Report from Dennis Edwards, January 2019
Thursday, January 24, 2019, 7pm by visitRaleigh

We want to make sure we’re keeping our partners and other stakeholders “in the loop” about how Destination 2028 is progressing, as well as with other notable, recent developments which affect tourism. To that end, we are publishing a monthly update from president and CEO Dennis Edwards.
Here are highlights from Denny for January:
Much has happened in the last 30 days which impacts Destination 2028—the implementation of Wake County's Destination Strategic Plan.
The Dorothea Dix Park Conservancy rolled out the master plan for the park in January. GRCVB’s Board of Directors approved a resolution supporting the plan and encouraging the Raleigh City Council to do so as well.
The first Hospitality Tax Review stakeholders meeting for the review of the Interlocal Fund was on Jan. 23, 2019, at PNC Arena. A series of stakeholder meetings are scheduled to ensure that funds available to be invested will have significant and transformative impacts on future overnight visitation to Wake County. (Future stakeholder meetings are scheduled from 8:30-10am on Feb. 14, Feb. 28, March 14 and March 28; meeting locations are yet to be determined.)
Eight project developers responded by the Jan. 10 deadline to Wake County's Request for Information to express interest in interlocal funding investments. Their proposals add up to over $20 million requested.
The Destination Strategic Plan (DSP) establishes five guidelines to determine which projects have the potential for the most positive, year-round impact to increase overnight visitation here:
- generating overnight visitors tied to funding;
- utilizing assets that are proven to cause overnight stays;
- including identified target markets with corroborating research;
- requiring direct tracking of program conversion; and,
- leveraging partners and creating collaborative projects. (DSP p. 135)
GRCVB is continuing its efforts to work with the county's municipalities on the execution of the plan. We want to thank Knightdale, Holly Springs, Zebulon and Morrisville for giving us a chance to meet with your community stakeholders over this past month.

Author: visitRaleigh
The Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau (GRCVB) is the official and accredited destination marketing organization (DMO) for all of Wake County.