Cherokee County Chamber seeks expanded tourism program as state increases hotel‑motel tax

Cherokee County Board of Commissioners work session — June 17, 2025

The Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce told county commissioners on June 17 that it could expand Destination Cherokee’s marketing and group‑sales work if new hotel‑motel tax revenue from recently passed state law is made available to the Chamber.

The Chamber’s tourism coordinator, Angela McDaniel, and a Chamber representative identified as Pam presented a multi‑year plan that would add staff, digital advertising, photography and trade‑show attendance to promote Cherokee County destinations such as Gibbs Gardens, Dixie Speedway and area farm‑to‑table restaurants. Pam said the expanded program would require roughly $371,000 in the near term to fund a director of group engagement, a marketing manager, group sales business development, an intern and related marketing expenses.

Why it matters: State lawmakers last session increased the hotel‑motel tax the county can receive and changed how those funds are administered. The Chamber says the expanded budget would be used to grow visitor spending in Cherokee County’s unincorporated lodging market and to support local event and partner promotion.

What the Chamber proposed

Angela McDaniel described recent and planned tourism work: visitor guides placed in nine state visitor centers, more consistent Instagram and Facebook posting, a ‘‘Beans, Barrels and Bottles’’ tastings trail, itineraries posted to the county tourism website, targeted digital ads that reached roughly 30,000 impressions in a recent six‑week run, and partnerships with Georgia Grown and the regional travel association. McDaniel said Destination Cherokee added LinkedIn in 2025 and plans to add Pinterest later this year to push itineraries and attract group travel and sports tournaments.

The Chamber representative told the commissioners the current tourism budget is modest — about $76,000, funded by Cherokee County and a $1,000 contribution from the City of Holly Springs — and that the expanded plan would roll up to the $371,000 figure for staffing, paid digital marketing, trade shows, photography and a possible county tourism app.

County finance and contracting details

County staff said the hotel‑motel tax change must be implemented in county code and that the county’s agreement with its Destination Marketing Organization (historically the Chamber) needs to be percentage‑based rather than a fixed amount to comply with state law. County staff also provided a revenue estimate: “about $900,000” in hotel‑motel receipts for fiscal 2026 for the unincorporated county; a county official added that figure would represent roughly an additional $240,000 compared with current receipts.

The county attorney/staff told commissioners that, if the board adopts the ordinance this month, the tax would take effect on the first day of the second full month after adoption (staff said that would be Aug. 1 if the board adopts the ordinance at the scheduled meeting).

Questions from commissioners

Commissioners asked how the Chamber chooses partners to highlight (McDaniel said staff reach out and accept those who respond or meet editorial deadlines), whether partners must be Chamber members (McDaniel said membership is not required but encouraged), and for a ballpark of current and proposed budgets (Chamber: $76,000 current; $371,000 proposed expansion). Commissioners also asked what portions of the hotel‑motel tax the county can directly spend; county staff summarized that state law divides proceeds into defined buckets (some funds must be spent via a DMO contract, a smaller restricted tourism bucket can be spent by the county directly on tourism‑related uses, and a non‑restricted portion may be used for other lawful county purposes).

Next steps

The county has an updated, percentage‑based contract with the Chamber on the agenda for consideration. Commissioners indicated they will consider adopting the ordinance and the agreement during the public meeting that followed the work session. If adopted on the timetable discussed during the meeting, the local adjustment would take effect August 1, 2025.

Ending

The Chamber ended its presentation by asking commissioners to consider the staffing and marketing investments needed to scale Destination Cherokee and to support greater visitor spending in Cherokee County.