Calistoga council approves five-year destination marketing agreement with Chamber of Commerce

The Calistoga City Council on April 8 approved a five-year renewal with the Calistoga Chamber of Commerce to provide destination marketing and operate the city’s welcome center, with annual compensation tied to the city’s transient occupancy tax (TOT) receipts.

The agreement authorizes a first-year payment of $566,496 and makes compensation for years two through five subject to a quarterly true-up tied to annual TOT changes, capped at a 3% annual adjustment up or down. The contract includes a 60-day termination clause and requires the chamber to maintain the welcome center seven days a week except for certain holidays.

City officials and the chamber framed the contract as an investment in the city’s primary tourism revenue stream. Assistant City Manager Salaya told the council the proposal is performance-based and clarifies the city’s policy on developer and service fee responsibilities while noting the chamber’s role in growing TOT. “The chamber is requesting a 5 year agreement,” Salaya said, describing the proposed true-up tied to TOT and the 60-day termination right for the city.

Eric Reichardt, president and CEO of the Calistoga Chamber of Commerce, outlined how the funds are spent on marketing, the welcome center, paid and earned media, events and related operations. Reichardt said the chamber does not “profit off of this money” and that the funds are expended each year on destination marketing, advertising and the welcome center. He cited metrics from 2024 — roughly 497,000 unique website visitors, about 60,000 combined social followers and a 14,000-subscriber newsletter — and said welcome-center staff logged more than 12,500 visitor contacts in 2024.

Public commenters with longstanding Calistoga ties urged support. Eden Umble, a local business owner and former chamber board member, said the chamber’s targeted digital marketing can replace lost international visitors with closer-market travelers. “Telling that story and making sure that you’re reaching the right visitors, in a targeted way is important,” she said. Gerardo Capiel of Vine Trail Adventures and other speakers urged closer partnership between the chamber and the fairgrounds to drive event business.

Council discussion focused on the contract’s length, accountability and the link between marketing spend and TOT. Council members said a long-term agreement helps the chamber plan but noted the 60-day escape and the TOT true-up as important safeguards. Councilmember Cooper and others asked whether a direct, linear relationship exists between marketing spend and TOT; Reichardt cited a mid-2024 change in advertising vendors and said occupancy and TOT rose within weeks of more aggressive digital advertising.

The council approved a resolution authorizing the agreement by roll call vote: Councilmember Eisenberg, Councilmember Cooper, Vice Mayor Lopez Ortega and Mayor Williams voted aye; Councilmember Gift was absent.

The contract sets specific deliverables including a staffed welcome center, annual publication of visitor guides (up to 20,000 copies), cooperative marketing with Visit Napa Valley and Up Valley partners, monthly financial reporting to the city, and required recovery of city costs for event-related services. The chamber also agreed to make marketing materials available to the city.

If the budget or TOT declines significantly, city staff said the contract’s compensation would fall under the contract’s true-up provisions and the 60-day termination clause would allow the city to respond.

The council’s approval moves the agreement to execution and requires city staff to finalize contract documents and monitoring mechanisms.