Committee eyes priorities, this year and beyond

By Keri Luiz
Assistant Editor

After a bit of looking back Thursday, a Benicia committee dedicated to boosting business and the city’s profile will do some looking forward.

The Tourism Committee of the Benicia Economic Development Board will discuss its work plan for fiscal year 2012-13, which began July 1, and then will look as far into the future as 2015.

In an effort to give committee members a point of reference when planning for ideas to boost tourism, though, Mario Giuliani, Economic Development manager, included charts in the committee’s agenda summarizing ideas that came out of an April 18 EDB workshop.

The look back is part of putting “reasonable expectations on the group when we have this discussion,” Giuliani said Monday. “I think the Art Walk (held every second Saturday) is a perfect example of something that came out of the Tourism Committee that is doable.

“It has to be modest, but it has to be an idea that can hopefully capture some of the needs and wants that showed up in the April workshop.”

(Read about the April workshop BY CLICKING HERE.)

Post-discussion, city staff will solicit feedback and suggestions for the development of an annual work plan for the committee, he said.

The Tourism Committee also will receive updates for the Art Walk, the second installment of which is slated for Saturday, as well as staff updates for the Business Improvement District and negotiations with the state to keep open Benicia’s two state parks.

The steering group for the BID has already had its third meeting, Giuliani said, and “they’ll have their general BID area meeting on August 1. City staff has not participated in the last three meetings.”

Nicole Byrd, executive director of Solano Land Trust, will also discuss tourism-related issues with the committee on Thursday.

Giuliani said EDB member Duane Oliveira suggested Byrd come to the meeting. “I think he thought it was kind of germane and appropriate,” Giuliani said.

Asked by email what she hoped to discuss in Benicia, Byrd replied, “We’ll be talking about how Solano Land Trust and the Benicia Economic Development (Board) can work together to promote our region. I think there are some great partnership opportunities related to tourism and the many things that folks can explore (for instance a hike at Lynch Canyon and then lunch in downtown Benicia) here in Solano County.”

Solano Land Trust is dedicated to permanent protection of farmland, ranch land and open space iin Solano County, which the nonprofit accomplishes by acquiring land and agricultural conservation easements, as well as through education and land management.

The Land Trust was founded in 1986; it changed its name in 2004. To date it has permanently protected 20,041 acres of natural areas and agricultural lands.

Its most recent endeavor has been to purchase Rockville Trails, 1,500 acres of sensitive habitat that forms the southwest gateway to the Western Hills of the Blue Ridge Berryessa Natural Area.