND WORK WITH THEM REAL TIME ON THEM AS WE, AS WE SEE THEM.
UM, AND THANK YOU FOR, UH, GOOD, UH, PRESENTATION.
[00:30:01]
ARE YOU GOING TO TOUCH AT ALL ON THE, UH, IT'S IN OUR PACKAGE, IT SAYS A DRAFT, UH, DESTINATION WALKING PLAN.ARE YOU GOING TO TOUCH ON IT TODAY AT ALL OR NO, THE MARKETING PLAN? NO, SIR.
UM, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS IF YOU'D LIKE, BUT I AM, WELL, SOME OF MY QUESTIONS AS FAR AS THE REPORTING, I THINK TIE BACK TO THE NEW PLAN, SO, OKAY.
AND, UM, MOST OF THESE MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE QUESTIONS.
I JUST WANT TO, UH, MAKE SOME, MAKE SOME COMMENTS.
IF YOU, IF YOU'VE GOT ANSWERS, THAT'S FINE.
UM, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO FIRST SAY THAT I'M, I'M VERY HAPPY THAT WE ARE, UH, WITHIN A CONTRACT WITH THE CHAMBER.
AND, UH, MOST, MOST FOLKS, UM, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT PARTNERSHIPS, THERE'S A CONTRACT IN CASH.
I'LL ADD ANOTHER SEAT TO THAT.
SO I'M KIND OF VIEWING TODAY AS A WORKSHOP.
UM, AND I APPLAUD PRIOR COUNCILS TO GETTING US TO A POINT WHERE WE DO HAVE A CONTRACT IN PLACE.
I THINK THAT'S SO IMPORTANT IN ORDER FOR US TO HAVE SOME METRICS THAT WE CAN DIALOGUE ABOUT.
AND, UM, I ONLY ASK STAFF THAT MOVING FORWARD.
I KNOW WE'VE MENTIONED THE CONTRACT IN THE COVER MEMO, BUT, UM, THE COPY OF THE CONTRACT, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT.
PARTICULARLY BECAUSE OF THE TERMS, UH, AND WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL START TO SEE NEW MEMBERS OF COUNCIL COMING ON.
I KNOW THAT, UM, SOME MAY BE MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE THAN OTHERS AS FAR AS THE CONTRACT AND, AND WHERE WE STAND.
UM, THE, I GUESS ONE OF THE REASONS I ASKED ABOUT THE ADR, UM, WHICH IS A GOOD METRIC, UM, COUNCILMAN, UM, STANFORD KIND OF TOUCHED ON THIS A LITTLE BIT, YOU KNOW, SO MUCH OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH HERE.
UM, WE NEED HELP FROM OUR PARTNERS.
AND WHEN YOU START TALKING ABOUT CONGESTION AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT REALLY MEANS, NOT JUST TO THE RESIDENTS, BUT ALSO THE VISITORS HELPS US MAKE DECISIONS, AND WE'RE GONNA NEED YOUR HELP IN TERMS OF IF WE NEED TO SHIFT IN THAT.
UM, SO THAT ADR, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT HOME AND VILLA THE INCREASE, AND THEN I LOOK AT THE INCREASE OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF VISITORS AND TIE THAT BACK TO THE CONVERSATION WE'RE HAVING ABOUT SHORT TERM RENTALS, HE ON HILTON AT THE MOMENT, UM, I'M NOT QUITE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT THE SHIP SPEED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION THERE.
PARTICULARLY WHEN, UM, WE WANT TO ALWAYS, UM, INCREASE, UM, THOSE NUMBERS FROM A DOLLAR PERSPECTIVE, ABS.
UM, BUT I'M NOT QUITE SURE THAT, UH, IT'S JUST A CAPACITY THAT WE CHASING.
INSTEAD OF MORE AND MORE AND MORE VISITORS, MAYBE BE MORE AND MORE, MORE, UM, AS MR. STANFORD HAS POINTED OUT, UH, THE QUALITY OF THE VISIT IN TERMS OF WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO SPIN WHEN THEY'RE HERE.
AND ALSO, I'D ALSO LIKE TO THROW INTO THAT IS, UM, HILTON IS MORE THAN JUST BEACH IN GOLF, IN A PLACE TO VISIT, RIGHT.
ALSO THAT DATA, THERE'S A HUGE COMPONENT OF OUR ECONOMIC BASE, OUR TAX BASE THAT COMES FROM THOSE OF US THAT LIVE HERE, THOSE OF US THAT CHOOSE TO COME AND LIVE HERE.
AND I THINK, UH, YOU ALL ARE THE VOICE AS FAR AS, AS CONCERNED.
UH, IT WAS NOT PRETTY SHINY FOR SOMEONE TO PICK UP OUR CARPETS, A PLAN OR STRATEGIC PLAN.
BUT WHEN THEY LOOK AT STUFF THAT YOU ALL HAVE PUT OUT, I THINK IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE ATTRACTIVE.
SO, UM, GIVEN OFF THE, THE SENSE OF, YOU KNOW, BE AT A PLACE TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY, I THINK IS DEFINITELY IMPORTANT.
UH, THE $2.8 BILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT GAIN TO THAT.
UM, YOU KNOW, I'M REALLY CURIOUS IN THE METRIC OF HOW WE, HOW WE SAY THE DESERT, IMPROVING OUR QUALITY OF LIFE HERE ON HILTON HEAD.
AND, UM, I'M NOT SURE I CAN PULL THAT OUT OF THIS REPORT AT THE MOMENT, BUT IN THE FUTURE, I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE, THAT WE HAVE THAT, UM, COUNCILMAN HARKEN ASKED THE QUESTION ABOUT HOW THIS TRICKLES DOWN.
I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT ALSO.
AND PART OF OUR, UH, ATTRACTION HEALED HILTON HEAD IS OUR ARTS AND CULTURAL COMMUNITY.
AND I'M JUST CURIOUS AS TO HOW THOSE BUSINESSES ARE REALLY, UH, FLOURISHING BECAUSE OF ALL, UH, ENHANCEMENT OF THAT PARTICULAR AREA.
UM, ON PAGE 19, IT TALKS ABOUT AT 34% OF THE JOBS IN BUFORD COUNTY.
AND, UH, I THINK IT ALSO, UM, PICKS UP SOMEWHERE IN YOUR DRAFT MARKETING PLAN THAT WE HAVE THIS PUBLIC RELATIONS EFFORTS THAT WE'RE GOING THROUGH.
UM, THE QUALITY OF SERVICE HERE ON HILTON HEAD IS SO IMPORTANT.
UM, I'LL BE A LITTLE BIT BIASED HERE BECAUSE
[00:35:01]
I JUST GOT BACK FROM JAMAICA.AND, UH, WHEN YOU COMPARE HOW YOU TREATED OR HILTON HEAD VERSUS HOW YOU TREATED IN JAMAICA, THERE WAS NO COMPARISON.
UH, HILTON HEAD IS TOP OF LINE AND I THINK WE NEED TO STAY THAT WAY.
UM, BUT I THINK WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR LOCAL GROWN TALENT.
UM, A LOT OF FOLKS, UM, HAVE DECIDED TO STAY ON HILTON HEAD AND MAKE CAREERS ON HILTON HEAD BASED ON THE BRAND OF HILTON HEAD.
IF IT'S A REAL ESTATE AGENT, IF IT'S MANAGING A RESTAURANT, WHATEVER IT IS.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, AS A YOUNG ADULT, THEY MADE THE DECISION TO HERE.
I'M JUST WANTING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE STRENGTHEN THAT CONNECTION OVER TIME THROUGH YOUR, YOUR PUBLIC RELATIONS STRATEGIES.
I THINK THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.
UM, I HAD IN MY NOTES HERE TO ASK YOU ABOUT, UH, OUR RESOLUTION TO, UH, STAND UP A HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATE CORPORATION.
UH, BUT I'M NOT LOOKING FOR YOU TO ANSWER THAT.
I'M JUST SAYING THAT OUT LOUD IN RUMSON MR. MILES, AND I CAN HAVE THAT CHAT LEAD ON.
UM, IN THE LAST ONE, UM, I WOULD JUST SAY TO OUR PARTNERS IS, UM, I THINK THE METRICS THAT WERE PUT IN BEFORE US AT THE MOMENT ARE GREAT.
UH, BUT AS I GO THROUGH THAT DRAFT OF A MARKETING PLAN, UM, I THINK I'M INTERESTED, UM, IN LETTING THE COMMUNITY KNOW HOW THOSE STRATEGIES ARE TYING BACK TO THE HILTON HEADS, OUR PLAN STRATEGIES.
IT TALKS ABOUT BRANDING IN THERE.
I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GOING IN THE SAME DIRECTION, HOW WE TIE THE TWO TOGETHER, I THINK IS ULTIMATELY VERY IMPORTANT TO US.
UM, AND WHAT ARE THE METRICS WE CAN PUT BEHIND THE STRATEGIES, PARTICULARLY THOSE THAT ARE ON PAGE 49 OF, OF THAT, UH, MARKETING PLAN, UM, HOW WE REPORT BACK ON GOALS IN THIS ANNUAL REPORT, I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT.
UH, IT HELPS US, IT HELPS YOU ALL, UH, IN A GAME.
I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE IN A LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP HERE.
UM, JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO IMPROVE IT, UM, IS, IS, IS MY TAKEAWAY ON TODAY'S DISCUSSION.
I THINK I'D LIKE TO MAKE TWO COMMENTS AND BOTH COMMENTS PERTAIN TO, UH, THE EVOLUTION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ISLAND, VISITOR AND THE RESIDENT, AND THE ROLE THAT YOU IN YOUR ROLE AS GMO AND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE HAVE IN THAT EVOLUTION.
UH, ALMOST TWO YEARS AGO, UH, THE CHAMBER BROUGHT INTO ONE OF THEIR, UH, UH, TELECONFERENCES OR POWER HOUR, PETER GREENBERG, UH, A WELL-KNOWN EXPERT IN THE FIELD OF TOURISM AND VISITOR RELATIONSHIPS.
AND HE SAID, UH, IT'S ABOUT PROCESS, NOT PRODUCT.
UH, AND I THINK YOUR COMMENT AREA WAS A GOOD ONE.
UH, PEOPLE OBVIOUSLY FELT SAFE COMING TO HELP HIM HEAD ISLAND AND THOSE NUMBERS SUPPORT IT.
UH, AND I THINK THE COMMUNICATION THAT THE CHAMBER HAD THROUGH THE, UH, TELE TOWN HALLS AND THE POWER HOURS AND OTHER S UH, SIMILAR TO THAT WAS VERY, VERY EFFECTIVE IN DELIVERING THE MESSAGE, UH, TO THE COMMUNITY, BOTH RESIDENT NON-RESIDENT, UH, HOW IMPORTANT THE PROCESS ON HOW IMPORTANT PUBLIC SAFETY IS ON HILTON HEAD ISLAND.
AND I THINK YOUR NUMBERS, UH, SUPPORT THAT.
SO MY FIRST COMMENT IS YOUR LEADERSHIP ROLE DURING THE PANDEMIC STANDS TALL.
AND THE NUMBER OF SUPPORTIVE SECOND COMMENT, UH, IS THAT, UH, THE RESIDENTS SURVEY, UH, THAT YOU DID FOR THE FIRST TIME WAS MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE THAN I EVER ANTICIPATED.
THE NUMBER OF RESPONSES THAT YOU GOT WAS OFF THE CHART AND GIVES US ALL A VERY GOOD DATABASE FROM WHICH WE CAN WORK.
UH, AND THE FOUR INSIGHTS THAT CAME OUT OF THAT SURVEY, UH, ARE EXTREMELY CRITICAL.
AND I THINK AS YOU LED WITH YOUR PRESENTATION, UH, WITH THOSE FOUR INSIGHTS, I THINK WE'VE GOT TO KEEP THOSE FRONT OF MIND AND YOU VERY EFFECTIVELY, UH, TIED YOUR DMO CORNERSTONE PLAN TO THREE OF THOSE FOUR.
UH, AND I THINK THAT'S ALSO APPROPRIATE.
AND THAT REPRESENTS REALLY A CHANGE FROM THE RELATIONSHIP THAT WE HAD AS A TOWN AND VENDOR FIVE YEARS AGO.
I THINK IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO BE EFFECTIVE.
UH, AND I THINK THOSE ARE REALLY GOOD PRIORITIES AND, UH, QUESTIONS OR COMMENT
[00:40:01]
FROM THE PUBLIC.I ALSO HAVE COMMENTS ON THE TOWN ACCOUNTING WITH YOUR TEXT, TEXT STUFF, AND I'LL SPEAK ON THAT LATER.
MOST OF YOU, MY AGE, UH, HAVE NO CLUE WHAT'S GOING ON.
YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT DMO LAWS, TECHNOLOGY, AND HOW WE'RE ALL BEING SCAMMED BY THIS CHAMBER.
WHAT YOU DO UNDERSTAND IS YOUR FAILURE TO DEMAND THE FOLLOWING IN FULL TRANSPARENCY.
YOU OUGHT TO BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF, ESPECIALLY A BANKER.
I'M GLAD I DIDN'T BANK WITH YOU.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU UNDERSTAND FULL ACCOUNTING, FULLY TAX ACCOUNTING FIRM, BILL MILES REQUIRES INVOICES AND MATCH AND MATCHING RECEIPTS.
HE NEEDS TO SHOW US WHERE HE'S DEALING WITH ALL THIS EIGHT TAX MONEY, ALL THIS MILLIONS THAT YOU PEOPLE JUST KEEP ON, HANDING HIM WITH NO OVERSIGHT.
YOU JUST HAND THEM THE MONEY AND YOU JUST SIT HERE AND JUSTIFY IT.
HOW HAS OVER 1,000,008 TAX FUNDS BEING USED IN CANADA AND STILL GO INTO CANADA AND YOU PEOPLE JUST ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN.
JUST LET IT ALLOW THIS MONEY TO LEAVE OUR COUNTRY, NOT EVEN SUPPORTING LOCAL BUSINESSES.
I MEAN, IT'S JUST, YOU JUST COMPLETELY IGNORED IT.
AND HOW DO YOU ALLOW THIS CHAMBER TO CLAIM THEY OWN THIS APP AND THIS WEBSITE VERSUS THE TOWN, THE TOWN TAXPAYER OWNS THIS WEBSITE, HOW MUCH ADVERTISING IS BEING SOLD ON THIS WEBSITE IS BEING DEVELOPED IN CANADA BY THESE CROPS, RAY BILL AND BILL MILES.
IT DOESN'T GET ANY MORE CROOKED THAN THESE GUYS.
HOW DO YOU DO THIS? HOW DO YOU THE COMMITTEE? NO, NO.
YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO DRESS WHO I WANT TO DRESS.
I'M GOING TO DRESS WHO I WANT.
THERE'S NO RULE THAT SAYS I CAN'T TALK TO THE PUBLIC.
THIS IS, THIS IS NOT GOOD RESTAURANT CLINIC.
SO PLEASE JUST GIVE ME RESPECT AND JUST SIT THERE AND LISTEN TO WHAT I HAVE TO SAY.
NO, I'M NOT GOING TO LISTEN TO YOUR RULES.
NO, I'M GOING TO DRESS WHO I WANT.
NOW YOU, YOU WANT TO SIT HERE AND DEBATE THIS FOR, ARE YOU GOING TO LET ME FINISH? YOU DON'T THINK THE POLICE ARE GONNA REMOVE ME BY POLICE FORCE D YOU DON'T THINK HE'S GOING TO ACTUALLY DO THAT.
HE'S NOT, HE'S NOT THAT STUPID.
IS THIS THE WAY YOU WANT TO USE YOUR TIME? OH, THIS IS THE WAY I'M GOING TO SPEAK.
AND I'M GOING TO SPEAK THE TRUTH.
AND I'M GOING TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU NEED TO DO, BECAUSE YOUR CORRUPTION, YOUR LIES AND YOUR FRAUD IS OVER.
IT'S OVER HOW MUCH ADVERTISING IS BEING SOLD ON THE APP, APPLE, THE WEBSITE BY THESE TWO CRIMINALS.
HOW MUCH, WHERE IS IT? HAVE YOU SEEN THAT MONEY? LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING.
THE IRS HAS ALREADY STATED THAT BILL, THAT BILL MILES, RAY DEAL, WHO WAS LAUNDERING THIS MONEY AND COMMINGLING THIS MONEY WITH THE PRIVATE PROFITS AND THE TAX MONIES WE ALREADY KNOW AHEAD.
HOW DO YOU THINK BILL MILES MAKES 500,000? WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HE'S MAKING.
WE DON'T HAVE MUCH HE'S STEALING.
WE KNOW WHEN THE IRS FORM NINE 90 GET SHOWS AND MAKING 350,000 A YEAR.
MY GOD, THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF THE GOVERNOR OF SOUTH CAROLINA HAS ONLY MAKES 104,000.
WE DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH HE'S GOT OUT THERE STEALING BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T SEEN THE INVOICES AND THE RECEIPTS AND THE ACCOUNTING, THE REST OF THIS STUFF YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT.
AND THIS FRAUDULENT PRESENTATION BY AREA AND PER NIECE IS JUST RIDICULOUS.
IT'S JUST NOTHING BUT SMOKE AND MIRRORS THE STEAL MONEY.
AND Y'ALL GO, Y'ALL HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT.
I THINK ALISON UNDERSTANDS THAT QUITE FRANKLY, THE ONLY ONE OUT OF ALL OF YOU, I THINK ALEX UNDERSTANDS IS.
SO THE FACT IS THIS DMO NONPROFIT 5 0 1 DASSI SIX CHAMBER CHA IS IN VIOLATION OF IRX
UBIT STANDS FOR UNRELATED BUSINESS INCOME TAX.
WHEN YOU SELL MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON A WEBSITE AND POCKET THAT MONEY TO PAY $500,000 PAY PACKAGES, SALARIES, WORLD, TRAVEL, ENTERTAINMENT, IT GOES ON AND ON AND ON.
YOU HAVE TO PAY TAX ON THAT MONEY AND YOU SHOULDN'T BE IN THAT BUSINESS.
A NONPROFIT, THE TAX CODES ARE VERY SPECIFIC.
A NONPROFIT SHOULD NOT BE IN ANY BUSINESS THAT'S CARRIED ON BY A FOR-PROFIT COMPANY.
AND THERE'S A REASON FOR THAT BECAUSE FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES, THE ISLAND PACKET, OTHER MEDIAS PAY TAXES, THEY'RE TAXPAYING COMPANIES.
HE'S NOT PAYING ANY TAXES THAT HE'S IN VIOLATION.
I IMAGINED THAT RAY DEAL AND BILL MILES ONCE INVESTIGATED, AND THIS COUNCIL THAT MANY OF YOU ARE GOING TO BE ARRESTED.
[00:45:07]
IF THERE IS NONE, I'LL BRING HIM BACK TO THE DIAZ.WE ARE REQUIRED TO REVIEW THE METRICS WHICH WE HAVE DONE INDIVIDUALLY AND COLLECTIVELY, UH, AND PASS ON WHETHER THE PERFORMANCE FOR 2021 IS ACCEPTABLE.
AS WE HAVE DONE IN THE PAST, I WOULD ENTERTAIN A MOTION PERTAINING TO THE 2021 METRICS IT'S CHAIRMAN.
I WOULD MOVE THAT THE COMMITTEE, EXCEPT THE METRICS REPORT AS PRESENTED BY THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AS OUR DMO AS ACCEPTABLE.
IS THERE A SECOND, SECOND, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION KRISTA, PLEASE CALL THE ROLE.
CERTAINLY SERVED MR. BROWN SUPPORT.
MR. STANFORD, MR. LENNON'S MOTION CARRIES UNANIMOUSLY.
[7b. Consideration of a Resolution Authorizing the Implementation of a Home Safety and Repair Program Including the Execution of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Lowcountry Council of Governments to Handle Income Certification]
SEVEN, BE CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A HOME SAFE CARE PROGRAM, INCLUDING THE EXECUTION OF A MEMO OF UNDERSTANDING WITH THE LOW COUNTRY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS TO HANDLE INCOME CERTIFICATION, MR. SEAN COLON.MR. CHAIRMAN COMMITTEE MEMBERS, MY PLEASURE BE IN FRONT OF YOU THIS MORNING.
UM, AND JUST A MOMENT I'M GOING TO, UH, PRESENT TO YOU A HOME SAFETY AND REPAIR PROGRAM.
UH, BUT I WANT TO REMIND THE COMMITTEE, UM, THE, THE CROWD HERE AND THOSE WATCHING THAT THIS IS THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PREVIOUS ACTION THAT THE, THAT THE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL AND COUNCIL AUTHORIZED.
UH, WE RECEIVED SOME ARPA MONEY, UM, AS RELATED TO THE PANDEMIC.
AND, UM, WE'VE HAPPILY USED A CATEGORY.
ONE ADDRESS, NEGATIVE ECONOMIC IMPACTS CAUSED BY THE PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY IN A DISTRIBUTION TO COMMUNITY FOUNDATION.
UH, THEY PRESENTED TO YOU THEIR FIRST ROUND OF GRANT AWARDS, AND I THINK THEY'RE ON YOUR AGENDA FOR NEXT MONTH TO PRESENT.
UM, I THINK THEY'VE, THEY WILL HAVE DISTRIBUTED ALL BUT $35 OF THE 500,000 PROGRAM FOR THIS YEAR.
AND A REMINDER THAT COUNCIL AUTHORIZED ANOTHER 500,000 IN FISCAL 23 AND CATEGORY TWO, I REPLACED LOSS SECTOR, UH, REVENUE AND TARGET FUNDS.
UH, ONE PROGRAM THAT WAS TARGETED FOR EXECUTION WAS $400,000 TO A HOME REPAIR, UH, STRUCTURAL SAFETY, UH, REMOVAL OF UNSAFE AND UNINHABITED STRUCTURES PROGRAM WITH 200,000 PROGRAM FOR FISCAL 22, UM, AND ANOTHER 200,000, UH, PROGRAM FOR FISCAL 23.
UH, THAT INFORMATION WAS IN YOUR MEMO IN YOUR PACKET, BUT I WANTED TO COVER THAT.
UM, WHAT I'M GOING TO WALK THROUGH TODAY IS THE HOME SAFETY AND REPAIR PROGRAM.
UH, THE, THE PARTNERSHIP THAT WE ARE RECOMMENDING THROUGH AN M A MOU WITH, UH, LOWCOUNTRY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, UM, FOR IT COMES CERTIFICATION, BUT HERE'S WHAT I'M GONNA COVER.
THE RECOMMENDATION THAT WE'LL ASK OF YOU TO COUNSEL, UH, WE'LL COVER THE PROGRAM POLICY STATEMENT.
THE ELEMENTS COVERED ARE OUTLINED IN THIS PROGRAM, UH, THE LIMITATIONS, AS WELL AS QUALIFICATIONS, UH, THE INCOME CERTIFICATION, I MEANT YOU MENTIONED, UM, UH, A LIST OF THE APP THAT REQUIRED APPLICANT FORMS AND DOCUMENTS, AND WE TRY TO INCLUDE, UM, ALL OF THEM IN YOUR PACKET.
THERE ARE MANY ATTACHMENTS, AND YOU'RE IN THE PACKET THAT WENT OUT FOR THIS, FOR THIS MEETING, UM, WE'LL COVER PROGRAM EXECUTION, HOW IT WORKS, UM, THE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY, AND THEN NEXT STEPS.
IT'S AN AWFUL LOT OF WORDS HERE.
UH, IN ESSENCE, WHAT WE'RE ASKING THE FINANCE ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE TO DO IS RECOMMEND THAT TOWN COUNCIL AUTHORIZE, UH, THROUGH RESOLUTION, THE EXECUTION, UH, OF THIS PROGRAM, INCLUDING THE MOU WITH THE LOW COUNTRY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, TO DO THE, UM, INCOME CERTIFICATION, WHICH HAS REQUIRED, UH, TO MEET ELIGIBILITY, UH, FOR THE, FOR THE PROGRAM ELEMENTS, UH, THE, THE POLICY STATEMENT, UM, AND AGAIN, THIS, UH, WE'VE CREATED A PROGRAM POLICY DOCUMENT.
AND SO IT HAS, I'M GOING TO WALK THROUGH BASICALLY THE ELEMENTS.
AND AGAIN, THAT WAS IN YOUR PACKET, UM, THAT THE POLICY
[00:50:01]
STATEMENT IS TO HAVE HOME SAFETY AND REPAIR PROGRAM ASSIST LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS, UM, WOULD PROPERTY REPAIRS AND IMPROVEMENTS TO INCREASE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE.THE QUALITY OF THE HOUSING STOCK, UH, CREATE A SAFER, MORE VIBRANT COMMUNITY, UM, AND RETAIN, UH, CHARACTER AND, AND OPTIONS FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
UM, AND WE HEARD THIS AN AWFUL LOT IN OUR, UM, OUR WORK WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING, THE HOUSING STRATEGIC PLAN ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE TO PROTECT THE EXISTING HOUSING STOCK.
UM, JUST AS IMPORTANT AS BUILDING A LOT OF NEW, RIGHT.
LET'S, LET'S LIKE RETAINING EMPLOYEES VERSUS RECRUITING NEW LET'S RETAIN THE GOOD ONES THAT WE HAVE.
SO THE PROGRAM ELEMENTS, UM, OUTLINED AS PART OF THIS, UM, THIS INITIATIVE ARE, UM, THEY COVER THREE MAIN COMPONENTS.
ONE IS HOME REPAIR, UM, REPAIRS INSIDE, INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF HOMES COULD BE A ROOF REPAIRS.
IT COULD BE, UH, REPAIRS TO THE FLOOR.
IT COULD BE BROKEN WINDOWS, UM, BUT, BUT ANY REPAIR THAT'S NEEDED TO KEEP THE HOME SAFE AND DRY, UM, AND TO IMPROVE HABITATION.
UH, THE SECOND ELEMENT IS ABATEMENT OR DEMOLITION OF UNINHABITED UNSAFE STRUCTURES.
AND WE HAVE, WE HAVE A FEW OF THOSE ON THE ISLAND, UM, AND IT PROVIDES A MECHANISM FOR, UH, FOR PROPERTY OWNERS TO, UH, BE ABLE TO REMOVE THOSE, UM, SORT OF ONSITE LANE, UNSAFE STRUCTURES AND A FUNDING MECHANISM THAT ALLOWS THEM TO DO SO.
AND THEN THE THIRD ELEMENT IS TO ALLOW FOR TRIMMING OF TREES THAT POSE A HAZARD TO A, TO A RESIDENCE OR TO A STRUCTURE.
UM, SO IT CAN'T BE A TREE KIND OF ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE, OF THE LOT.
AND SOMEONE WANTS SOME LIMBS TAKEN DOWN, BUT IF THEY POSE A HAZARD TO THE STRUCTURE, UH, THAT COULD CREATE PROBLEMS LATER WITH, UH, ROOF DAMAGE OR, OR STRUCTURAL DAMAGE, UM, THAT THAT WOULD BE AN ELIGIBLE APPLICATION, UH, APPLICATION IN THE PROGRAM.
UM, AND THEN ONE FINAL THING, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY A PROGRAM ELEMENT, BUT WE WILL, UM, UH, WAIVE ALL APPLICATION AND PERMIT PERMIT FEES RELATED TO THIS PROGRAM, UH, GOING FORWARD, UH, THE TARGET FOR, UM, AREA MEDIAN INCOME IS 60% THAT, YOU KNOW, THE PROGRAM ISN'T, UM, ISN'T ONE OF CONVENIENCE, IT'S ONE OF NEED.
AND SO WE'RE TARGETING, UM, UH, LOWER INCOME, UM, OWNERS, UH, TO ALLOW THEM, UH, THAT THE ACCESS TO THE PROGRAM.
UM, AND SO 80, 60% IS THE TARGET AMI FOR THE PROGRAM.
THEY'RE ALSO, UM, LIMITS ON THE AMOUNT OF AN AWARD, UH, PER APPLICANT PER YEAR.
UM, IT'S LIMITED TO 15,000 TOTAL PER APPLICANT PER YEAR.
UM, YOU COULD HAVE A $5,000 ROOF REPAIR, OR YOU COULD HAVE A $2,000 TREE TRIMMING.
UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THE BALANCE FOR, IF YOU HAD AN ABANDONED STRUCTURE ALSO ON THE PROPERTY, YOU COULD APPLY FOR ALL THREE, BUT YOU'D BE CAPPED AT 15,000 AND THE TIME MANAGER DOES HAVE DISCRETION IF THERE'S AN EMERGENT NEED, UM, THAT WOULD REQUIRE EXCEEDING THIS LIMIT.
UM, AND SO STAFF WOULD PRESENT THAT THE TIME MANAGER FOR CONSIDERATION, UM, AND HE HAS THE AUTHORITY TO, UM, UH, TO OVERRIDE THE LIMIT, SO TO SPEAK M C INCOME CERTIFICATION WE'VE USED LOWCOCK IN THE PAST.
COMMUNITIES HAVE DONE THIS AS WELL.
UH, WE HAD TALKED ABOUT INCOME CERTIFICATIONS THROUGH LOWCOCK, UM, AS PART OF OUR, UM, IN DISCUSSIONS RELATED TO WORKFORCE HOUSING.
UM, SO THE APPLICATION, UH, COMES IN DIRECTLY, UM, THROUGH LOWCOCK, UH, THEY, THEY PROVIDE A CERTIFICATION OF WHETHER OR NOT THAT THAT APPLICANT MEETS THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, UM, AT THE 60% AMI LEVEL, OR THEY PROVIDE THAT CERTIFICATION, UH, BACK TO THE TOWN, AND THEN WE CAN EXECUTE, UM, THROUGH, THROUGH THE PROCESS.
THEY CAN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT STAGE.
I WOULD BE GIVING YOU SOME EXAMPLES OF OPTIONS THAT AN APPLICANT HAS TO PROVIDE, UH, THEIR INCOME TO LOW COG.
UM, I DON'T WANT TO READ THEM, BUT THERE ARE SOME OPTIONS THERE THAT, UH, AND THESE ARE STANDARD.
UM, AGAIN, SOME OF OUR COMMUNITIES USE LOW CONFERENCE, THE SAME, SAME PURPOSE REQUIRED FORMS AND DOCUMENTATIONS.
UM, WE'LL TRY TO MAKE THIS AS EASY AS POSSIBLE.
UM, BUT WE DO HAVE AN APPLICATION.
IT WAS INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET.
UM, YOU NEED AN ADEQUATE PROOF OF AN OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN THE PROPERTY, UM, INCOME DOCUMENTATION THROUGH LOWCOCK, AND THEN WE'LL NEED A RIGHT OF ENTRY, WHICH ALLOWS US TO GO, UM, ON THE PROPERTY, UH, ONE TO ASSESS THE, AND CERTIFY THAT THE REPAIRS NEEDED, AND THEN TO COORDINATE WITH CONTRACTORS TO EXECUTE THE WORK, UM, AND IT WILL BE INSPECTED.
AND, AND, UM, AND FINALIZED BEFORE PAYMENT IS ISSUED, UM, PROGRAM EXECUTION.
I'LL TRY TO WALK YOU THROUGH, UM, KIND OF THE BASIC
[00:55:01]
STEPS, BUT AN APPLICATION SUBMITTED TO THE TOWN.UM, THE LOW, THE INCOME CERTIFICATION PAPERWORK IS SUBMITTED TO LOWCOUNTRY COUNCIL, THE GOVERNMENTS, UM, IF THEY MEET THE PRO PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS AND IT MOVES ON TO THE NEXT STEPS, UH, TOWN STAFF WILL PERFORM A SITE VISIT AND THEY'LL VERIFY THE SAFETY CONCERNS OF THE APPLICANT.
UM, TOWN STAFF WILL THEN SECURE THREE BIDS FOR THE WORK CONSISTENT WITH OUR PROCUREMENT, UH, REQUIREMENTS.
UM, THE TOWN AWARDS, A CONTRACT AND EXECUTER EXECUTES A RIGHT OF ENTRY.
WE'LL CONTINUE TO COORDINATE WITH THE PROPERTY OWNER, UH, FOR THE TIMING AND EXECUTION OF THE WORK.
UH, BUT WE'LL MONITOR THE WORK AND PAY THE INVOICES.
ONCE THE WORK IS COMPLETE, YOU CURRENTLY HAVE A CAPACITY AND STAFF TO DO ALL THAT.
NOW, IF THIS GOES BEYOND A COUPLE OF YEAR PROGRAM OR THE PROGRAM GROWS, WE MAY NEED TO LOOK AT THAT IN THE FUTURE.
UM, BUT BASED ON THE 200,000 PER YEAR, UM, YES, YES, SIR.
I BELIEVE RIGHT NOW WE CAN HANDLE IT WITH EXISTING STAFF.
SO IF APPROVED WILL ALSO EXECUTE A COMMUNICATION STRATEGY, UM, UH, PROVIDED THIS, UH, PRESENTATION AND SUPPORT MATERIAL, UH, TO OUR COMMUNICATION DIRECTOR.
UM, BUT WE WOULD EXECUTE, PRESS RELEASE MEDIA POSTS, UH, HAVE ENGLISH AND SPANISH TRANSLATION FOR THE COLLATERAL MATERIAL AND APPLICATION.
WE'LL POST THIS TO THE TOWN'S WEBSITE.
UM, WE WE'VE TALKED TO THE PSD AND I WANT TO THANK JAMIE LABU, WHO'S MOVED ON TO, TO CLEARWATER, BUT SHE DID A LOT OF LEG WORK AND COORDINATING WITH OUR, UM, PARTNERSHIP ORGANIZATIONS, BUT PSDS, UM, UM, GIVING US SOME INDICATION THAT THEY WOULD HELP US SEND OUT SOME INFORMATION, UH, WITH OUR NEWSLETTER AND BILLS.
UM, AND THEN DEEP, WELL ALSO AS A BIGGER PARTNER ON THE NEXT PROGRAM.
UM, BUT AGAIN, A GOOD PARTNER, UH, TO HELP WITH EXECUTION AND COMMUNICATION, UH, FOR THIS PROGRAM.
SO NEXT STEPS, IF THERE'S A POSITIVE, A RECOMMENDATION OUT OF THE FNA COMMITTEE TODAY, I BELIEVE YOU'LL HAVE A BRIEF LETTER TO COUNSEL AND THEN WE WILL BRING THIS RESOLUTION, UM, AND, UM, FORWARD TO COUNCIL ON THE MAY 3RD DATE, UNLESS OTHERWISE ADVISED, BUT THAT'S, UH, THAT'S AN, THOSE ARE THE NEXT STEPS, UM, AND THAT WILL ALSO DEVELOP, UM, EXECUTE THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING AND A COMMUNICATION STRATEGY ONCE COUNCIL, UH, IF THEY'RE SO INCLINED APPROVE THE PROGRAM.
SO I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE OR OTHERS, UM, ON THIS PART OF IT.
AND, UH, OKAY, THANK YOU, COMMITTEE COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FOR SEAN.
SO, UH, THANK YOU, SEAN, LET ME CREATE A POTENTIAL SITUATION.
A LAND OWNER, UH, OR BUILDING OWNER, UH, APPLIES FOR, UM, TO THIS PROGRAM.
UH, THE STRUCTURE IS IN A RENTAL SITUATION WITH SAY A FAMILY OF THREE OR FOUR.
AND, UH, UPON ANALYSIS OF THE STRUCTURE, IT'S DETERMINED TO BE UNSAFE IN TERMS OF TOWN CODE AND FRANKLY NOT WORTH INVESTING IN, BUT RATHER REMOVAL.
UH, WHAT, WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT CHAIN? WHAT COULD HAPPEN IN THAT CHAIN OF EVENTS? OBVIOUSLY THE FAMILY COULD BE DISLODGED AND DOES THIS PROGRAM OFFER SOME KIND OF A PARACHUTE FOR THAT? SO, UM, I'LL ANSWER, I GUESS THE TWO PARTS OF THAT QUESTION, YOU KNOW, FIRST IT'S A VOLUNTARY PROGRAM.
UM, AND SO AN OWNER, UM, WOULD HAVE TO BE A VOLUNTEER APPLICANT.
UM, I WOULD HOPE THAT AN OWNER WOULD KNOW THE CONDITION OF THEIR, OF THEIR PROPERTY AND THE EXTENT OF WHICH HIS PROGRAM COULD PROVIDE SOME RELIEF.
UM, IF, UM, IF OUR, OUR BUILDING OFFICIAL MAKES THE DETERMINATION THAT THERE'S UNSAFE CONDITIONS AS A RESULT OF THIS, UM, THERE ARE OPTIONS FOR MITIGATION.
UM, I DON'T KNOW, UH, I DON'T THINK THAT WOULD BE AN EMERGENT ISSUE, BUT WE, YOU KNOW, WE CERTAINLY COULD TALK ABOUT THAT.
UM, WE ARE NOT PROACTIVELY LOOKING FOR CODE VIOLATIONS, UM, BUT IF WE W IF WE COME ACROSS THEM, THEN WE NEED TO TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT THE OCCUPANTS ARE LIVING IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT.
UM, AND SO THERE ARE, THERE ARE OPTIONS THROUGH THE BUILDING CODE AND THE CONSTRUCTION BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADJUSTMENTS TO, TO PROVIDE SOME MITIGATION STRATEGIES, UM, TO HELP OUT WITH THAT SITUATION.
SO THERE ARE THERE NOT THROUGH THIS PROGRAM NECESSARILY, UNLESS THE REPAIRS COULD BE DONE FOR $15,000 OR SOMEWHERE VERY CLOSE TO THAT NUMBER.
UH, BUT THERE ARE OTHER PROVISIONS IN THE CODE THAT ALLOW US TO IDENTIFY MITIGATION OPTIONS THROUGH THAT, THE OTHER MECHANISM.
[01:00:03]
AND I, AND I THINK WE HAD REFERENCED THE SECTION OF THE BUILDING CODE AND PROVIDED THAT IN YOUR PACKET AS WELL.UM, I'M GONNA PIGGYBACK A LITTLE BIT ON COUNCILMAN HARKIN'S QUESTION.
UM, IT TALKS ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S A VIOLATION, UM, AND IT GETS TO THAT POINT OF DETERMINATION FOR REMOVAL OF A STRUCTURE, UM, THAT THERE WAS APPEAL PROCESS, AND IT WOULD BE A BOARD THAT WOULD HEAR THAT, WHICH BOARD IS THAT IT'S THAT CONSTRUCTION BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADJUSTMENTS.
THEY HEAR, THEY HEAR ALL APPEALS RELATED TO A DETERMINATION OF UNSAFE, UM, UH, STRUCTURES.
AND WE'VE HAD THAT OCCUR A FEW TIMES.
UM, I THINK, I THINK WHAT YOU'VE PUT TOGETHER HERE IS GREAT, SEAN.
UM, IF YOU COULD GO BACK TO THE, UH, COMMUNICATION STRATEGY, I'VE GOT A, GOT A FEW COMMENTS ON THAT.
UM, I'M GONNA START WITH THE, UH, THE PSDS, UH, INCLUDING INFORMATION IN THE NEWSLETTER AND THE BILLS.
AND I GUESS I'VE HAD THIS ARGUMENT WITH PSD OVER THE YEARS WHEN IT CAME TO SEWER CONNECTIONS, WHICH WE'LL TALK ABOUT NEXT, BUT IF YOU HAVE 60% OF AMI, BILL IS PROBABLY THE LAST THING THAT YOU WANT TO SEE.
AM I GOING TO OPEN? UH, SO TO ME, TH THIS COMMUNICATION STRATEGY NEEDS TO INCLUDE MORE OF A, ON THE GROUND EFFORT, SO TO SPEAK, UM, HOW WE CAN CONTINUE TO WORK ON HAVING NEIGHBORHOOD AMBASSADORS.
I THINK THAT WILL HELP US ALONG THE WAY.
ONE THOUGHT THAT I HAD, UM, I KNOW A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION, UM, FOLKS ARE EITHER, UH, ASKED BY HOMEOWNERS OR OTHER CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS TO HELP OUT WITH REPAIRS PRO BONO.
UM, AND IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, YOU WILL NOW PROVIDE SOME FUNDING TO ASSIST WITH THAT.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S AN EFFORT TO COMMUNICATE WITH THOSE THAT WE HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THAT ARE COMING IN FOR PERMITS ALL THE TIME.