HomeMy WebLinkAboutInformation Only 111423AGENDA
INFORMATION UPDATE
November 14, 2023
5:00 PM,
I.Information Update
I.A Destination Marketing Memo from ACRA
I.B Snowmaking
Oct2023_DMReport.pdf
Mountain Ideal GSTC Memo.pdf
MOI_2023_SnowPolo_snowmaking_final.docx
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October 2023 Destination Marketing Report for Council
Destination Marketing Staff Report Excerpt from ACRA’s Board of Directors Packet:
Destination Marketing has submitted our Destinations International re-certification for the Destination Marketing
Accreditation Program, which is required every 4 years, ACRA was first certified in 2019. In collaboration with Snowmass
Tourism, we have applied for a Colorado Tourism Office Grant for 100 hours of technical assistance to conduct a DEIA audit for
Aspen & Snowmass Businesses, we will be notified in November if we are awarded this grant. We are also participating in the
Colorado Tourism Office’s Destination Stewardship Strategic planning process; this is a statewide initiative. Bridget Crosby
attended the Green Destinations event in Estonia this month and Aspen was awarded a place on the 2023 Green Destinations
Top 100 Stories, this is part of the process with Mountain IDEAL to become certified as a Global Sustainable Tourism
Destination. We hosted the Marketing Advisory Committee meeting on October 17th. We have announced we will conduct a
limited RFP for Public Relations services and expect subm issions by mid-December. In addition, we are pleased to announce
the Aspen Learning Lab, a tool all businesses may utilize as part of their employee training and onboarding process. At the
October 17th City Council Work Session, the 2024 budget for the Tourism Promotion Fund was appropriated in the amount of
$4,545,750. We will draft a budget against this amount for approval by the Finance Committee, Board of Directors and
Marketing Advisory Committee.
CTO sent an individual fam from the UK travel agency Audley Travel for a site visit. Karl Elliot was quite impressed with Asp en’s
hotel product, destination amenities, and pedestrian friendly core. The sales team hosted our bi -annual coffee chat with hotel
partner sales managers. We were able to share information about upcoming ACRA initiatives, learn of upcoming property
renovations, and off-season closure dates and updated the group on the Armory open house. ACRA represented our Aspen
hotels and group vendors at IMEX in Las Vegas. Nichole traveled with the Destination Colorado group to exhibit in their booth
at IMEX. ACRA and Snowmass Tourism will co-op on our Brand USA page refresh. Nichole attended IMEX from Monday –
Thursday. She was able to connect with a variety of planners and network with fellow Aspen Sales Managers.
The events team has been taking a deep dive confirming details for Wintersköl, January 11th – 14th, 2024. The Wintersköl
committee has selected the 2024 Slogan, “Uniting Ski Bums and Bunnies, since 1951.” Thank you to Johnny Klein for
submitting this slogan which represents a coming together of diverse members of the community to celebrate our winter
lifestyle. We are now accepting nominations for the Wintersköl Royalty -residents who exemplify the Wintersköl spirit through
their dedication to and involvement with the community; please submit your nominations online. The most recent schedule of
events is now posted online with lots more to come!
Occupancy Reports:
September Occupancy was 57.8%, down 13.1% YOY, ADR also fell 4% YOY. Summer season (May-October) is pacing -
4.5% YOY, where ADR for the season is down slightly -0.8%. Looking ahead for winter we are pacing behind last year by
10.8% as a result the community is coming together to create a Blizzard of Winter Booking activity with efforts to begin
11/15.
Sales Tax Reports:
As of the August Consumption Tax Report, released in October of 2023, the Tourism Promotion Fund is pacing 2%
behind last year’s actual year-to-date revenues.
Recent Press Coverage
Website Stats
Please see aspenchamber.org web statistics on the following page.
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ASPEN CHAMBER RESORT ASSOCIATION MONTHLY REPORT
September 2023
September 2023
191,458
Sessions
94.46%
Engagement Rate
52.76
Average Engagement Time
Per Session (In Seconds)3.14
Pages Per Session
Page Path Pageviews Engagement Rate
/blog/5-reasons-visit-aspen-autumn
/blog/ghost-towns-and-cemeteries-visit-aspen-october
/blog/fall-love-aspen-bucket-list
/blog/everything-you-need-know-about-independence-pass
/blog/hiking-around-maroon-bells 92.44%
95.97%
96.48%
96.63%
95.80%
6,509
7,080
7,110
12,753
16,925
Top Performing Blogs
Occupancy Data
September 2022 September 2023
68.4%
57.8%
Paid Occupancy YoY
September 2022 September 2023
$576 $574
Average Daily Rate YoY
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MEMORANDUM
To: Aspen City Council
From: Debbie Braun, Eliza Voss, Bridget Crosby
Aspen Chamber Resort Association
Date: October 31, 2023
Re: GSTC, Green Destinations: Mountain Ideal Program
With the launch of the Aspen Destination Management Plan in 2022, Aspen’s key challenges
were distilled to create three pillars to focus strategic action. As a reminder, the three pillars
are: address visitor pressure, enhance the Aspen experience, and preserve small town
character. Within each pillar, strategic actions are defined to help ACRA reach its destination
management efforts. Following Global Sustainable Tourism Council guidelines and becoming
certified as a green destination using the criteria is an action item that ACRA is taking on as a
lead, partner, and advocate under the pillar of addressing visitor pressure and specifically
preserving and regenerating the natural environment.
ACRA has chosen to work with Green Destinations and become Mountain IDEAL certified, which
is verified by the GSTC sustainability standards. The Mountain IDEAL destination standard has
been developed to address sustainability in mountain environments that include winter and
summer activities. These unique challenges and opportunities include issues like water and
energy use related to snow making and snow melting systems, affordable housing for residents
and seasonal employees, collaborating with public land managers and the business community,
and embracing mountain cultural heritage. Sustainable Travel International, Walking Mountains
Science Center, and other partners have collaborated on the development of the Mountain
IDEAL destination standard. The program offers three recognition programs: Top 100
Sustainability Stories, Mountain IDEAL Benchmarked, and Certified Sustainable Destination. The
Top 100 Program is open to any destination and since beginning the program Aspen has been
recognized in the Top 100 Sustainability Stories in 2022 and 2023. It is a global celebration of
replicable sustainability best practices. The Certified Sustainable Destination program is fulfilled
by Green Destinations, a GSTC-Accredited Certification Body and is the pinnacle achievement
for a destination to validate their global leadership in sustainable destination management.
During the application process, Aspen is required to meet and maintain progress on over 40
sustainability criteria including: environmental stewardship, climate change adaptation,
greenhouse gas reductions, cultural heritage protection, low impact transportation, waste
reduction, public health and safety, workforce housing, sustainability education, and more.
Following the essay submission process, a desk auditor confirms compliance and then we will
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be awarded a 3rd party independent auditor who will visit us in early December to confirm
compliance. At that point we will receive certification.
Benefits for a destination to become certified:
• Elevated Credibility and Leadership
• Attracting Responsible Investments
• Community Synergy
• Economic Growth with Responsibility
• Local Business Empowerment
• Protection of Cultural Heritage
• Demonstrated Resilience
• Global Competitiveness
A few statistics from Green Destinations:
- Sustainable products have an overall 17% market share and a 32% share of growth
- Products marketed as sustainable grew 2.7x faster than those who were not
- 78% of consumers feel that sustainability is important
- 55% of consumer are willing to pay more for eco -friendly brands
- 84% of customers say that poor sustainable practices will alienate them from a brand
- 65% of travelers feel better when staying in a certified place, 34% are willing to pay
more for a sustainable option (booking.com 2023)
- 74% of travelers want more sustainable options, 51% of travelers say there is not
enough sustainable options
o .1% of accommodation is certified
o 0.0% of tourism supply chain is certified
o 2023 booking.com
Overall, the ongoing process of evaluation and improvement helps Aspen remain relevant and
competitive in the evolving travel industry.
Please contact the Destination Management Department for further questions about this
process.
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MEMORANDUM OF INFORMATION
TO: Sara Ott, City Manager
FROM:Nancy Lesley,Director of Special Events
Erin Loughlin Molliconi,Utilities Field
Operations Manager
Steve Barr,Parks,Operations Manager
THROUGH: Austin Weiss, Director of Parks and Recreation
Scott Miller, Public Works Director
Tyler Christoff, Deputy Director, Public Works
MEMO DATE: October 25, 2023
RE: 2023 World Snow Polo Championships- Snowmaking
SUMMARY AND BACKGROUND:
City staff has reviewed and approved the application for Snow Polo to beheld
December 16th and 17th in Rio Grande Park. The Aspen Valley Polo Club signs a
Park Lease with the Parks Department which requires that a certain amount of snow
must cover the parkto protect the grass during the event. In order to meet the terms
of the lease, the Club has requested the option to make snow,if necessary, for the
event.
Forthe past ten out of eleven years, Mother Nature hasn't provided sufficient natural
snow for the event to beheld. Inthose cases, the Club has contracted with the
Aspen Skiing Company and made snow specifically for the event. There is a strong
chance that snowmaking will need to happen for this event to move forward.
Snowmaking dates are targeted for November 17
th – December 9
th, dependent
upon outdoor temperature and river flow requirements.
The water source requested by the Ski Company for snowmaking this year is
located on the south side of Rio Grande Place (City Hall side). This requires a
street closure from the east side of the City Hall/bank entrance to the west side of
the parking garage entrance to ensure the hose connection remains intact during
snowmaking. There is still access to the City Hall and Bank parking lot and Parking
Garage. Staff will work with the Ski Company to take advantage of optimal
temperatures overnight to lessen the impact and hopefully only have closed streets
7pm to 7am, unless extenuating circumstances dictate otherwise. Staff will also
require a traffic control plan, traffic control personnel and a Ski Company liaison on
site during snowmaking.
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DISCUSSION:
In March of 2023, Council went back to Stage I Water Shortage (Resolution #085,
Series of 2023) declaration. The focus of the adopted water reduction measures is
on outdoor irrigation which isthe primary water use inthe summer and early fall. The
specifics of the Stage Irestrictions are described in Title 25 of the municipal code.
Since City water customers are under Stage Iwater restrictions, staff has been
discussing the implications of the restrictions as it may pertain to making snow for this
event. If the following conditions are met,then staff believes that snowmaking can
comply with the current water restrictions.
Conditions for use of Aspen's water supply for snowmaking at this event
include:
•Sufficient water must be available in the system at the time of snowmaking.
Water Department staff will evaluate the following criteria to
make this determination immediately prior to the event:
o Ability to meet Aspen's existing domestic use
o Ability to meet existing in-stream flow requirements for Maroon
Creek and Castle Creek.
o Ability to meet all existing water contracts.
•Cost of the water, materials for safe connection,and associated staff labor
will be covered by the event.
•Water Department staff will manage the water system connection and
work with the Parks Department and Aspen Skiing Company to ensure
safe and effective operations.
•Snowmaking operations will use water efficiently and not allow water to
puddle or runoff the Rio Grande Park into the streets.
•Water use will have a backflow prevention device and be metered to
allow an accurate accounting of water used.
·
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
The cost of the Water Department staff time, materials for safe connection, and
metered water will be billed to the event.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS:
The process of snowmaking involves electricity and treated water. Making artificial
snow during a Stage I water restriction in town will use a significant amount of water
for a non-critical event.
Snow making can also create noise issues when done in close proximity to residential
or commercial operations. The use of the quieter types of snow making equipment
for this event in recent years has been successful in mitigating this impact. Moving
the location to Wagner Park may increase the likelihood of noise challenges.
No direction is needed from Council.
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