Revising the TA might mean new name

As the board of the Local Marketing District, the Board of County Commissioners oversees the TA. In bringing the commissioners up to speed on rewriting the TA’s bylaws, deputy county attorney Art Trezise said reincorporating the TA as a new entity might be quicker than rebuilding it. “One of the ideas that did jump out that I was not expecting from the TA board was a possible name change for the Tourism Association,” Trezise said at a meeting Tuesday, November 4. “As I thought about it some more, what’s curious to me is that if we change the name and amend the bylaws, from an efficiency standpoint we are effectively creating a new entity.” TA board member Ryan Johnson told the commissioners that a subcommittee of TA board members had discussed the idea of changing the organization’s name to better capture the organization’s mission. He said there was also a feeling that a new name and amended bylaws might be the quickest way to get a new start. “The reason we were going to keep the TA was purely for the [expediency],” Johnson said. Expanding on that idea, Trezise said, “From an efficiency standpoint … it is easier to just go to the Secretary of State and file articles of incorporation, file the paperwork with the IRS for a 501c6 …” Commissioner Paula Swenson said, “So, realistically, a new organization could be done a lot quicker than amending the current bylaws.” The impetus for the change, Johnson said, is to clarify the role between the TA and the Board of County Commissioners and to make it easier for the public to understand who does what and how the various partners are related. “It seems like everybody’s confused about what board we’re talking about,” Johnson said, adding that the TA’s subcommittee had discussed including the word “marketing” in the organization’s name. The TA is also waiting for a branding study. The decision to rename the organization might wait for that to provide some guidance. But that guidance would still be a long way out, with the study not expected to start until next year. The renaming conversation will continue with input from the entire TA board at its next meeting on Thursday, November 13.