New big blue signs in SoWal

I have to respectfully disagree about some of the comments about the TDC board. Yes, most or them are good people and I don't want to imply otherwise. But, people should remember that most members of the TDC are people involved directly in the tourism industry. These people benefit from the activities of the TDC, and apparently the seats are very hard to come by.

I have tried with difficulty to find guidelines for appointment to the TDC. There was a gentleman sitting next to me at Wednesday's meeting who told me that the make-up of the TDC was specified, and a certain number had to represent developers and a number had to represent the hospitality industry. He also claimed that the TDC board members nominated their own replacements. I would love to know whether or not he was correct.

TDC Board Members

Scott Brannon, County Commissioner
Mary Jo Tommas, One Seagrove Place
Maurice Gilbert, Realty One Services
Ken Gifford, Rosemary Beach (opposed to signs from beginning)
Mike Strange, Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort
Mary Brown, Beach Rentals of South Walton
John Gillis, Trustmark Bank
Don McQuade, Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort
Tim Norris, Re/Max

Punzy, as requested:
From the County's website:

Boards and Committees
Tourist Development Council

meets:
2nd Wednesday, 9:00 am, TDC Building
P.O. Box 1248 Santa Rosa Beach FL 32459

contact (obviously old information)
Kriss Titus, TDC Executive Director BCC Staff (850) 267-1216

Authority: F.S. 125.0104 (4)(e)

Term of Appointment: 4 years; 1 BCC member, 2 elected city or special taxing district officials, 6 persons in the tourist industry. All must be county
residents and nominated through the sitting Tourist Development
Council to the BCC.

Mission or Function: To make recommendations to the BCC for the effective operation of the special projects or for uses of the tourist
development tax revenue and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by county ordinance or resolution. The council shall continuously review expenditures of revenues from the tourist development trust fund and shall receive, at least quarterly, expenditure reports from the county governing board or its designee. Expenditures which
the council believes to be unauthorized shall be reported to the county governing board and the Department of Revenue.

Also, for Committees, other than the TDC, here is a link to the form to volunteer on a Committee.

It seems obvious to me where the attitude that the TDC operates for the tourism industry rather than the community begins....

4 years; 1 BCC member, 2 elected city or special taxing district
officials, 6 persons in the tourist industry. All must be county
residents and nominated through the sitting Tourist Development
Council to the BCC.

This is not a very democratic body, is it?

I think at one time there was a series of committees of citizens attached to the TDC as well. I remember the Marketing Committee in particular. Anyone know if that dimension still exists?

I could not find any mention of these on the county website.

FSS 125.0104(4)(e) The governing board of each county which levies and imposes a tourist development tax under this section shall appoint an advisory council to be known as the " (name of county) Tourist Development Council." The council shall be established by ordinance and composed of nine members who shall be appointed by the governing board. The chair of the governing board of the county or any other member of the governing board as designated by the chair shall serve on the council. Two members of the council shall be elected municipal officials, at least one of whom shall be from the most populous municipality in the county or subcounty special taxing district in which the tax is levied. Six members of the council shall be persons who are involved in the tourist industry and who have demonstrated an interest in tourist development, of which members, not less than three nor more than four shall be owners or operators of motels, hotels, recreational vehicle parks, or other tourist accommodations in the county and subject to the tax. All members of the council shall be electors of the county. The governing board of the county shall have the option of designating the chair of the council or allowing the council to elect a chair. The chair shall be appointed or elected annually and may be reelected or reappointed. The members of the council shall serve for staggered terms of 4 years. The terms of office of the original members shall be prescribed in the resolution required under paragraph (b). The council shall meet at least once each quarter and, from time to time, shall make recommendations to the county governing board for the effective operation of the special projects or for uses of the tourist development tax revenue and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by county ordinance or resolution. The council shall continuously review expenditures of revenues from the tourist development trust fund and shall receive, at least quarterly, expenditure reports from the county governing board or its designee. Expenditures which the council believes to be unauthorized shall be reported to the county governing board and the Department of Revenue. The governing board and the department shall review the findings of the council and take appropriate administrative or judicial action to ensure compliance with this section. The changes in the composition of the membership of the tourist development council mandated by chapter 86-4, Laws of Florida, and this act shall not cause the interruption of the current term of any person who is a member of a council on October 1, 1996.

It seems obvious to me where the attitude that the TDC operates for the tourism industry rather than the community begins....

4 years; 1 BCC member, 2 elected city or special taxing district
officials, 6 persons in the tourist industry. All must be county
residents and nominated through the sitting Tourist Development
Council to the BCC.

This is not a very democratic body, is it?

As others have pointed out, the makeup is mandated by state law. What you point out punzy is exactly why we have to hold their feet to the fire, there is nothing democratic about it. I have repeatedly made the point that this is an unelected body. That makes it imperative that we demand accountability. It also make it important that we follow this sign issue with an independent audit of the TDC and it's operations. The previous Executive Director is responsible for the current attitude and posture of the TDC, it's time to clean house.

So are you suggesting that we demand the BCC to appoint new Directors to the TDC Board, or just to get the BCC to hire a real Director?

Is there anything in the state law that requires the board designate their own replacements? That is the part that strikes me as most insular and undemocratic. We should at least be able to hold BCC members accountable for the people they appoint to the TDC.

It seems to me that tourism is more than hotels and rental agencies. Restaurants, shops, spas, all these things are part of the tourism industry.

So are you suggesting that we demand the BCC to appoint new Directors to the TDC Board, or just to get the BCC to hire a real Director?

I'm wondering about the citizens' committee. What happened to it? Does it still exist? If not, I think that asking that it be reinstituted might be a great place to start.

So are you suggesting that we demand the BCC to appoint new Directors to the TDC Board, or just to get the BCC to hire a real Director?

The board members terms expire on a regular basis. We do need to examine how prospective new members are nominated; Punzy brings up a good point about the incestuous nature that nominating one's replacement brings about.
I think the need is for an experienced, professional exec director. The PCB convention and visitors bureau recently hired a director from a similar position in Georgia, I think. This followed the upheaval and eventual replacement of board members who were perceived to be in Charlie Hilton's pocket. I think someone from outside the area would be best.

Odd how Mr. Sean Boon failed to mention the letter I read to the workshop audience in his front page article. The letter personifies the majority position of the community and points out that Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach had the opportunity to "OPT" out of having signs in front of the towns. This is a very important point. This precedent really means any town may request they not be there. Here is the letter I read. Perhaps the press will read it here and mention it's importance in future articles.

Dave Rauschkolb




To: TDC Board of Directors

We know that you have received countless letters about the new signage along 30A, and you probably do not wish to read another one. But as the Founder of Seaside and as a Senior Vice President of The St. Joe Company who collectively represent approximately 500 units contributing significant revenue to the bed tax which supports your good work, we felt it important to reinforce what we understand to be the consensus along 30A?that the recently installed signage along 30A is inappropriate from an aesthetic perspective, particularly along a corridor which has been recently designated as a ?scenic highway?. We acknowledge that the TDC has invested considerable time and money into these signs and that there could be much debate about what type of signage, if any, would be appropriate. But the prevailing view, which we share, is that the new signage is not at all representative of ?what 30A is about? and that the signage should be removed.

It is our understanding that Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach learned about the proposed signs before their installation and elected to ?opt out?. Now that we have seen the signage, we would like to do what we would have done had we learned about the signs in advance of their installation?and that is to formally ?opt out? of this new signage initiative. We would like to have these signs removed from the entrances to our properties, but we also feel that the removal of these signs is important to the integrity of the entire 30A corridor. 30A is special in so many ways, including its characterization by some as the ?Design Coast? and by others as ?the nation?s laboratory for traditional neighborhood design?. We attract people from all over the world to this unique seaside venue ? from architecture professionals to full time residents, second home owners and vacation visitors. We would hope that their experience of this unique part of the Gulf Coast lives up to everything they have read about and seen on countless travelogues which extoll the natural beauty which the TDC has done so much to protect and to promote.

We are sensitive to the difficult issues that you must face from time to time, including this one, and are grateful for the time you and your dedicated staff put into bringing these issues to resolution. As we prepare for Spring Break activities and the summer season that follows, we respectfully request that the signage in proximity to Seaside and the communities of WaterColor, WaterSound Beach and WaterSound West Beach be removed while alternative solutions are being studied.

Respectfully,


Robert Davis, Founder of Seaside


Roderick T. Wilson, Senior Vice President, The St. Joe Company

Also, for the record. I am qoted in the Sun article as saying "All should be merry together." What I was referring to was that all the signs along Scenic 30 a should be MARRIED together using a cohesive, coordinated design. It's a spelling mistake by the author

I'm having flashbacks to the year when a still financially fragile group, the Cultural Arts Association, was rejected for any further financial support by the TDC for Artsquest....reason, "they weren't seeing additional room nights as a result of the annual Artsquest event"....fortunately, the St. Joe Foundation stepped up to the plate... otherwise,there might not have been an Artsquest that year.

Also, for the record. I am qoted in the Sun article as saying "All should be merry together." What I was referring to was that all the signs along Scenic 30 a should be MARRIED together using a cohesive, coordinated design. It's a spelling mistake

...yikes! Thank you SO much for posting that letter. I applaud Seaside and St. Joe. Dave...how did RB and Alys find out beforehand in order to opt out of these signs?

Also, for the record. I am qoted in the Sun article as saying "All should be merry together." What I was referring to was that all the signs along Scenic 30 a should be MARRIED together using a cohesive, coordinated design. It's a spelling mistake

thanks for noting the mistake, I was very confused by that quote in the article!

Rapunzel,

I have been unable to find anything that requires or allows the current board to name the replacements. I think the TDC just sends suggestions and the BCC approves them because it is so hard to get anyone to serve on these things.

Rapunzel,

I have been unable to find anything that requires or allows the current board to name the replacements. I think the TDC just sends suggestions and the BCC approves them because it is so hard to get anyone to serve on these things.

From the Walton County website --

Term of Appointment: 4 years; 1 BCC member, 2 elected city or special taxing district
officials, 6 persons in the tourist industry. All must be county
residents and nominated through the sitting Tourist Development
Council to the BCC.

http://www.co.walton.fl.us/citizen_services/Walton%20County%20Boards%20and%20Committees.pdf

...yikes! Thank you SO much for posting that letter. I applaud Seaside and St. Joe. Dave...how did RB and Alys find out beforehand in order to opt out of these signs?

One of the current board members is associated with RB. He was the only one to publicly object to the signs both at the February meeting and before.

From the Walton County website --

Term of Appointment: 4 years; 1 BCC member, 2 elected city or special taxing district
officials, 6 persons in the tourist industry. All must be county
residents and nominated through the sitting Tourist Development
Council to the BCC.

http://www.co.walton.fl.us/citizen_services/Walton County Boards and Committees.pdf

I understand that, but I do not see that rule in the statute or the ordinance used to create the committee. I am going to send an email to the legal department and see where that rule came from. Remember, sometimes things are done a certain way because that is the way they were done in the past.

I found this out when researching why DeFuniak Springs City Elections are non-partisan. There is no code or law that makes them that way, they just decided that they were and now everyone follows along like little lemmings.

As county road 30-A is not not a Federal highway, FDOT is not a mandate but rather a guideline. From what I could tell at Wednesday's TDC Workshop, the TDC did not take natural beauty, scenic pride, nor aesthetics into consideration when coming up with the designs for the signs. They simply took the GUIDELINES set forth by FDOT and the MUTCD and fashioned signs accordingly. In my estimate, a no-brainer. The gentleman from the TDC, who said they had to work within these guidelines did not say WHY they had to, nor WHO was pushing them to work within the guidelines. The question I asked at the meeting was never addressed by the TDC, nor was it written on their series of large white brainstorming tablets. I suppose it is because my prelude to the question, which negated the reason for the meeting, was 'when these signs are replaced.' So, I want to pose it here and find anyone's response. Since the wooden signs that the blue monster's replaced, were so beautiful and natural, being made of wood, were acceptable by the community, had the little south Walton sun unbrellas on them giving us the continuity that the TDC wanted for their need of branding, then why don't we demand to use the old wooden signs as templates for the new signs? The TDC can have them wind tested as they did the big blue monsters and adapt the new wooden signs accordingly. Better placement as well as size of signs or letters on the signs can be adjusted within demure boundries to answer concerns by those voicing dismay over having to put up with lost tourists.

As county road 30-A is not not a Federal highway, FDOT is not a mandate but rather a guideline. From what I could tell at Wednesday's TDC Workshop, the TDC did not take natural beauty, scenic pride, nor aesthetics into consideration when coming up with the designs for the signs. They simply took the GUIDELINES set forth by FDOT and the MUTCD and fashioned signs accordingly. In my estimate, a no-brainer. The gentleman from the TDC, who said they had to work within these guidelines did not say WHY they had to, nor WHO was pushing them to work within the guidelines. The question I asked at the meeting was never addressed by the TDC, nor was it written on their series of large white brainstorming tablets. I suppose it is because my prelude to the question, which negated the reason for the meeting, was 'when these signs are replaced.' So, I want to pose it here and find anyone's response. Since the wooden signs that the blue monster's replaced, were so beautiful and natural, being made of wood, were acceptable by the community, had the little south Walton sun unbrellas on them giving us the continuity that the TDC wanted for their need of branding, then why don't we demand to use the old wooden signs as templates for the new signs? The TDC can have them tested as they did the big blue monsters and adapt the new wooden signs accordingly. Better placement as well as size of signs or letters on the signs can be adjusted within demure boundries to answer concerns by those voicing dismay over having to put up with lost tourists.

Concensus with discussions I've had with family, friends and others in the community, have ALL asked "what was wrong with the wood signs?" They were unique and said a lot in it's simplicity and naturalness. I agree, the other signs, even though high maintenance and highly collectable, would be my choice. More than likely a LOT less expensive to reporduce....$300. each 12 years ago. Make 2 or 3 of each sign so there will be one for back up if needed.

Concensus with discussions I've had with family, friends and others in the community, have ALL asked "what was wrong with the wood signs?"

They are the wrong brand. :funn:

I am still mad about that bogus phone survey the TDC paid for. I was thinking about it yesterday, and I bet if I could have a crack at calling the same numbers the pollsters did I would find out that MOST of the respondents would like to see a Wal-Mart someplace along 30-A, MOST would appreciate an Applebee's or Red Lobster somewhere along 30-A, MOST wouldn't have a problem with a McDonald's or such somewhere along 30-A, etc, etc. I realize we all need to be ambassadors for the area, however our tourist outreach ought to be tempered by preservation desired by locals.

I am still mad about that bogus phone survey the TDC paid for. I was thinking about it yesterday, and I bet if I could have a crack at calling the same numbers the pollsters did I would find out that MOST of the respondents would like to see a Wal-Mart someplace along 30-A, MOST would appreciate an Applebee's or Red Lobster somewhere along 30-A, MOST wouldn't have a problem with a McDonald's or such somewhere along 30-A, etc, etc. I realize we all need to be ambassadors for the area, however our tourist outreach ought to be tempered by preservation desired by locals.

I found a payment to that company. I think it was around $13K. I wonder if that is the survey.