Volume 19, Issue 4 | April 2022
TIAK TALK NEWSLETTER
Published monthly for members of the Travel Industry Association of Kansas.
PRESIDENT'S REPORT
By Julie Roller Weeks
Abilene Convention & Visitors Bureau

It’s a great day in Kansas! April showers bring May flowers. So what do May flowers bring? Pilgrims. Mayflowers bring Pilgrims, and… travelers!

With spring break in the rearview mirror, we happily welcome increased travel and outdoor events. Our calendars of events are full, the visitor information requests are rolling in, phones are ringing, and visitors’ centers are hopping. And, as my DAR Chapter says: May Day is Pay Day. Now is the time when we anxiously await the Kansas Department of Revenue’s Transient Guest Tax and Sales Tax reports that show increased economic activity.

But despite the busy time of year, we cannot forget this is also when cities and counties begin their budgeting. Do not wait to tell your story and advocate for tourism. Get in the ears of decision-makers early to earn a seat at the table and a line in the budget. If you wait to engage until August, it’s too late. Prepare and schedule your budget presentations, invite elected officials to your events, send a few extra press releases to the newspaper, and show up. Sometimes simply showing up at a meeting can make a difference in your budget. It’s much harder to cut budgets or ignore requests when electeds don’t regularly see you. Council and Commission meetings can be time-consuming, and listening to agenda items that do not affect your work can be tedious. But being present matters.

I look forward to seeing you all in person again very soon. To the Stars...
Board Member Spotlight: Amy Dollar & Allison Calvin

Beyond the boardroom, there’s a lot of work that goes into keeping TIAK a well-respected and impeccably-run association. While our staff, Natalie, Marlee, and Amy keep things going on a daily basis and surely make the board member roles easier, we want to give a big shout out to our board of directors for the tireless efforts and support they lend to this association, their own communities, and the tourism industry. Read more.
REMINDER: Marketing Award Applications Open June 1
Only one month until submissions go live for the 2022 TIAK Marketing Awards. You can enter one submission per category in your budget group: Community Awareness, Event, Print, Online Media, and Visitor Guide. Submissions go live on June 1, so plan now!
Base Grant Program Awardees

The BASE grant program includes infrastructure investments associated with economic development projects including the development of new business parks; development of infrastructure required to support business expansions; renovation of existing business parks to bring them up to modern standards; development of infrastructure such as railroad spurs, water, wastewater, storm-water and other utilities; driveway aprons; business park signage; parking facilities directly associated with business attraction projects; speculative industrial office and residential space; development of infrastructure related to cybersecurity investments; and other projects that achieve the goal of expanding the state’s base of businesses and residents.

Click here for a list of the projects that were awarded Base grants this year.
Three Communities Rejoining Kansas Main Street Program

Great Bend, Hays, and Salina rejoin Kansas Main Street Program, which targets preservation and revitalization of downtown districts.

On April 14, Governor Laura Kelly announced that the communities of Great Bend, Hays, and Salina will return to the Kansas Main Street program. Kansas Main Street helps communities preserve and revitalize their downtown districts by helping them develop a comprehensive strategy.

“The Kansas Main Street network continues to grow, and it’s great to see communities that were previously part of the program rejoin this year,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Today’s announcement is a sign for the future of our state’s vibrant downtowns and the state’s economy. It’s clear the Kansas Main Street program is not only back on its feet—it’s now stronger than ever.”

The Kansas Main Street program, initially launched in 1985, has helped dozens of primarily rural communities work toward maintaining and enhancing the viability of their downtown districts. The program is a self-help technical assistance program focused on organization, design, promotion, and economic restructuring. Read more.
Kansas Historical Society Chief Passes

Jennie Chinn was executive director of the Kansas Historical Society, the state agency, from 2004 until her passing on April 23, 2022.

As executive director she co-chaired 150th anniversary commemorations for Kansas Territory and Kansas Statehood. She chaired exhibit teams for the Kansas Museum of History and Kansas State Historic Sites, including Kaw Mission and Last Chance Store Museums State Historic Site in Council Grove, reopening later this year. In addition to leading the agency, she also served as State Historic Preservation Officer. Jennie co-chaired the Capital Preservation Committee, among the recent projects were the Brown v. Board of Education mural and work to honor the state’s women’s suffrage movement. Read more.
What Senate Bill 50 Means to the Vacation Rentals in Kansas
Jim Prugh, Owner, Lindsborg Vacation Rentals

As a vacation rental owner, I’d like to share how Senate Bill 50 (SB50) affects the vacation rental community in Kansas. I learned that short-term vacation rental owners usually pay sales and transient guest taxes, but not always.

Like many of you, my properties are listed on Airbnb. But the majority of my guests book directly through my business website that employs “property management software” to integrate bookings, dynamic pricing, newsletters and snagging guests’ emails.

If your vacation rentals are just a side hustle, read no further. Stay with Airbnb – they are good, but not as great as guests and hosts believe.

If you run your vacation rental business professionally, please continue.

Until recently, none of my properties fell under the Kansas Department of Revenue (KDOR) Publication 1540. KDOR advised me years ago that my studio apartments and individual homes were not defined as “hotels,” so taxes wouldn’t apply. Read more.
How are you Celebrating NTTW?

National Travel and Tourism Week is an annual tradition for the U.S. travel community. It’s a time when travel and tourism professionals across the country unite to celebrate the value travel holds for our economy, businesses, communities and personal well-being.

If you are hosting an event next week, we want to know! Tell us how your community is celebrating by emailing: office@tiak.org.
March Lodging Report

TIAK has an agreement with Smith Travel Research (STR) to provide members with statewide reports on hotel occupancy each month. The following data is provided directly from STR:


Kansas had 63% property participation and 77% hotel room participation in March.
The U.S. Travel Association announced the following key highlights from March's monthly travel data report:

  • In February 2022, travel spending ($83 billion) was 6% below 2019 levels, an improvement from the omicron-led regression to -12% in January, and nearly back to December’s pandemic peak of “only” -4%

  • Nearly nine in 10 Americans (85%) are expecting to travel this summer—eight in 10 plan to travel in their personal vehicles and 46% plan to fly. Close to half (48%) plan to take two weeks or more time off

  • Close to six in 10 (59%) American travelers believe travel prices are too high right now and one third reported that high prices prevented them from traveling in the past month

  • More than three-quarters (77%) of business travelers and 64% of employed Americans agree it is more important than ever to bring back business travel

  • Overseas travel to the U.S.—which improved from -78% (vs 2019) in October to -51% in December, but regressed to -65% in January due to omicron—remained 60% below 2019 levels in February

Welcome TIAK's Newest Member!

Lindsborg Vacation
& Executive Rentals

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Virtual Tourism Huddle
May 11

TIAK Executive Committee Meetings
June 8, July 14, September 8, November 10

TIAK Board Meetings
June 9, August 11, October 17, December 8

Educational Seminar
June 9, Parsons