State Parks, Recreation and Travel Commission Meeting Summary

The following is a synopsis of the Arkansas State Parks, Recreation and Travel Commission meeting held July 23, 2009, at the Holiday Inn in Springdale, Arkansas. For questions regarding this report, please contact Gloria Robins, executive assistant, at 501-682-7614.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT

The commission voted to implement paperless commission meetings in order to do its share to keep Arkansas the “Natural State." Commissioners and staff will now access the commission documents via a new Web site designated for the meeting. They will be able to view information prior to the meeting and view documents on computers during the meeting.

The commission toured Weber Mountain, a 180-acre site on the east side of Springdale. The owners are interested in developing it as a park. While there is a moratorium on any new state park, state personnel will help the group working to preserve the land by providing contacts of groups or people that might be able to help. For more information, contact Gloria Robins at 501-682-7614.

PARKS DIVISION

Lake Dardanelle
Arkansas Tech University has proposed donating a double stall dock for ATU and state park management use. Currently there are no facilities for the park rescue boat and interpretive tour barge. The commission approved the agreement. For more information, contact Stan Graves at 501-682-1633.

Proposed CY 2010 Fees & Rates
Staff distributed preliminary CY 2010 fees and rates recommendations for review at the August meeting and approval at the September meeting. As part of administrative procedure, September will be a public meeting. For more information, contact Kris Richardson at 501-682-6918.

Lake Chicot
Staff reported on the final lodge/environmental education facility feasibility assessment for Lake Chicot State Park that was provided by the Capital Hotel Management-Government Services. The market assessment indicates that there is not sufficient market demand to support the development of a 60-room lodging facility at Lake Chicot State Park at this time. The proposal for a lodge and education facility will be re-evaluated with consideration of whether or not the area could support a smaller facility. For more information, contact Greg Butts at 501-682-7743.

Delta Heritage Trail – Rail Disposition
Staff provided an update from the June 22 meeting with area officials and legislators concerning their proposal for the governor to request a Federal Highway Administration waiver to utilize the surplus rail for Southeast Arkansas projects. For more information, contact Greg Butts at 501-682-7743.

Capital Improvements Progress Report
Over $18 million in projects were completed and closed out during the first quarter. To date over $101 million in projects across the state park system have been completed from Amendment 75, Arkansas’s 1/8 cent Conservation Tax.

TOURISM DIVISION

Ouachita River Basin
The commission believes that a Reconnaissance Study of the Ouachita River and its tributaries in Arkansas and Louisiana would serve as a vehicle to bring federal, state, and local agencies together to study and determine the best utilization of water resources in this region of Louisiana and Arkansas. The Vicksburg District, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, located in Vicksburg, Mississippi, has responsibility for the development of water and land resources in the Ouachita River Basin and has expressed a capability to initiate such a study. A $200,000 Reconnaissance Study would be the first step in the process of conducting a much more detailed study assuming there is federal interest in pursuing the matter further. The commission approved a resolution requesting that Senator Blanche Lincoln, Senator Mark Pryor and Congressman Mike Ross support, through authorization and funding, a Reconnaissance Study, initiated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, of the Ouachita River and tributaries in Arkansas and Louisiana. The resolution also asks county and municipal governments and industries within the Ouachita River basin to support the authorization and funding of this project. For more information contact Joe David Rice at 501-682-1088.

Tourism Development Section
The 10th edition of Living in Arkansas retirement/relocation publication by Arkansas Business Publishing Group is now stocked in the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism warehouse. Seventy-five thousand copies were printed.

Descriptive letters and applications for the Arkansas Tourism Attraction Feasibility Study Matching Grant Program were sent to all Arkansas county judges, city mayors, and chambers of commerce. The information is also posted at www.ADPTFOI.com. There have been several inquiries so far, including Blytheville, Eureka Springs, Fairfield Bay, Helena-West Helena, Russellville, Tontitown, and the Arkansas River Connection counties. The first grant application deadline of the year is July 31, 2009. If the entire grant balance of $22,588 is not dispersed in July, the last two deadlines for Fiscal Year 2010 are Sept. 25 and Nov. 30. For more information, contact Kristine Puckett or Donna Perrin at 501-682-1676.

Research and Information Services Section
The Research and Information Services Section processed 29,523 requests for information during June 2009. The year-to-date total is 263,597, down 7.3 percent compared to the same period in 2008. There were 544 requests for retirement/relocation information in June, down 25.8 percent from June 2008. January-June requests are 5,456, down 11.4 percent. Arkansas State Welcome Center visitation was 108,049 in June, up 13.8 percent from June 2008. January-June visitation is 380,941, up 8.3 percent. The grand opening of the new Arkansas Welcome Center in Blytheville will be Aug. 7. For more information, contact Joanne Hinson at 501-324-1520.

Communications Section

Communications Section Manager Dena Woerner reported that her section is still gaining fans, friends, and followers on Facebook and Twitter, and spreading information about tourism in Arkansas through these social marketing and networking tools.

Woerner attended the Outdoor Writers’ Association of American Conference in Michigan last month. She reported that she spent one- on-one time with several editors, and pitched story ideas. Woerner and other staff members were invited last month to experience a Girls’ Getaway in the Ozark Mountain Region. Articles and photographs on niche subjects such as women fishing, and getaways for women in general will be produced from the experience.

Woerner also showed a portion of the NPI: Japanese Public Broadcasting Network’s documentary titled “Filling the Stomach of the World.” The 90-minute documentary on rice farming, agriculture, and rice production in the United States with a side focus on agritourism shows portions of Arkansas rice farming. For more information, contact Dena Woerner at 501-682-7606.

Group Travel Section

Inquiries for June 2009 were up 87 to 54 compared to this time last year. Year-to-date inquiries are at 706 for 2009 versus 541 for 2008. Of those inquiries, 199 are motorcycle related. Group Travel Manager Renee Robison said motorcycle travel in Arkansas is extremely popular and her section will look further into marketing to that group. There were 11,735 downloads from www.Arkansas.com for the “Let’s Ride 2008” PDF in June, according to Aristotle, the state’s Internet service provider. For more information, contact Renee Robison at 501-682-1219.

Internet-related items: Aristotle Benchmarks
Jon Eudy of Aristotle reported on June 2009 benchmarks for the state tourism Web site, www.Arkansas.com. The top 10 requested pages on the Web site were the Home Page, Places To Stay/Cabins, Attractions – Pike County, Maps, Things To Do, Free Vacation Kit, Hot Deals & Packages, Lakes & Rivers, Arkansas Kids, and Places To Stay.

The top 10 referring Web sites to www.Arkansas.com were Google, Yahoo!, Bing (MSN, Live Search), www.craterofdiamondsstatepark.com, AOL, www.arkansasstateparks.com, Ask, My Web Search, www.petitjeanstatepark.com, and Windows Live.

Key performance indicators were that visitor sessions increased 19.5 percent comparing June 2008 to June 2009. Unique visitors increased 16.6 percent comparing June 2008 to June 2009.

New Page Development
A new Racing and Gaming page went live this week with information on Oaklawn Park, Southland Greyhound Park and the new scholarship lottery. The new group travel site will go live soon and will include an electronic newsletter feature.

Other new pages that are now live on the Web include: Girls’ Getaways, Fishing Arkansas, Family Weekend Getaways, and the Historical Arkansas Anniversaries. The anniversaries page will include Civil War Sesquicentennial information. Upcoming production for August 2009 will involve: cross-linking program, embedding You Tube videos, Extreme Adventure Sports page, photos of Famous Arkansans, and a Haunted Arkansas page. For more information, contact Jonathon Eudy at 501-374-4638.

Advertising/Marketing Items: CJRW
Welcome to Arkansas program Scott Sudduth with the Arkansas Hospitality Association reported that 170 participation forms for the Welcome to Arkansas program were sent out at the first of year. Currently, over 32 cities, seven counties, and all of the regions are involved in the program. The program assists training of front line employees, such as restaurant wait staff, hotel desk staff, and gas station attendants, about what the city, region and state has to offer in the way of tourism. Familiarizing the front line employees as well as business leaders, and community and civic leaders gives them the knowledge to better assist travelers to the state.

KATV Partnership
The state is partnering with Channel 7 in Little Rock on a program called “Welcome to Arkansas.” The KATV weather cast is given from various locations throughout the state. In addition to the weather, the meteorologist provides information on history and/or things to do in that specific city or place. Some of the locales that have already been reported from this year include Crater of Diamonds State Park, Mount Magazine and Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs.

Bicycling Brochure
Approved in September, the latest brochure produced by CJRW and ADPT is on bicycling. One side of the brochure contains information regarding cycling on the road. The brochure can be flipped over and the other side details off-road cycling. The brochure provides a sampling of suggested rides within the state. A downloadable version is available on www.Arkansas.com. For more information, contact Karen Mullikin or Carrie Orahood at 501-975-6251.