The Legislature, by unanimous vote (Legislator Tyke Randall was absent) approved $28,700 in supplemental funding from the County’s Room Tax Reserve Fund for the Ithaca/Tompkins County Convention and Visitors Bureau (ITCCVB) to support four special tourism projects during the 2007-2008 program year.

As part of this effort, $1,200 was allocated to improve the signage and add a sidewalk kiosk for the bureau’s Downtown Visitors Center, to increase its visibility and make it an even more effective and accessible local resource.

“Providing accurate, accessible and timely information to travelers is the purpose of the Downtown Visitors Center,” notes ITCCVB Director Fred Bonn. “Located in the Clinton House, the center has experienced a significant increase in the number of tourists and county residents seeking information on what to do, see and experience in Tompkins County. Combined drive-and-park and foot traffic for this summer is up over 40 percent over the same period last year.”

The added room tax funds will also support costs associated with redesign the 2008 Travel Guide; this summer’s public relations campaign positioning Ithaca as the community that created the ice cream sundae; and last spring’s Winter Recess campaign, which encouraged teachers from throughout New York State to visit the county during their winter break.

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