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Kosciusko County tourism commission approves event advertising and lake-monitoring funding
Summary
The Kosciusko County Tourism Commission approved grants for the county fair’s SoulTakers Acres, expanded algae monitoring funding for lakes, and a Leesburg Methodist concert reimbursement request, and accepted financial reports and minutes during the meeting.
The Kosciusko County Tourism Commission voted to approve several community grants and financial items at its recent meeting.
The commission approved a $500 publicity grant for SoulTakers Acres, the haunted-house fundraiser run by the Kosciusko Community Fair Association, and a reduced advertising award of $2,500 for billboards and radio placement after commissioners raised concerns about reach and asked for out-of-county advertising. Kevin Harris of the Kosciusko Community Fair Association said the haunted attraction draws visitors from “Michigan, Ohio” and beyond and described the advertising as key to increasing attendance.
Nate, representing the county’s lakes program, won commission approval to expand lake toxin monitoring next summer. The commission previously provided $15,000 for staffing; commissioners approved an additional $15,000 for consumable supplies and testing to increase sampling from 10 weeks to 15 weeks, add replicate samples and incorporate testing for saxitoxin based on pilot findings. Nate told commissioners that “over $300,000,000 comes into this county every year because of the lakes.”
Rob Sewald, pastor at Leesburg Methodist, asked for advertising and food-budget support for the church’s 11th annual Country Christmas event, scheduled Dec. 14 at Lakeview Middle School. Commissioners reviewed a line-item budget that included artist fees and promotional costs and approved the full reimbursement grant requested; Sewald told the commission the concert can produce roughly a $60,000 one-night impact for the community.
The commission also approved the July 17 minutes and accepted the financial report through August, which showed hotel tax remittances and just over $1 million in the account. Commissioners clarified that approved grants must submit reimbursement requests by the end of the next calendar year or the funds revert to the commission.
A number of applicants provided event details and placement plans for billboards and radio (WRSW and Willie 103 were cited). Several applicants agreed to work with CVB staff to produce visitor-origin data and economic-impact estimates to support future funding requests.
