Director reports occupancy-tax growth and outlines upcoming events and regional tourism work

The board received an operations report highlighting rising occupancy-tax collections and several promotional initiatives.

Staff reported occupancy-tax receipts were up about 15% year-over-year and that the county is pacing toward a record year; members credited county growth and local marketing for part of the increase. The director said revenue timing and county processes will determine the budget outcome for the fiscal year.

On programming, staff recapped recent events (including songwriters showcases and a strong-attendance festival) and said the county will host or support several upcoming activities: the Friendship Rugby tournament, a planned TV episode ("Bass, Brews and Barbecue") featuring local barbecue and breweries, and co-sponsored livestream and photo-backdrop efforts for sports and festivals. Staff also noted a proposed countywide scavenger-hunt product for the Tennessee 250 commemoration; the one-year license after nonprofit discount was reported to be about $6,000, which staff said could be used for multiple events.

Staff said they are nearly finished migrating files to cloud storage and that recent phishing tests highlighted minor gaps in email follow-up procedures. The director also described invitations to join a Greater Nashville regional tourism collaborative and asked the board to support the countywide tourism-planning effort.

What happens next: staff will continue event planning, complete cloud migration, and return with more detailed cost proposals for the Tennessee 250 scavenger-hunt licensing and other initiatives.