Tourism group awards plan bid

FAYETTEVILLE — The Advertising and Promotion Commission will hire a consultant to help it plan for the next five years.

Commissioners on Monday OK’d signing a $30,000 contract with Milestone Leadership of Siloam Springs. The organization changed its name from Soderquist Leadership this year, according to its website.

Milestone will develop a plan capitalizing on the projected growth of the city’s tourism industry, determines benchmarks in marketing and outlines investments in order to pursue new opportunities, according to the request for proposals.

Bids closed April 9. Molly Rawn, executive director for the city’s tourism bureau Experience Fayetteville, estimated the planning process should take about 12 weeks.

Half of the city’s 2 percent hotel, motel and restaurant sales tax goes to tourism. The other half goes to parks. The Advertising and Promotion Commission is the governing body of Experience Fayetteville.

“It’s not about just the HMR dollars,” Rawn said. “It’s about what we are doing for the city and city’s economy through the tourism

platform.”

Commission Chairman Matthew Petty, also a Ward 2 City Council member, said a committee of tourism officials selected Milestone Leadership unanimously.

“Each of the concerns the individual committee members had were addressed to our satisfaction,” he said.

The commission asked Rawn to oversee development of a plan after her most recent performance review in the fall. Tourism officials manage the Town Center, Clinton House Museum and Walker-Stone House in addition to Experience Fayetteville’s day-to-day effort to promote the city.

Commission members on Monday also saw a proposal for renovation at the historic Walker-Stone House at 207 W. Center St. The first floor will see necessary upgrades to make the venue more suitable for public events, Rawn said.

The University of Arkansas’ School of Art is at the tail end of a temporary residency there for art students to work and host exhibits at the space. Future plans for the house will tie into the commission’s overall plan.

Commissioners also voiced support for exploring a fireworks show for July 4, 2019. The Northwest Arkansas Mall last hosted a display in 2015.

“If you run up and down the road on Interstate 49, you

can find fireworks at every other community besides Fayetteville,” Commissioner Todd Martin said.

NWA Democrat-Gazette/STACY RYBURN Ching Mong (from right), Matt Behrend and Todd Martin, all commissioners with the Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission, go over proposed plans for the Walker-Stone House on Monday.