Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Events Grants topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Clay County TDC approves grants for Pro Water Cross, Moose Haven Fourth of July and SeaMark Rodeo
Summary
The Clay County Tourist Development Council approved three event grants: $15,000 for the Pro Water Cross national broadcast event, $3,500 for Moose Haven's Fourth of July celebration, and $3,500 for SeaMark Ranch's Rodeo at the Ranch. Board members discussed room-night impacts, TV exposure and marketing limits before voting by voice.
The Clay County Tourist Development Council on May 7 approved event marketing grants for three returning and new events in the county.
The council voted to award $15,000 to the Pro Water Cross event in Keystone Heights, a multi-day competition that will be broadcast on CBS Sports. Stephanie Lam, program manager for the tourism department, told the council the applicant requested $30,000 and that staff's scoring recommended $14,000. Lam also cautioned that "their 500 room nights might not be Clay County room nights," noting many attendees may stay just over the county line.
The council approved $3,500 to Moose Haven for its American Fourth of July celebration after hearing from Marina Matthews, a Moose Haven representative, who described the event as a free community festival that draws large daytime crowds. "Last year we had estimated between 13 and 15000 people on our campus," Matthews said, and she explained the TDC funds would reimburse event advertising because Moose Haven, as a fraternal nonprofit, cannot advertise its residential services directly.
The council also approved a $3,500 grant for SeaMark Ranch's new Rodeo at the Ranch. Adrienne Tolbert, director of development for SeaMark Ranch, called the event a family-focused rodeo with barrel racing, bull riding, bronc riding and team roping and said about 75% of tickets sold so far had come from outside Clay County. Tolbert said the site can hold up to 2,800 people and that many rodeos realize most ticket sales at the door.
Votes were taken by voice; board members moved and seconded each motion during the meeting and the chair called the ayes and nays. The meeting record shows motions carried on voice votes; no roll-call tallies with named votes were recorded in the transcript.
Why it matters: the grants support events that county staff and council members said contribute to local quality of life and bring out-of-county visitors who may spend at restaurants, vendors and, in some cases, area lodging. Several members said staff bandwidth to recruit events is limited and signaled support for a future request-for-proposal to hire a third-party events-solicitation vendor.
What happened in the meeting: council discussion on the Pro Water Cross centered on whether the televised exposure justified the level of support given limited local room-night capture. For Moose Haven, members emphasized the event's community reach and free offerings. For SeaMark Ranch, the council discussed production logistics and advertising match dollars; the board amended the initial staff-recommended award and approved $3,500 for the event's first year.
What to watch next: staff said the tourism grant fund had sufficient remaining balance for the fiscal year and asked event organizers to continue submitting applications and post-event reimbursement documentation.The council noted coordination opportunities with neighboring Bradford County when events draw overnight stays outside Clay County.
