Title
Community Showcase and Use of Gift Certificates
Body
RECOMMENDED ACTION (Motion):
Motion to approve the remaining available funds from the Oregon City Business Debt Relief Initiative and to add an additional $3,823.49 from the City’s General Fund to fully fund the gift certificate program.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
As one of five initiatives to implement Oregon City’s Tourism Strategic Plan, the Economic Development Department proposes to establish The Community Showcase, a marketing campaign designed to engage Oregon City residents in experiencing and learning more about the community’s history via the use of virtual tours of historic sites in Oregon City, visitor-facing centers, and businesses.
By offering local residents the opportunity to virtually tour historic sites and other visitor-facing venues, Oregon City residents will learn more about the community’s history and become more proficient at communicating with visitors about what there is to do and see in Oregon City.
Residents will win prizes and be incentivized to spend money (in the form gift certificates) at local businesses, thus driving local commerce on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic. The gift certificates are a major feature of The Community Showcase and they will be utilized to help sustain restaurants and other organizations that are important assets to Oregon City’s burgeoning tourism industry.
BACKGROUND:
This item was discussed at the June 3, 2020 City Commission meeting and was continued to a subsequent meeting in order to address questions that had been raised about the proposed program. Commissioner McGriff and Commissioner Smith met with staff to review the proposed program and provide input.
In the Summer of 2017, Oregon City’s Economic Development Department commissioned a Portland based consulting firm to develop a strategic plan for Oregon City tourism and begin laying the foundation for more structures and a mission-driven tourism industry.
The process began with ...
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