Saturday, June 01, 2013

OPEN RECORDS, SUNSHINE, ANTIRUST AND CIVIL RIGHTS CONCERNS ABOUT ST. JOHNS COUNTY VISITOR AND CONVENTION BUREAU -- It's our money ($4.6 million/year)

First the good news – Peter Yesawich, Vice Chairman of MMGY Global consulting, says the St. Augustine National Hisorical Park and National Seashore will undoubtedly have a positive effect on local economy. See below. Yes, we can! www.staugustgreen.com
Now the bad news – St. Augustine and St. Augustine Beach are missing opportunities to influence new guests to visit our town. The maladroit Visitor and Convention Bureau receives $4.6 in county funds to promote tourism, but rudely refuses to share documents – not even its Antitrust and Civil Rights compliance policies (if any).
VCB is not advertising the 500th anniversary of Spanish Florida in Miami. VCB is also not focused on African-Americans, young people, or GLBT people, or on our Civil Rights history, our Spanish, Catholic, African-American, Jewish, Minorcan, Greek, Civil War and nautical history.
VCB's consultant (MMGY) is not showing our City's diverse face to the world. VCB's 2013 brouchure has 199 images of white people, eleven African-Americans (mostly happy slaves), zero Native American Indians, four “Hispanics” (one is actor Chad Light as Ponce de Leon). This may violate our Fair Housing laws.
VCB's consultant charged us some $300,000 for a Destination Master Plan whose first draft wanted a water slide for St. Johns County, while eschewing African-American and Civil Rights tourism.
They wrongfully write off half the American people, only polling the top 50% of income earners among travelers, eshewing working class families. That is neither the way of Saint Augustine. nor his two cities.
VCB misconceives of hospitality as if it were an “industry” with a “product,” which they don't appreciate. They don't share our values.
In fact, VCB's consultant May 14th advised 100 local tourism experts to raise prices (an invitation to criminal antitrust violations, with no Antitrust Compliance policy such as that of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (FRLA), which issues stern warnings against price-fixing and other nnti-competitive practices at every meeting -- see below).
VCB's three-year county contract expires September 30th.
There must be open, competitive bidding, and investigations.
It's our money – $4.6 million/year.

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