Mayor Larson lays the path for the future of tourism

Mayor Emily Larson made three tourism announcements during a press conference Tuesday.

Firstly, the Tourism Tax Application is opening Wednesday, August 10th.

The online application will be open until September 8th.

The application process was implemented five years ago as a way to improve transparency on how allocations are made; this formalized process has improved the City’s ability to better understand the need for tourism dollars while allowing organizations the opportunity to apply for funding and requiring past recipients to report back on that funding’s impact. Funding recommendations are expected to be presented to City Council for a vote in October.

Secondly, after sorting through 28 applications, the city has selected Bellmont Partners and their collaborative partners at Lawrence & Schiller to take over this year for tourism marketing services and convention sales in Duluth.

Mayor Emily Larson saying of the decision, “This community is proud of tourism and events and our place in the state and the nation’s heart – Bellmont Partners is the right choice to grow, to elevate our brand, to expand audiences, and to represent our whole community.”

Finally, the City of Duluth will be creating a Tourism, Arts, and Culture position. This position will be paid for out of Tourism Tax collections and manage relationships, outcomes, and goals for tourism and arts in Duluth.

It is expected that this position will be posted for application in the coming months.