Chesterton Tribune

 

 

Burns Harbor TIF board to spend $7,500 on promoting Food Truck Square

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By LILY REX

The Burns Harbor Redevelopment Commission at its meeting last week opted to purchase an advertising package for Food Truck Square that includes $7,503 in customizable services.

Jackie Thomas of the Duneland Chamber of Commerce gave a presentation on three advertising packages the Commission could choose from to market Food Truck Square. Thomas made her recommendations based upon her advertising successes with the Chesterton European market. The cheapest package she presented was $2,500, the middle option was $5,000, and the highest option was $7,503.

Commissioner Brad Enslen suggested that the Commission go big in promoting Food Truck Square this year since it’s the first year that the European Market will be part of the festivities. Commissioner Kevin Tracy noted that spending that much could set a bad precedent, but Enslen responded that he agrees spending that much in future years would be excessive.

The Commission voted with Enslen to purchase the most expensive package. Commission President Marcus Rogala noted that $2,500 of the purchase will be funded from an Indiana Dunes Tourism grant that requires towns advertise beyond Northwest Indiana. Thomas said the package could fulfill that requirement through advertising with the Post-Tribune and Adams Radio Group. Some other platforms included are the NWI Times, the South Shore Line, and traditional printed promotional materials like postcards.

Commissioner Eric Hull suggested that print ads aren’t as effective and advertising for Food Truck Square should be focused on digital ads and proven methods like the postcards. Thomas said that the ad package is flexible in what kind of options each media platforms offers. For digital ads, the Commission can also decide where someone is directed after clicking an ad.

Karnerblue consultant Tina Rongers noted that some grants that she has applied for on the Commission’s behalf in the past were not awarded because she couldn’t provide a narrative about how Burns Harbor attracts visitors from outside the area. “There could be a way to leverage this in some of our grant opportunities,” she said.

Board Leadership

Rogala announced at the end of the meeting that he would be stepping down as President for personal reasons. He will continue as a member of the Commission. He motioned for Kevin Tracy to move up to President and Eric Hull to move up to Vice-President. The motion passed with Commissioner Nick Loving dissenting.

 

Posted 5/14/2018

 
 
 
 

 

 

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