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Home My WebLink AboutCommittee of the Whole - 06 Dec 2021 - Agenda - Pdf CITY OF RENTON AGENDA - Committee of the Whole Meeting 6:15 PM - Monday, December 6, 2021 Videoconference 1. ALLOCATION OF LODGING TAX FUNDING FOR 2022 a) AB - 3015 Community & Economic Development Department recommends approval of the 2022 Lodging Tax Fund allocations as recommended by the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee; and approval to execute the related contracts with the successful applicants. Currently, due to the spread of COVID-19, all regularly-scheduled committee meetings will be held as necessary via video-conference. City Hall is closed to the public. If you would like to attend this week's meeting remotely, you can do so by going to https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86753290028?pwd=M2pOc09HWWNrY05uVnlIWnpGS1E4UT09 Zoom Meeting ID: 867 5329 0028, Passcode: 881839 You can call through Zoom at (253) 215-8782 and use the Meeting ID. AB - 3015 City Council Regular Meeting - 22 Nov 2021 SUBJECT/TITLE: Allocation of Lodging Tax Funding for 2022 RECOMMENDED ACTION: Refer to Committee of the Whole DEPARTMENT: Community & Economic Development Department STAFF CONTACT: Amanda Askren, Economic Development Director (Acting) EXT.: 7369 FISCAL IMPACT SUMMARY: Expenditure Required: $460,000 SUMMARY OF ACTION: The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee met in August to approve and set a timeline for the application process. The deadline to apply was October 22, 2021. Nineteen applications totaling $945,500 were received. The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee recommends Renton City Council approval 2022 expenditures from the Lodging Tax Fund as follows: • AmPowering; Festival of Light - Diwali Ball: $15,000 • AmPowering; North America Fashion Week: $20,000 • AmPowering; Women Show: $20,000 • City of Maple Valley; Ironman 2022: $25,000 • LTAC community-sponsored events: $10,000 • DAWA Project; Northwest Naturals Expo: $12,500 • City of Renton; Fourth of July Celebration: $20,000 • City of Renton; Holiday Lights at Coulon: $10,000 • Randall Morris Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament: $20,000 • Renton Chamber of Commerce; Visitor's Center: $100,000 • Highschool.GG; Renton City Retro: $20,000 • Renton Community Marketing Campaign 2022: $80,000 • Renton Downtown Partnership; Marketing Campaign: $27,500 • Renton Downtown Partnership; Holiday Lights Festival:$15,000 • REEL Renton; Seattle Film Summit: $40,000 • Seattle TISI Sangam; 2022 Sangam Festival: $25,000 Total Recommendation: $460,000 EXHIBITS: A. Issue Paper_2021 LTAC Allocations B. 2021 LTAC Applicant Summary STAFF RECOMMENDATION: AGENDA ITEM #1. a) Approve allocations for the 2022 Lodging Tax Fund as recommended by the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee and authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute contracts with the successful applicants to expend budgeted funds on the proposed additional marketing initiatives. AGENDA ITEM #1. a) h:\ced\edn\ltac\2022\2022 ltac funding allocation.docx DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT M E M O R A N D U M DATE: November 17, 2021 TO: Randy Corman, Council President Members of Renton City Council CC: Armondo Pavone, Mayor Ed VanValey, Chief Administrative Officer FROM: Amanda Askren, Economic Development Director (Acting) (x7369) STAFF CONTACT: Jessie Kotarski (x7271) SUBJECT: Allocation of Lodging Tax Funding for 2022 ISSUE Should money from Lodging Tax funds be allocated to applicants to support tourism marketing and operations as recommended by Renton’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC)? RECOMMENDATION Support the recommendation of the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee to allocate an $460,000 in lodging tax funding for 2022 as detailed in the attached matrix and summarized below. Additionally, staff recommends that the Mayor and City Clerk be allowed to execute contracts with the successful applicants to expend budgeted funds on the proposed additional marketing initiatives outlined below. BACKGROUND SUMMARY In accordance with RCW 67.28.1817, the City of Renton has established a Lodging Tax Advisory Committee to recommend the allocation of lodging tax funds to Renton City Council. The Committee was chaired by Councilmember Corman and members include: • Cathy Martinez, Legacy Hospitality (Hampton) • Menka Soni, AmPowering • Scott Lane, Hyatt Regency Lake Washington at Seattle’s Southport • Preeti Shridhar, City of Renton Council "may only choose recipients from the list of candidates and recommended amounts provided by the local lodging tax advisory committee." However, Council does AGENDA ITEM #1. a) Ruth Perez, Council President Page 2 of 2 December 8, 2020 h:\ced\edn\ltac\2022\2022 ltac funding allocation.docx not have to fund the full list as recommended by the LTAC and can choose to make awards in the recommended amounts to all, some, or none of the candidates on this list. The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee approved and set a timeline for the 2022 Lodging Tax application process; opening the application on August 30, 2021. Applications were due on October 22, 2021. Nineteen applications were received. The Committee heard presentations from qualified applicants on November 10, 2021 and conducted a debriefing following the interviews to finalize recommendations. The Committee has elected to set aside funds in the amount of $10,000 to support community events hosted by non-profit entities with limited budgets that will help support the potential growth of activities/events in the future. All sponsorship recipients will feature the Renton marketing logo and web address (visitrentonwa.com). The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee recommends Renton City Council approve 2022 expenditures from the Lodging Tax Fund as follows: • AmPowering; Festival of Light - Diwali Ball $15,000 • AmPowering; North America Fashion Week $20,000 • AmPowering; Women Show $20,000 • City of Maple Valley; Ironman 2022 $25,000 • LTAC community-sponsored events $10,000 • DAWA Project; Northwest Naturals Expo $12,500 • City of Renton; Fourth of July Celebration $20,000 • City of Renton; Holiday Lights at Coulon $10,000 • Randall Morris Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament $20,000 • Renton Chamber of Commerce; Visitor's Center $100,000 • Highschool.GG; Renton City Retro $20,000 • Renton Community Marketing Campaign 2022 $80,000 • Renton Downtown Partnership; Marketing Campaign $27,500 • Renton Downtown Partnership; Holiday Lights Festival $15,000 • REEL Renton; Seattle Film Summit $40,000 • Seattle TISI Sangam; 2022 Sangam Festival $25,000 Total Recommendation: $460,000 Staff appreciates the thorough review given to each application by the Committee and finds their recommendations are consistent with the goals of the City’s Business Plan and Economic Development Strategic Plan. AGENDA ITEM #1. a) Grant Applicant Event Name Contact Information Date of Event Summary of Project or Event Amount Requested Amount Recommended 1 AmPowering Festival of Light Diwali Ball Menka Soni soni_menka@hotmail.com 425‐301‐2255 425‐418‐7181 (cell) November 2022 Deepavali or Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. The themes associated with Diwali are the ‘triumph of good over evil,’ ‘light over darkness’ and ‘positivity over the negative.’ The major deity is the Goddess of spiritual and material Wealth, Prosperity and Light, Mother Lakshmi. Vision is to transform Downtown Renton into a street market of India, full of lights, flags, decorations, culture, music, dance. $20,000 $15,000 2 AmPowering North American Fashion Week Menka Soni soni_menka@hotmail.com 425‐301‐2255 425‐418‐7181 (cell) September 2022 A celebration of art and culture designed to promote local fashion designers and put Renton on the map as an industry hotspot while connecting local and international designers. NAFW is a great platform to promote tourism and commerce while supporting the arts and multiculturalism. $35,000 $20,000 3 AmPowering Women's Show Menka Soni soni_menka@hotmail.com 425‐301‐2255 425‐418‐7181 (cell) November 2022 This annual show features the Miss, Mrs., and Miss Teen India Washington, Oregon & Albama pageant. It also includes food and non‐food vendors, and entertainment. Plans are to host the event at the Hyatt. $25,000 $20,000 4 City of Maple Valley Ironman 2022 Laura Philpot laura.philpot@maplevalleywa.gov 425‐413‐8800 18‐Sep‐22 The City of Maple Valley is seeking financial assistance to host the 2022 IRONMAN Washington event in Maple Valley to be held on Sunday, September 18, 2022. Because Maple Valley does not have lodging properties available, the City of Renton will receive most of the room nights associated with this event. $25,000 $25,000 5 DAWA Project Northwest Naturals Expo Kariba Jack kijack@gmail.com 253‐228‐9811 31‐Oct‐21 The Northwest Naturals Expo brings education, entertainment, community and flair together as one. This will be the 6th year the event will be hosted within the beautiful city of Renton and holds a unique draw as it is hosted during Black History Month. Local restaurants and eateries will benefit with additional revenue from the attendees dining in/out for the weekend. Hotel room nights are going to be marketed heavily for the 2022 event as 'self ‐ care' and relaxation to 'treat yourself' will be a part of the tone for the weekend. $50,000 $12,500 6 City of Renton Multicultural Festival Benita Horn bhorn@rentonwa.gov 206‐579‐0099 January to June 2022 This annual two‐day event is a joint endeavor of the Mayor's Inclusion Task Force and the city. Their vision is to being together people of different ages, races, ethnicities, genders, faiths, etc. to celebrate our diverse community and learn about and connect with each other. Festival includes performers from various cultures, interactive cultural education tables hosted by various communities to share their culture and traditions, a multicultural art exhibit, activities for children, ethnic food trucks and celebrity guests. $5,000 $5,000* 7 City of Renton Renton's 4th of July Carrie Nass cnass@rentonwa.gov 425‐282‐9367 July 3 ‐ July 4, 2022 Renton's 4th of July Celebration is the largest one‐day event the City produces. The full‐day event takes place on the beautiful shores of Lake Washington at Gene Coulon Memorial Park and includes all day activities, live music, volleyball tournament, and concludes with a beautiful fire work show that can be seen from throughout Renton, Seattle and Mercer Island. $25,000 $20,000 8 City of Renton Holiday ligjhts at Coulon Sonja Mejlaender smejlaender@rentonwa.gov 425‐430‐6514 December 2, 2022 ‐ January 1, 2023 Renton’s Holiday Lights at Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park is a free month‐long regionally established seasonal destination and brings an estimated 15,000 visitors to Renton each year. The unique, iconic, and stunning immersion of saturated lights set against Lake Washington and within this regional park, features 200,000‐plus individual lights. Historically, opening night and the official lighting welcome dignitaries and recognition of funding partners, entertainment, selfies with Santa and Mrs. Claus at Santa’s Sleigh, Rainier Yacht Club’s Parade of Boats and Argosy Christmas Ship. $45,000 $10,000 2022 LTAC Applicant Summary AGENDA ITEM #1. a) 9 Randall Morris Foundation Randall Morris Celebrity Golf Tournament Randall Morris rmorris43@comcast.net (206) 356‐8639 Sept. 11 ‐ Sept. 12, 2022 The Randall Morris Foundation is getting ready for the 16th Annual Randall Morris Celebrity Golf invitational held on September 12th at the Fairwood Golf and Country Club in Renton, Washington. Many celebrities and guests will be coming in from out of town, with the dinner/auction on Sunday night and the Golf Tournament on Monday. The events begin on Sunday September 11th with our annual Auction/ Gala at the Hyatt Regency Lake Washington in Renton. $78,000 $20,000 10 Renton Chamber of Commerce Visitor's Center operations Diane Dobson diane@gorenton.com 425‐226‐4560 Ongoing Operation costs to run the Visitor's Center in downtown Renton, plus additional funds requested for a promotional 2022 Calendar of Major Renton Events and Opportunities and support to allow the use of the Visitors Center for events, functions, markets and activities $150,000 $100,000 11 HighSchool.GG Renton City Retro Emilio Morales emilio@highschool.gg 206‐579‐1526 Aug 12‐Aug 14, 2022 Renton City Retro is an organization dedicated to creating a network of people in the Pacific Northwest area that are passionate about all facets of geek culture, especially classic video games. $25,000 $20,000 12 City of Renton Renton Community Marketing Amanda Askren aaskren@rentonwa.gov 425‐430‐7271 Ongoing The campaign include marketing communications, digital and social media services, advertising, branding,public relations, communications strategy and planning and website development, design and maintenance to create and supportan effective Visit Renton brand to promote the City as the ideal destination to live, work and play. $100,000 $80,000 13 Renton Downtown Partnership Holiday Lights Festival Sheila Humphries RDP@gorenton.com 425‐430‐7271 Dec‐22 The goal of this proposal outline is to create an annual lighting event or light festival in the city of Renton that builds community through the power of light art, provides an inspiring, COVID safe public light art experience that will encourage the public to explore downtown Renton while supporting local artists. $25,000 $15,000 14 Renton Downtown Partnership Downtown promotion package Sheila Humphries RDP@gorenton.com 425‐430‐7271 Ongoing The proposal for 2022 is to expand on the foundation created in 2021 and utilize new technology to promote downtown Renton as a vibrant regional destination for day trips and overnight stays and provide valuable insights on who is visiting, where they visit and whether they stay overnight in an concentrated effort to retarget those visitors to return to Renton. $27,500 $27,500 15 City of Renton Farmers Market Carrie Olson clolson@rentonwa.gov 425‐430‐7214 Jun ‐ Sept 2022 The goal of the Renton Farmers Market (RFM), in the hub of Downtown Renton, is to act as a social glue that attracts a diverse population from the King County region to support local businesses, eat healthier foods, learn about regional services and social networking. Visitors not only shop at the Market, a weekly survey revealed, but 80% of respondents noted they also travel into the adjacent business district and spend money at shops and eateries. $10,000 $2,500* 16 City of Renton Renton River Days Sonja Mejlaender smejlaender@rentonwa.gov 425‐430‐6514 July 17‐24, 2022 Renton River Days (RRDs) will celebrate its 37th Anniversary in 2022. RRDs is making plans to provide a scalable community event, centered largely in downtown Renton and at Piazza Park. RRDs plans to feature culturally diverse entertainment, food, arts, all‐ages activities, and implement a city‐wide week‐long “Nibble Your Way Around Renton” restaurant campaign. $5,000 $2,500* 17 reelRenton 2022 Seattle Film Summit Ben Andrews bena@seattlefilmsummit.com 253‐861‐7755 September 9 ‐ 10, 2022 The Seattle Film Summit (SFS) is quickly becoming the premier creative economy event in the Pacific Northwest, bringing together regional creatives, leaders, and influencers in the digital content creation arena. The Summit appeals to writers, directors, producers, distributors, acquisition executives, talent agents, attorneys, festival directors, and all those who provide services to the motion picture industry and beyond. $100,000 $40,000 18 Seattle TISI Sangam 2022 Sangam Festival Bal Ram bal929@hotmail.com 253‐632‐2440 28‐30 May,2022 or July 2‐4, 2022 Cultural sporting and education event held every and attracting people from Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Canada and India. $40,000 $25,000 AGENDA ITEM #1. a) 19 Urban Family Center Assoc G3 Fitness Summit Shantel Patu smpatu@urbanfam.org 206‐854‐5944 August 19th, 2022 ‐ August 20th, 2022 The purpose of this project is to promote the importance of a healthy lifestyle to local fitness gyms, student athletes, and the general public of Renton, Washington and surrounding communities through influential athletes, social media influencers, and leading health experts. $155,000 $0 Total $945,500 $460,000 *indicates community event sponsorship AGENDA ITEM #1. a)