Clay and Platte counties unveil Go North KC website plan and joint marketing ahead of 2026 World Cup

County tourism staff presented a collaborative regional marketing initiative, Go North KC, and outlined a phased rollout of a shared website, coordinated marketing and local activations leading into the 2026 World Cup.

Megan Saw, Clay County tourism and marketing lead, said Go North KC is a cooperative effort between Clay County, Platte County and municipalities across the Northland designed to present a single brand, aggregated event listings and local landing pages to promote small businesses, parks and historic sites. "It is telling people to go north, explore what we have," Saw said. She told commissioners a cooperative agreement with Platte County is in place for a website landing page, that the project has state grant support allowing cooperative marketing, and that a temporary landing page could appear within a week or two.

Key elements described by tourism staff: - A unified website and brand with municipal landing pages to highlight local itineraries (family-friendly, food and beverage, historic sites, outdoor activities) and consolidated event listings so visitors can see offerings across the Northland. - A free, vendor-friendly digital discount pass called "Tap into Local" (no app required) allowing businesses to offer QR-code discounts and a gamified rewards experience for visitors; the initial pass focuses on breweries and wineries in Clay County. - Plans for a booking portal integration to make overnight stays easier and coordinated marketing funded in part by state grants (the partnership allows each county to leverage program funding). - Local activations and outreach to schools and soccer organizations and planning for watch parties in 2026.

Timeline and logistics: Saw said landing pages should appear within weeks, a full website launch is targeted for Q4, and the marketing push would run through the World Cup. Blue Symphony is the web vendor noted in the presentation for site development; the tourism office is also exploring booking and transit options.

Commission response and next steps: Commissioners praised the regional collaboration and encouraged work on transit and visitor movement. Commissioner Wagner asked about transit connections and the county's role; staff said multiple options are under exploration and that coordination with the KC 26 team and other regional partners is ongoing. Commissioners also discussed outreach to chambers and small businesses; tourism staff said they will continue stakeholder briefings and provide periodic progress reports to the commission.

Ending: The presentation was informational; commissioners did not take formal action but received a staff commitment to return with updates as milestones are reached and landing pages and the discount pass go live.