Note: This is an abbreviated version of a note sent Thursday from the Napa Destination Council board of directors to members.

Last week, the former Napa Valley Conference and Visitors Bureau, now the Napa Valley Destination Council, announced significant changes. Unfortunately, news of the exciting change was overshadowed by the way in which the announcement was made. While the announcement of the changes may have seemed sudden, the consideration that went into making the changes was not. This decision is a result of a nearly two-year process, beginning with a visitor's survey and a comprehensive destination strategy.

We hope the following will answer the questions that we have heard from the community over the past few days.

Why was the information released suddenly?

In a confidential meeting with Napa Town Center management it was confirmed that one of the CVB Visitor Center tenants intended to vacate the center as of Dec. 1. This meant a significant financial loss to the CVB.

A meeting with Town Center management was organized to discuss options and how the CVB could work together with Town Center merchants and tenants to minimize any negative impact. However, the confidentiality of this meeting was breached.

As a result, the CVB decided that valued staff, Visitor Center volunteers and organization members hear the news about changes from the CVB and hear it first. The CVB knew of no other way to swiftly reach 423 members and 80 volunteers, so an e-mail was sent the evening before the news became public. We believed at the time, and still do, that it would have been more difficult to read about it in the newspaper or learn about it second- or third-hand.

We are sorry that the news caused undue anger and alarm.

Why was the Visitors’ Center closed, and what is happening now?

The reasons to leave the center were financial and strategic. It is important that people don’t confuse the destination marketing organization with the visitors’ center space in downtown Napa. While to some the Visitor Center essentially was the CVB because it was visible and a physical location, it represents just one of many ways of attracting guests to the Napa Valley.

By working with our partner organizations and businesses, we continue to increase our level of guest services. We have been hearing from others in the hospitality industry, offering their spaces to help continue to serve our guests through direct visitor contact. This organization must focus countywide, serve all visitors in all areas, and benefit all businesses.

In response to concerns from Napa Town Center merchants, the NVDC and the Napa Downtown Association proposed a mutually beneficial solution, which was approved unanimously by the NDA at a recent meeting.

The NDA will move to the visitors’ center location and will now manage a Visitor Information Center. This will be complemented by the visitor services already being provided through the offices of all five city chambers of commerce. It is a benefit to the entire region to have several points of visitor information and assistance and we are pleased that the NDA will be complementing our overall efforts.

What about the benefits I received as a member?

The NVDC will continue to provide the services our hospitality industry is used to receiving. It will continue to field phone calls, facilitate key trade shows, and provide media and sales leads, among other efforts.

With the new direction of the Napa Valley Destination Council, the organization can now enhance benefits and expand them to the entire visitor-serving business community in Napa County. Communications, opportunities and leads will be sent to the entirety of Napa County’s visitor-serving businesses. Just let NVDC know you are interested and you will be added to NVDC’s notification lists.

We understand that during these difficult economic times alleviating the need to pay a fee is probably welcome. We also know that the support of a destination management organization is vital to the local hospitality industry and economy. We are grateful that local businesses chose to invest in the organization through dues, but these businesses have shouldered the responsibility for promoting the destination for many years.

Now, any visitor-serving business located within Napa County can enjoy the benefits of our destination marketing activities without having to pay an annual fee. Representing all Napa county hospitality businesses will allow us to broaden our efforts to market the destination and provide our guests with more complete set of options to create their own experience of the Napa Valley. Former members-only activities and luncheons will be transformed into opportunities to hold community-wide forums on our own or with partner organizations on emerging and key topics related to tourism, branding, hospitality, customer service and more.

How will the organization be funded?

We are immediately convening a Revenue Task Force to identify the various long-term funding models that are working successfully in other destinations. The concept of a 20th-century membership fee-based model no longer works as market conditions and consumers change.

Competing wine region destinations support their tourism and marketing through new and advanced funding models and we will seek to do the same in Napa County. The Napa Valley Destination Council, as Napa County’s official destination tourism marketing organization, is currently being supported by the city of Napa with a contract for $100,000 this fiscal year. Napa County supported the Destination Strategy Project by investing $500,000 over two years in 2005 and 2006. We are currently in the process of submitting an application for Napa County Special Project funding which could amount to approximately $350,000 per year for the next two years. We are grateful for the generosity of our former membership and these public funding partners, without whose support the organization would have surely dissolved years ago.

How does funding within other wine regions compare to Napa County?

Other county destination budget examples include Sonoma County at $3.5 million; Monterey with $2.5 million; Santa Barbara at $1.7 million; and San Luis Obispo with $1 million.

What is the NVDC’s overarching goal?

Help our local businesses be more successful by effectively marketing the destination. A strong, effective and sustainable destination marketing organization will help Napa County businesses grow, support the local economy by increasing sales tax and hotel tax, contribute to the preservation of Napa County’s agricultural heritage and enhance the quality of life for all residents of our community.

Why didn’t things just stay the way they were?

The Napa Valley Conference and Visitors Bureau went through several years of challenges and it became clear that the organization was not meeting its full potential.

In November of 2005 the CVB initiated the Destination Strategy Project with support from Napa County and others in the community. The goal was to develop a unified vision for Napa County as a world-renowned destination. Throughout 2006 and 2007, the organization held town hall meetings, cross-industry stakeholder meetings, workshops, online surveys, and interviews to understand the perspectives of residents, guests and potential guests. In the spring and early summer of 2008 organization leadership invited community stakeholders together to have an honest discussion about the future of the Napa Valley CVB. This group included supporters, those who had given up on it and those who were not quite sure anymore.

The most important question was this: should the Napa Valley Conference and Visitors Bureau continue to exist? After much discussion, everyone agreed that it should, with a different set of guiding principles and objectives.

A new board of directors was installed in July of 2008.

Following the unveiling of the Napa Valley — Legendary branding initiative this summer, leaders of the organization have been working diligently to build a foundation for an influential and relevant destination marketing organization.

We offer our heartfelt thanks to the many businesses, volunteers and staff who provided generously of their time and support over the 18 years that the Napa Valley Conference & Visitor’s Bureau served the needs of the hospitality community in Napa County.

We remain excited and optimistic about the long-term future of the NVDC, and look forward to promoting the entire Napa Valley as one of the world's premiere tourism destinations.