Council to consider tourism contract with chamber

Maricopa is a town without a hotel. A city without an airport. A ‘burb without a museum.

It does, however, have a tourism office. Off the beaten path, or rather a block west of John Wayne Parkway on Hathaway Avenue.

Through an agreement with the Maricopa Chamber of Commerce, the city funds a tourism center on the chamber premises.

An updated agreement for $40,000 is on Tuesday’s city council meeting agenda.

Jim McMichael, chamber president and chief executive officer, said, “We are here to expose residents and tourists to activities in Maricopa and surrounding areas, as well as introducing tourists to sites around the state.”

McMichael and Tamara King, the chamber’s director of membership services, split their work days between operating the chamber and fielding questions from people visiting the tourism center or calling to inquire about Maricopa or nearby areas. Questions range from requests for maps to where there are good places to hike or drive off-road vehicles.

During winter and early spring, the chamber gets more than 800 walk-in visitors per month, according to chamber records. There they can access two computers to search for information and racks of brochures of statewide tourist destinations and visitors guides, along with copies of local newspapers.

McMichael calls the chamber and the visitor center the “411 for Maricopa,” because he and King get so many questions on topics other than tourism.

“A lot of people find it easier to make a call, so Tamara and I will Google their question for them,” he said. “We get a lot of people new in town who want to know where to register to vote or where to get their car registered.”

Maricopa’s visitor center is part of a network of information hubs across the state that receives direction from the Arizona Department of Tourism, but the state provides no funding, McMichael said.

The responsibility of funding the centers lies in the hands of the communities that operate them, McMichael said. Elsewhere in Pinal County, Casa Grande and Coolidge have visitor centers in chambers of commerce receiving city funding.

Assistant City Manager Danielle Casey said, “City staff is currently in negotiations with the chamber regarding the specifics for the upcoming fiscal year PSA,” she said.

Casey said the visitor center plays a role in bringing visitors to Maricopa.

“When we have met with developers of retail and restaurant space, a key factor in deciding to locate within Maricopa is customer volume,” Casey said. “Anything that brings more people into the city and increases the customer base makes us more attractive to potential retail and restaurant developers. This also includes efforts such as the sponsorship and regional marketing of events such as the Great American Barbecue, Salsa Festival, Stagecoach Days and sporting events.”

Out of the chamber office’s 1,057 square feet, 633 square feet is exclusively for the visitor center and 63 square feet is space shared between the chamber and visitor center.

McMichael estimated the cost to operate the center for a year at $50,000, meaning the chamber, a nonprofit organization, would contribute $10,000 of its own funds, raised primarily through membership dues. The projected 2011-2012 chamber budget is $186,000.

Councilman Alan Marchione said he is not against the city funding a visitor center, but is not certain whether operating the center at the chamber is the most cost-effective option.

He would like to see operation of the center go out to bid.