By Keri Luiz
Assistant Editor

The main item on a light agenda for this week’s Tourism Committee meeting is the panel’s fiscal-year work plan as far ahead as 2015.

During a workshop April 18, committee members generated charts of priorities, and those charts will be used to spur discussion Thursday, Economic Development Manager Mario Giuliani said.

“The purpose of those charts are really to jog your memory, and to stimulate thought,” Giuliani told the committee last month.

The items included ramping up social media, training merchants how to track traffic versus sales, and putting up banners and flags on First Street and Military to educate the public where information about the city can be found.

Giulani also noted last month some of the items had already been accomplished through the tourism committee. “I think our banner accomplishments begin with the the fact that we have a tourism marketing program at all,” he said. “The whole genesis of this committee was to create and advocate to the City Council to have funding for a tourism marketing program.”

And he mentioned other concepts generated through the committee, and not by city staff, such as the Sunset Weekend, a two-day event in Menlo Park at which the city promotes itself to a wide Bay Area audience.

The idea to take part in Sunset Weekend was brought forth by Duane Oliviera, Giuliani said. “It didn’t happen overnight. We had Duane that kind of brought it to EDB, brought it to Tourism, gave us information on Sunset … said ‘This is how much it would cost, this is the demographics here.’”

While Benicia’s participation in Sunset Weekend took a couple years to go from concept to reality, Benicia has now had a presence at the event for two years.

Giuliani also mentioned the Art Walk, which began this year.

“We had interested people who said ‘OK, let’s do this,’” he said. “Pat (Ryll) took the lead. It was a commitment from the city of only a few hundred dollars last year.

“Those are the types of ideas that this group can get its hands around. We’re not talking about thousands upon thousands of dollars. We’re talking about a narrow focus where a handful of people can put their passion and energy together,” he said.

“Those are the ideas I want you to think about as we move forward.”

If You Go
The Tourism Committee of the Economic Development Board will meet Thursday at 8:45 a.m. in Room 2 of the Community Center, 370 East L St.

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