At the December 4, 2007, Christiansburg Town Council Meeting, a resolution of support for an Antiques Corridor was granted. This had been requested by Meghan Dorsett, an owner of Cambria's Toy Station, on behalf of the many antique dealers now present in the downtown area.
Another resolution was granted in support of the Wilderness Road designation, a Southwest Virginia effort to draw tourists seeking outdoors, historical or unique destinations.
The chamber president and members of its board presented information on the county-wide tourism initiative, funded by public tax dollars by Blacksburg, Christiansburg and Montgomery County. Since these funds were authorized July 1, 2005 (July 1, 2006 by county), the chamber has received over $350,000, the bulk of funds being from Christiansburg. A reported $120,000 is being held in reserve for research and development, and future marketing, with $10,000 to $17,000 in new funds coming in each month.
The chamber had reported in July 2006 that a Visitors Guide, listing local attractions, would be distributed over the upcoming Fall. At Tuesday's meeting, it was reported that 20,000 copies of this guide (which includes both chamber members and non-members) are expected to be distributed in the first quarter of 2008, instead.
The tourism grants were to represent 10% of all funds ($35,000 based on allocations to-date). The number of grants requested was not reported, but $7000 in grants have been awarded with $4000 going to Christiansburg functions. Grant applications are available on the chamber's website, and the Blacksburg-Christiansburg Visitor's Center website is also expected to be established in 2008, providing more information than what can be found on the chamber's site. The chamber president encouraged anyone seeking a tourism grant to contact him for assistance or tips, noting his Tourism Development Council meets monthly. Additionally, a branding consultant is being hired to develop and define all future marketing materials.
The bulk of expenditures thus far have supported tourism training seminars for staff, marketing in Virginia is for Lovers magazine/website and a few other tourism related magazines, upgrading chamber technology, and administrative costs (which includes staffing Visitor's Center on Saturdays and stipends for chamber president/vice president salaries). The chamber appeared pleased with results from advertising placement conducted thus far, based on the number of requests for information or telephone calls. See related Roanoke Times column on this subject.
Council also agree to expend additional funds to enhance the town's website, having a committee of employees and council members examine options over the last several months. In 2005, council added a position for a web person, as the individual who developed the existing site had left town employment. That newly hired person then left, and a replacement was hired late December 2006 or early January 2007, but assigned duties were much more broad than just the website -- so it was time to circle the wagons and really focus on the town's web needs. Council endorsed the concept of upgrading the website, committing $40,000 over several years. No specific dates for these upgrades or possible content were provided, as the first step was obtaining the necessary support and a funding commitment from council. See related editorial from the Roanoke Times on this subject and related news story.
The town manager reported construction on Main Street was nearly complete and should allow for initial street paving and installation of lighting to commence shortly. Final road surfacing will be done at a later date, when weather conditions are more favorable again. The contract for this phase of the revitalization project was issued last November and was expected to be completed within one year.
Town council's next regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 18, 2007 at 7:30 pm.