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Discover Stillwater presents tourism gains, marketing push to Oak Park Heights council
Summary
Kelly Nyard, president and CEO of Discover Stillwater, told the Oak Park Heights City Council that new video assets, targeted campaigns and visitor outreach have sustained lodging‑tax revenues and produced marketing traction; she highlighted $85,000 in event grants, high website traffic and plans to pursue film‑certification and the 2026 Governor’s Fishing Opener bid.
Kelly Nyard, president and CEO of Discover Stillwater, presented the convention and visitors bureau’s annual report to the Oak Park Heights City Council, describing new advertising assets and steady lodging‑tax collections that support local tourism promotion.
Nyard said the bureau’s new video assets “will enable us to run streaming ads as well as traditional TV,” and noted a shift toward short vertical video for social platforms. She said Discover Stillwater is funded by lodging taxes collected from short‑term stays within city limits and administered by the city, not by residential property taxes.
The presentation listed recent results and investments: the Discover Stillwater website draws about 350,000 annual users, the bureau reported roughly 52,000 Facebook followers and 25,000 Instagram followers, and its email newsletter has about 46,000 subscribers. The bureau said it distributes 70,000 visitor guides annually and awarded $85,000 in event marketing grants to support 14 local events last year.
Nyard described several marketing efforts — streaming and broadcast TV ads, geo‑fencing digital campaigns, billboards, content‑creator partnerships and familiarization tours for meeting planners — and said the bureau runs campaigns across five states and into Canada. She described a Treats Trail promotion that groups nine local ice‑cream and candy businesses into a themed visitor experience.
On future work, Nyard said Discover Stillwater is implementing software to better trace where visitors originate so the bureau can calculate return on investment and target campaigns more effectively. She also said the organization is pursuing Explore Minnesota’s film‑certification program and plans to apply to host the 2026 Governor’s Fishing Opener, noting the city’s recently installed boat ramp as an asset.
Council members thanked Nyard and the bureau for their work and marketing materials were distributed at the meeting. The presentation closed with an invitation for council members to contact Discover Stillwater with questions.
Notes: All data and program names above are reported by Kelly Nyard during her presentation. The numerical metrics (website users, followers, subscribers, grant total) are Discover Stillwater figures as stated at the meeting and were not independently verified during the session.
