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Visit Perrysburg director outlines event growth, rebrand and sponsorships after 2024 season
Summary
Joshua Johnson, the new executive director of Visit Perrysburg, reviewed 2024 events and partnerships, described a recent rebrand and website overhaul, and reported the bureau's funding level and plans for expanded festivals and marketing in 2025.
Joshua Johnson, executive director of Visit Perrysburg, presented a year-end review to the Perrysburg Finance and Economic Development Committee on Feb. 7, highlighting expanded events, new partnerships and a recent rebrand.
Johnson, who started in June 2024, reviewed the bureau's signature events in 2024: the Memorial Day Parade, Total Eclipse of the Burg, the Visit Perrysburg Farmers Market, Music at the Market, Hearts of the Arts and the Home for the Holidays Parade. He said the bureau switched the Home for the Holidays parade from a daytime to a nighttime event and supplemented it with a drone show that was among the first in the Toledo area.
Johnson said the farmers market had over 60 vendors and more than 20 food trucks each night, and that Hearts of the Arts drew 89 art vendors in its first year downtown despite rain. He noted partnerships and sponsorships with regional and state groups including the Ohio Hotel and Lodging Association, Visit Northwest Ohio and the University of Toledo athletics program.
On funding, Johnson said Visit Perrysburg received funding from the hotel tax and reported that the bureau's account balance moved from 60% at his start in June, dipped to 55% in Q4 and was back to about 50% at the time of his presentation. He said the organization had sufficient funds for planned work.
Plans for 2025 include rebranding, a new website and expanding the Home for the Holidays event into an all-day Home for the Holidays Festival with synthetic ice skating, photos with Santa and a second drone show at night. Hearts of the Arts will be reduced from three days to two and will feature a single main concert on Saturday night to attract a larger audience.
Committee members added that Visit Perrysburg sponsors the downtown sculpture walk at $15,000 per year and noted recent governance updates, including a bylaws revision and expansion of the Visit Perrysburg board from nine to 11 members.
Johnson said the bureau will continue marketing locally and regionally and that the organization is seeking ways to grow visitor attendance while supporting downtown businesses.
