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Old Mill Farms requests $4,000 for Christmas advertising; council asks for full budget and receipts
Summary
Representatives of Old Mill Farms requested $4,000 to fund Christmas promotion but the Baker County Tourist Development Council deferred action, asking for a full income/expense budget, receipts for prior spending and visitor-origin data before deciding in December.
Representatives of Old Mill Farms told the Baker County Tourist Development Council that the agritourism site ran a six-week fall festival and plans a December Christmas event and asked the council to cover roughly $4,000 of the December advertising spend. Applicants Tucker and Tara Thrift described year-to-year growth in attendance and marketing reach but acknowledged they have already paid much of the advertising and do not yet have a complete budget for the board to review.
Applicants reported ticket sales of 2,034 for the fall portion this year (compared with 1,154 combined tickets last year) and an online reach figure the applicants said was about 45,998 Florida accounts from a boosted Facebook post. The applicants told the board they had spent approximately $11,000 on advertising and related event costs to date and sought $4,000 specifically for the Christmas portion.
Board members pressed for a full, line-item budget showing income and expenses, plus receipts that demonstrate advertising expenditures and evidence of out-of-county visitors (for example, ZIP-code tallies from internet or gate sales). The board told the applicants to add the county logo to future ads and recommended the applicants work with staff to submit a complete budget and receipts before the council’s December meeting. Staff said the council will seek regular revenue and expense reports and that the county receives monthly distributions from the Department of Revenue.
Sabrina Thrift, who identified herself at the meeting, said the family typically advances costs and has not previously requested funding: “We’ve never requested any kind of funds from anybody anywhere. So doing this is very, different for us.” Board members left the request pending and agreed to revisit it at the next meeting after applicants provide the requested documentation and the consultant (John) finalizes the updated plan.
Next steps: Applicants will work with staff to submit a full income/expense budget and receipts for prior advertising; the board will review the materials in December before deciding whether to award the requested $4,000 for Christmas advertising.
