Lodging Panel Receives Long-Range Funding Requests

Jack Van Hook from Spreading Antlers Board

The Prowers County Lodging Tax Panel entertained some new ideas for funding requests during their monthly meeting on October 20^th.  The first came from the Spreading Antlers Golf Course, represented by Gib Sprout and Jack Van Hook, board members of the club.  Van Hook explained that in an effort to bring more revenue into the golf course, the board decided to offer a ‘stay and play’ discount to golfers who would show either a motel room key or a receipt at the club.  “Showing a key will get a player a 25% discount off their play, now through April of 2016,” he explained.  The board members were asking for any amount of funding from the panel to help pay for advertising and to send information pamphlets to other golf courses to increase player awareness.

“We want to concentrate on the Front Range, especially during the winter months,” Van Hook explained, adding that golf courses up there are snowed in through the winter, while Spreading Antlers can accommodate golfers in temperatures from 42 degrees and up, so long as the clubhouse is open. He added that those golfers won’t travel alone, would be more likely to spend a night in a motel and use a restaurant or gas station during their visit.  “Our thought is that if they come down here and golf, they’ll come back.  The course is looking the best that is has in about the past ten years.  This can be a win-win situation for everyone,” Van Hook stated.  The Panel approved $1,000 which will be used for both marketing along the Front Range, Pueblo and Colorado Springs, and as expenditures for the cost of advertising pamphlets.

Rose Ann and Bob Yates at Two Shot Dinner

Rose Ann Yates requested $10,000 from the Panel for expenses for next year’s 49^th Annual Two Shot Goose Hunt for both marketing and trophy and contract fee expenses.  The Panel approved $5,000 for the event which brings hunters to Lamar from around the country each December to take part in the week long shooting event.  Yates said there will be some improvements to this year’s itinerary, “Our guide chairman, Jeff Travis, suggested we split the two days of the hunt between two teams.  Usually we have eight teams but have been limited by the number of guide and hunting areas we can provide.  Jeff thought we could add four more teams, but split the hunters into two groups.  Half the teams will hunt on Thursday while the remainder will do sporting clays and the upland hunt and we’ll switch on Friday.”  Yates said this way; the Two Shot can provide more teams and visitors.  She added the Wednesday auction has seen as many as 400 people in attendance, “I know we will get a lot of people who come down from Pueblo and other outlying areas and they will spend the night just to participate.”

Donnie McBee

Donnie McBee received $200 to help publicize the second annual Lamar Elks Toy Show, set for January 9^th at the Lamar Elks Lodge.  “We’re trying to build a toy show, based on how it’s run in Longmont, the largest one in the state,” he explained.  McBee said last year’s, held at the Cow Palace, was put together on the fly and had 14 tables.  “This year, we’re hoping to increase from 20 to 30 tables and bring some money in from outside the area, but we have to have enough tables to become self-sustaining,” he told the Panel.  He added that in order to have the show work, there needs to be 80% of the tables for commercial sales and at least 60% of the walk in customers should come from outside the area.  “Last year, the biggest buyer at my table came in from Trinidad,” he said.

2014 Toy Show Model Display

McBee said he’s not looking to attract crafted items for the show, but will concentrate more on antique toys, ag toys, NASCAR items and racing oriented toys. “Things like Beanie Babies have had their run and there’s little interest in them,” he explained and said, “If we have dolls they need to be very old and in excellent condition.  Some places, like Dodge City, display mostly farm toys and that limits the number of entrants and people who come.”  He plans on a $2 admission and commercial tables will be $25 and general display tables will cost $15.

Becky Navarrette, representing the Girls in the Middle annual conference in Lamar requested and received $200 from the Panel to help advertise the one-day gathering which will be held March 5^th next year at Lamar Community College.  “We have had as many as 100 girls attend, from Campo, Eads, Holly, Wiley and Granada.  We seem to have trouble attracting young girls from our Lamar area and we hope to change that,” she said.  The conference is geared to educate girls from the 6^th through 8^th grades that their goals in life are attainable and various presenters from the region speak to them about their academic and professional history and what it took to achieve their own goals.

Lodging Panel members voted to pledge $15,000 to the Colorado Junior Rodeo Association, a move that will help keep the annual August event in Lamar for at least one more year. Danielle Wollert, representing the Association, explained that Pueblo has made a bid to host the finals next summer.  She said that Pueblo, which has hosted the Little Britches National Finals, was informed that event is moving to Oklahoma.  “They asked us if we would consider moving the Junior event and offered us a bid to leave Prowers County,” she explained, adding, “The board has talked about this scenario, and at this point, we would like to stay in Lamar if we can get a financial commitment.”

She acknowledged that a Panel decision now would be early on the calendar. “It’s only October, but we’re talking about the plans for next August,” she acknowledged and asked for some form of financial commitment from board members.  Two years ago, the Panel voted to provide $15,000 for the event, but last year, only authorized $5,000 based on a lack of required information on the number of motel rooms any event books in the county.  This year the Association documented just over 100 rooms were rented a day over the three day event.  Wollert said that decrease made it tough on them, but not impossible. She explained that in light of the Pueblo offer, which was not specified, they would like to receive the full funding they had two years ago.  “People like the feel of Lamar, the community has been welcoming to them and that has meant a lot,” she stated.  Wollert added that the Association restructured some of the event times to allow more people free time in the town for shopping and dining.

Board member Ruthie Esgar mentioned that if the Association leaves to go to Pueblo, Lamar will never be able to get it back, adding that they (Prowers County) can’t compete with Pueblo. “I think you can,” countered Wollert. “You’re comparing apples to oranges. As a committee member, it would be very hard for us. We’re going to stay in Lamar for zero, and we’re going to be turning something down from Pueblo. However, we can stay in Lamar for something, because it’s been so successful.”  She stated that Lamar has a good track record for hosting the Juniors, there’s a lot of space at the arena and the town has a lot to offer.

By Russ Baldwin