Tourism group hangs on by spending its reserves

The CVB is pinning its hopes for survival on a new board of commissioners.
& lt;a href=mailto:bjackson@vindy.com & gt;By BOB JACKSON & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown/Mahoning County Convention and Visitors Bureau continues to survive, even with its financial lifeline cut off.
The bureau hopes to hang on long enough to see a new board of county commissioners take office next year and possibly restore steady funding to the CVB. Only one candidate would state where he stands on the issue.
"I don't think they should get a penny," said Sam Moffie, a Republican who will run for commissioner in November.
Commissioner David Ludt, the only current commissioner who will still be in office next year, wouldn't say whether he favors restoring the bureau's funding.
"I really haven't thought about it, to be honest," Ludt said. "I guess I'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
The bureau, once charged with promoting travel and tourism in the county, has been without a steady source of income since October 2003, when commissioners voted to stop funding it with revenue from a county lodging tax.
The lodging tax, also known as a bed tax, is paid by everyone who rents a hotel or motel room in the county. Since 1987, all of its revenue had gone to the CVB for tourism.
But in October 2003, commissioners voted to send two-thirds of the bed-tax revenue to the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport for operating expenses, with the other one-third going to a new visitors bureau appointed by commissioners.
Election situation
Commissioners Ed Reese and Vicki Allen Sherlock are not running for re-election after their terms expire at the end of this year. Atty. Lawrence Richards, CVB chairman, said he hopes that their replacements will restore the bureau's funding and continue using the CVB to promote tourism.
John A. McNally IV, the Democratic candidate for Reese's seat, declined to comment, saying he's "not going to get into the fray" unless he is elected. McNally will run in November against Republican Pat Strange, who suggested that the two visitors bureaus consider merging and sharing the money.
Moffie, the Republican candidate for Sherlock's seat, said he hasn't been impressed with the CVB's work in the past and so would not be in favor of funding it if he is elected.
Moffie's Democratic opponent in November will be Anthony Traficanti, who could not be reached to comment.
Ludt said he is reluctant to talk about the issue because the sides are locked in lawsuits that each has filed against the other.
Cash reserves
The old CVB has operated since October by spending a $600,000 cash reserve it had built up over the years. Less than $450,000 of that money remains.
Richards said that's enough to get the bureau through this year. But once the cash runs out, the bureau could have to close its doors.
In the meantime, Richards and Billie Jo Zimmerman, marketing director, said they have continued scheduling bus tours and other events in the county.
"We're still doing what we can to promote the area," Richards said. "We just don't have as much money."
Zimmerman said the CVB is getting ready for one of its most popular annual events, the FAM tour of the county. It's a bus tour that highlights certain attractions around the county and is intended for county residents. There is no charge for participants, but reservations are taken on a first-come, first-served basis.
"It's a familiarization tour," Zimmerman said. "It's like looking at things in your own back yard. It's amazing the things that people don't even realize we have here."
Tour route
This year's tour will be Thursday and will leave from the Mill Creek Park Experimental Farm, across from the Canfield Fairgrounds. Stops will include Lanterman's Mill in Mill Creek Park, the Hummel Gift Shop in New Springfield, and Noah's Lost Ark, an exotic animal sanctuary in Berlin Township.
Zimmerman said Noah's Lost Ark has made national news in recent months because of controversy surrounding a couple of animals being housed there.
"A lot of people have no idea where that is," she said. "They need to know things like that."
The deadline to register for the tour is Tuesday. Reservations are required and can be made by calling the CVB at (330) 747-8200.
Zimmerman said it's the seventh consecutive year for the tour, which has become popular among local sightseers.
"People start calling us in February to make sure we're going to do this," she said.
& lt;a href=mailto:bjackson@vindy.com & gt;bjackson@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;