Arkansas State Parks, Recreation and Travel Commission Report
August 16-17, 2007, Petit Jean State Park
Morrilton, Arkansas
Executive Director’s Report
It was presented to the commission that the Little Rock District of the Corps of Engineers has approved two new policies on Commercial Zones at Marina Concession Sites and Flotation Standards for Commercial Boat Docks. As a result of the establishment of a commercial zone, only marina customers and patrons are permitted within 50 feet of the marina fuel and store docks. In the interest of preserving the safety and security of the concession operator and marina patron’s property, casting of lures and hooks beneath and onto marina facilities will be restricted. The policy regarding flotation standards for commercial boat docks has been developed to promote a more environmentally friendly, aesthetically appealing, and safe facility for the public’s enjoyment while utilizing the water resource. All flotation on marinas has to be encapsulated within the next 10 years. The commission expressed concern about the economic impact that would have on private operators.
State Parks Division:
Marketing
The fall radio ads were approved. The ads target fall trip ideas in state parks, including fall color, and family oriented trips. For more information, contact Joan Ellison or Joe Jacobs at (501) 682-2873.
Land Acquisitions
The commission voted to acquire two lots of land adjacent to Lake Poinsett State Park that are included in the approved acquisition plan.
The commission voted to accept the donation of the historic small select seed warehouse from an adjacent landowner to the Plantation Agriculture Museum. It was part of the original Dortch Seed Warehouse operation. For more information, contact Rex Friedman or Connie Gardner at (501) 682-7743.
Fees and Rates
Preliminary approval was given for the recommendations for the state park fees and rates for 2008. The proposed recommendations will be opened for public comment Aug. 18 through September 26. At the September 27 meeting, the commission will make final adjustments and approval of the 2008 fees and rates. The proposed rates may be reviewed at any Arkansas State Park, the ASP Central Office in Little Rock or on the Secretary of State Web site, www.sosweb.state.ar.us. For more information, contact Greg Butts at (501) 682-7743.
Golf Course Update
The commission received an update on the building of the golf course at Village Creek State Park. Seeding and sodding will be completed on the first 18 holes by mid-September 2007. The remaining nine holes of the 27-hole Andy Dye design course will be completed by early summer 2008. Plans call for the course to open to the public by the summer of 2008. For more information, contact Stan Graves at 501-682-7743.
Parks Web site Update
The new ArkansasStateParks.com Web site redesign was launched in May.
Aristotle reported that the number of video views on the Web site is on the rise compared to last year. The top four video downloads were of Crater of Diamonds State Park, Devil’s Den State Park, Lake Ouachita State Park and Queen Wilhemina State Park.
In search engine rankings, the ArkansasStateParks.com site comes up number one for several phrases, including Arkansas Cabins, Arkansas Hiking, Arkansas Hiking Trails, Arkansas Lodges and Arkansas Places to Visit.
A new section for the 75th Anniversary of the state parks system, which will be celebrated next year, is being added to the site. It will have an interactive time line. For example, a person could put in their birth date and find out what was happening in the state parks during that time.
Tourism Division
Web site Update
Aristotle reported that the new mini-site on Central High launched this week. The site includes information on the 50th anniversary of the Central High Crisis. In September 2007, Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site will join with the City of Little Rock and others to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the desegregation events at Central High. It also contains a calendar of events and information on the Central High Visitor Center Museum, history, photography, directions and a map.
Other new features on Arkansas.com include a mobile site, which contains condensed, text only information for people to access via phone or PDA. By visiting Arkansas.com/ mobile, information can be found on Packages and Hot Deals, Calendar of Events, Enewsletter sign-up, Attractions and Lodging. The new Summer Festivals and Events page provides information and links to parks and outdoors, watersports, enewsletters and Hot Deals.
A new Spanish video can be viewed at Arkansas.com/espanol. It shows attractions for all regions of the state and is family-oriented. A video about relocation to Arkansas can be found at RelocatetoArkansas.com.
The top three media and downloads on Arkansas.com for July were Financials (an economic report of last fiscal year), Motorcycling, and Heritage and Civil Rights Pathways in Arkansas. Arkansas.com remained consistent in ranking 4th in visits in the "All 50 State Tourism Sites" online industry of the 50 Web sites that were ranked by Hitwise for July 2007. It again ranked first among contiguous state tourism sites - Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
Communications
Communications Manager Jana Greenbaum reported that the Travel South food site is expected to go live next week and Arkansas is mentioned in several areas of the site.
Several articles have been published by travel writers that attended the Regional Media Days Familiarization Tours in the spring focusing on numerous cities and attractions in the Delta, Ouachita, River Valley and Ozarks regions. For more information, contact Jana Greenbaum at (501) 682-7606.
Tourism Development
The section is encouraging communities to check the accuracy of their events for the Spring/Summer Calendar of Events. The deadline to submit events for March 1, 2008 through Sept. 2008 is Aug. 27.
One county applied for the Arkansas Tourist Attraction Feasibility Grants. Ouachita County asked for $10,000 to study the feasibility of construction of an approximately 9,000-square-foot, recreational lake. For more information, contact Donna Perrin at (501) 682-1926.
Group Travel
The section is preparing for the travel show season, which will start in September. Additionally, more carp fishermen from the United Kingdom will return to Arkansas in September. The section is scouting additional waters for the fishing visit. For more information, contact Mindy Hawes at (501) 682-1219.
Advertising/Marketing Report
CJRW reported the detailed schedule for the Fall/Winter television schedule, which was approved in May by the Commission. The schedule will air over a three-week period from Sept. 24 through Oct. 14, 2007. The marketing firm also provided a post-buy summary on the Spring/Summer 2007 television schedule.
Regional Tourism Association Sub-Committee Meeting
Commissioner Wade Williams reported that the committee formed to re-evaluate the regional tourism promotional program set goals for the program and discussed the results of a survey regarding best practices and greatest challenges the associations face. For more information, contact Donna Perrin at (501) 682-1926.
Information Requests/Welcome Centers
The Research and Information Services Section processed 18,156 requests for information during July 2007, a decrease from July 2006. The year-to-date total of requests is 15.4 percent above the same period last year at 328,694.
Preparations are underway for the upcoming Spring/Summer Mail Conversion Study. Staff met with Aristotle on Aug. 7 to plan the spring/Summer Online Conversion Study.
Arkansas State Welcome Center visitation was 116,589 in July, down 3.2 percent from July 2006. January through July visitation is 519,530, down 3 percent from last year at this time.
Plans are underway for the Fall Welcome Center Managers’ Meeting to be held Sept. 10-11 at DeGray Lake Resort. Plans are also being finalized for the Fall Arkansas State Welcome Center Familiarization Tour, which will be held the week of Sept. 24-28 and cover the Ozark Gateway and Ozark Mountain regions. For more information, contact Joanne Hinson at (501) 324-1520.
The Commission toured Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain. The center is an educational facility with conference space, recreational activities, dining and lodging that is open to groups and the public. For more information, visit www.UAWRI.org.
Morrilton, Arkansas
Executive Director’s Report
It was presented to the commission that the Little Rock District of the Corps of Engineers has approved two new policies on Commercial Zones at Marina Concession Sites and Flotation Standards for Commercial Boat Docks. As a result of the establishment of a commercial zone, only marina customers and patrons are permitted within 50 feet of the marina fuel and store docks. In the interest of preserving the safety and security of the concession operator and marina patron’s property, casting of lures and hooks beneath and onto marina facilities will be restricted. The policy regarding flotation standards for commercial boat docks has been developed to promote a more environmentally friendly, aesthetically appealing, and safe facility for the public’s enjoyment while utilizing the water resource. All flotation on marinas has to be encapsulated within the next 10 years. The commission expressed concern about the economic impact that would have on private operators.
State Parks Division:
Marketing
The fall radio ads were approved. The ads target fall trip ideas in state parks, including fall color, and family oriented trips. For more information, contact Joan Ellison or Joe Jacobs at (501) 682-2873.
Land Acquisitions
The commission voted to acquire two lots of land adjacent to Lake Poinsett State Park that are included in the approved acquisition plan.
The commission voted to accept the donation of the historic small select seed warehouse from an adjacent landowner to the Plantation Agriculture Museum. It was part of the original Dortch Seed Warehouse operation. For more information, contact Rex Friedman or Connie Gardner at (501) 682-7743.
Fees and Rates
Preliminary approval was given for the recommendations for the state park fees and rates for 2008. The proposed recommendations will be opened for public comment Aug. 18 through September 26. At the September 27 meeting, the commission will make final adjustments and approval of the 2008 fees and rates. The proposed rates may be reviewed at any Arkansas State Park, the ASP Central Office in Little Rock or on the Secretary of State Web site, www.sosweb.state.ar.us. For more information, contact Greg Butts at (501) 682-7743.
Golf Course Update
The commission received an update on the building of the golf course at Village Creek State Park. Seeding and sodding will be completed on the first 18 holes by mid-September 2007. The remaining nine holes of the 27-hole Andy Dye design course will be completed by early summer 2008. Plans call for the course to open to the public by the summer of 2008. For more information, contact Stan Graves at 501-682-7743.
Parks Web site Update
The new ArkansasStateParks.com Web site redesign was launched in May.
Aristotle reported that the number of video views on the Web site is on the rise compared to last year. The top four video downloads were of Crater of Diamonds State Park, Devil’s Den State Park, Lake Ouachita State Park and Queen Wilhemina State Park.
In search engine rankings, the ArkansasStateParks.com site comes up number one for several phrases, including Arkansas Cabins, Arkansas Hiking, Arkansas Hiking Trails, Arkansas Lodges and Arkansas Places to Visit.
A new section for the 75th Anniversary of the state parks system, which will be celebrated next year, is being added to the site. It will have an interactive time line. For example, a person could put in their birth date and find out what was happening in the state parks during that time.
Tourism Division
Web site Update
Aristotle reported that the new mini-site on Central High launched this week. The site includes information on the 50th anniversary of the Central High Crisis. In September 2007, Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site will join with the City of Little Rock and others to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the desegregation events at Central High. It also contains a calendar of events and information on the Central High Visitor Center Museum, history, photography, directions and a map.
Other new features on Arkansas.com include a mobile site, which contains condensed, text only information for people to access via phone or PDA. By visiting Arkansas.com/ mobile, information can be found on Packages and Hot Deals, Calendar of Events, Enewsletter sign-up, Attractions and Lodging. The new Summer Festivals and Events page provides information and links to parks and outdoors, watersports, enewsletters and Hot Deals.
A new Spanish video can be viewed at Arkansas.com/espanol. It shows attractions for all regions of the state and is family-oriented. A video about relocation to Arkansas can be found at RelocatetoArkansas.com.
The top three media and downloads on Arkansas.com for July were Financials (an economic report of last fiscal year), Motorcycling, and Heritage and Civil Rights Pathways in Arkansas. Arkansas.com remained consistent in ranking 4th in visits in the "All 50 State Tourism Sites" online industry of the 50 Web sites that were ranked by Hitwise for July 2007. It again ranked first among contiguous state tourism sites - Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
Communications
Communications Manager Jana Greenbaum reported that the Travel South food site is expected to go live next week and Arkansas is mentioned in several areas of the site.
Several articles have been published by travel writers that attended the Regional Media Days Familiarization Tours in the spring focusing on numerous cities and attractions in the Delta, Ouachita, River Valley and Ozarks regions. For more information, contact Jana Greenbaum at (501) 682-7606.
Tourism Development
The section is encouraging communities to check the accuracy of their events for the Spring/Summer Calendar of Events. The deadline to submit events for March 1, 2008 through Sept. 2008 is Aug. 27.
One county applied for the Arkansas Tourist Attraction Feasibility Grants. Ouachita County asked for $10,000 to study the feasibility of construction of an approximately 9,000-square-foot, recreational lake. For more information, contact Donna Perrin at (501) 682-1926.
Group Travel
The section is preparing for the travel show season, which will start in September. Additionally, more carp fishermen from the United Kingdom will return to Arkansas in September. The section is scouting additional waters for the fishing visit. For more information, contact Mindy Hawes at (501) 682-1219.
Advertising/Marketing Report
CJRW reported the detailed schedule for the Fall/Winter television schedule, which was approved in May by the Commission. The schedule will air over a three-week period from Sept. 24 through Oct. 14, 2007. The marketing firm also provided a post-buy summary on the Spring/Summer 2007 television schedule.
Regional Tourism Association Sub-Committee Meeting
Commissioner Wade Williams reported that the committee formed to re-evaluate the regional tourism promotional program set goals for the program and discussed the results of a survey regarding best practices and greatest challenges the associations face. For more information, contact Donna Perrin at (501) 682-1926.
Information Requests/Welcome Centers
The Research and Information Services Section processed 18,156 requests for information during July 2007, a decrease from July 2006. The year-to-date total of requests is 15.4 percent above the same period last year at 328,694.
Preparations are underway for the upcoming Spring/Summer Mail Conversion Study. Staff met with Aristotle on Aug. 7 to plan the spring/Summer Online Conversion Study.
Arkansas State Welcome Center visitation was 116,589 in July, down 3.2 percent from July 2006. January through July visitation is 519,530, down 3 percent from last year at this time.
Plans are underway for the Fall Welcome Center Managers’ Meeting to be held Sept. 10-11 at DeGray Lake Resort. Plans are also being finalized for the Fall Arkansas State Welcome Center Familiarization Tour, which will be held the week of Sept. 24-28 and cover the Ozark Gateway and Ozark Mountain regions. For more information, contact Joanne Hinson at (501) 324-1520.
The Commission toured Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain. The center is an educational facility with conference space, recreational activities, dining and lodging that is open to groups and the public. For more information, visit www.UAWRI.org.
Submitted by the Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism
One Capitol Mall, Little Rock, AR 72201, 501-682-7606
E-mail: info@arkansas.com
May be used without permission. Credit line is appreciated:
"Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism"