San Benito tourism committee to revisit Pinnacles branding; hotel-incentive review set for May

SAN BENITO COUNTY — At a meeting of the San Benito County Tourism Advisory Committee, county staff reported that a Pinnacles National Park signage and branding item previously presented to the Board of Supervisors was placed on hold and that staff will return with a proposed scope of services for branding for board consideration in May. Committee members were also briefed that staff will research hotel-incentive programs used by other jurisdictions and present findings to the committee at a future meeting.

Graciela Rodriguez, a county staff member, told the committee, "For Pinnacles, we did bring an item to the board of supervisors, last month, and direction consensus was to place the item on hold." She said the board may consider allocating budget for the item during upcoming budget hearings and that staff plans to bring a branding scope of services to the board with a target date in May.

The discussion covered two related strands: (1) the Pinnacles branding and potential highway signage, and (2) a separate hotel-incentive program the county is evaluating. Rodriguez said staff will return to the Tourism Advisory Committee with a scope for branding and with information about comparable programs used by other cities and counties.

Rodriguez listed jurisdictions staff is examining for comparable hotel-incentive approaches, including Morgan Hill, Soledad, Watsonville and Temecula. She said the lead staff member on the hotel-incentive item recently changed roles and remaining staff are compiling examples and cost information from other agencies.

Commissioner Zenger asked whether the county had a cost estimate for the Pinnacles-related work. Rodriguez replied, "We did not get a cost. So the cost for that encapsulates all of Pinnacles. It's not just the signage, but potentially the marketing and any additional things that may be tied into the tourism." She said any dollar amounts are likely to be preliminary until the county completes its budget process.

Committee members discussed using data from existing local partners to measure visitor flows. Rodriguez said the county currently has a contract with the Hollister Downtown Association, which uses a product identified in the meeting as Placer AI to gather visitor metrics. She said the county will ask the association whether the software can provide the specific origin-destination or lodging-to-park tracking the committee requested.

"I can certainly request a presentation from Omar Rosa. He's the one that's driving that," Rodriguez said, referring to the Hollister Downtown Association's work with Placer AI.

At least one committee member raised privacy and legal questions about the cell-phone tracking data. In response, Rodriguez said staff would investigate how the data are captured and report back.

Staff also said planning staff will present on commercial zoning at the committee's next meeting to help inform potential hotel-incentive program design. The committee noted a scheduling conflict for its June meeting (June 25) and asked staff to revisit the schedule when the committee next meets.

Votes at a glance

- Acknowledgment of certificate of posting — Motion made and seconded; committee recorded "aye" and the motion passed. - Approval of minutes — Motion made and seconded; committee recorded "aye" and the motion passed.

Why it matters: The committee's work on Pinnacles branding and a potential hotel incentive affects how the county promotes tourism, which can influence local lodging demand and marketing expenditures. The Board of Supervisors' earlier decision to place the item on hold means the committee's next steps — the proposed branding scope and any budget request — will go back to the full board for consideration.

What happens next: Staff will return with a proposed scope of services for Pinnacles-related branding (targeted for May board consideration), will compile examples and preliminary cost information from other jurisdictions about hotel-incentive programs, will request a presentation from the Hollister Downtown Association on Placer AI data capabilities, and will schedule planning staff to present on commercial zoning at a future committee meeting.