Orange County commissioners to examine Visit Orlando’s $100-million budget

Visit Orlando, the publicly funded marketing agency that lures tourists to Central Florida, and its $100-million budget will be the focus of an Orange county commission discussion Tuesday amid competing requests for hotel-tax revenues.

Commissioners, who get the last word on Tourist Development Tax (TDT) spending, are set to discuss Visit Orlando’s 30% share of the revenue stream that also has been used to build, expand and maintain the Orange County Convention Center.

Contacted this week by the Orlando Sentinel, several commissioners said choices must be made because future TDT dollars may not stretch far enough to cover an already-approved $560 million convention center expansion, a proposed $400 million upgrade of Camping World Stadium, a recommended $90-million sports tower for the University of Central Florida’s football stadium and increased funding for local arts and culture groups.

“We’re just trying to make the math work,” said commissioner Christine Moore when asked about Visit Orlando’s funding. “I am willing to consider cuts to make sure that we can fund the diversity of groups and interests that have applied.”

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But tourism and hospitality workers championed the value of Visit Orlando last week, sending emails to commissioners, citing statistics raised in recent public meetings by Casandra Matej, agency president and CEO.

“As you know, our tourism industry is an essential part of our economy, generating $87.6 billion in economic impact and supporting 450,000 jobs. I am one of those jobs,” wrote Becca Fischer, who works for Visit Orlando as a destination experience coordinator, helping meeting planners who choose Orlando for conventions and trade shows. “At Visit Orlando, we innovate, we trust, we welcome, we serve and we ‘Orlando’ to create moments that matter.”

She described her job as “Unbelievably Real,” the title of a recent Visit Orlando global ad campaign.

“We need your support of Visit Orlando and the great work they do to keep our community in the spotlight for both convention and leisure travel,” wrote Thom Kerr, owner of ICEBAR Orlando, an I-Drive attraction which features a below-freezing room and the largest ice bar in the world with 70 tons of hand-carved ice, including sculptures.

Visit Orlando’s TDT share has grown from 23% four years ago to 30% under a 2019 agreement.

During public debate about the contract, hoteliers credited Visit Orlando with leading the charge to establish Central Florida as the nation’s family vacation capital and Orlando as one of the world’s most recognizable brand names.

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Also known as Orange County’s bed, hotel or tourist tax, the 6% TDT is added to the cost of a hotel room, a home-sharing rental like VRBO or other short-term lodging, including the rental of an overnight space in an RV park.

Fueled by an average daily room rate that peaked at $232 in March 2023, the highest ever, bed-tax revenues skyrocketed to $359 million for the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, according to Comptroller Phil Diamond, who tracks the receipts.

Diamond has urged caution in spending noting the historic, roller-coaster volatility of the funding stream.

To the disappointment of some tourism leaders, the fiscally conservative Diamond forecast a 7.5% drop in TDT revenue for the 2023-24 fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. He cited increased global competition for tourism and convention business.

If true, however, his projections estimate TDT would still raise over $330 million, the third richest haul ever.

Some commissioners said they were peppered Friday with texts forwarded from constituents urging them to “complete the vision” to modernize Camping World Stadium, a pitch for $800 million made in June by Steve Hogan, CEO Florida Citrus Sports.

It’s unclear who drafted the message which read, “Camping World Stadium is more than Orlando’s home field — it’s a hub of economic activity that has generated thousands of jobs and generated over $ billion.” Hogan did not immediately return phone messages.

Camping World is not listed on the commission’s agenda Tuesday.

Commissioner Mayra Uribe said she sought a board discussion of Visit Orlando to get answers about how it spends its TDT share, calculated at about $108 million in 2023, $82.6 million listed as “global marketing” expenses in a state filing.

“I’ve never said they don’t do good work,” Uribe said in a telephone interview. “But I have questions and some concerns. Theirs is the only board that doesn’t have a county commissioner [serving] on it. Theirs is the only board that doesn’t have to present their budget or justify it. Theirs is the only board that can do what they want without checks and balance.”

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Matej defended Visit Orlando’s operation during an Oct. 31 presentation to the Tourist Development Council, an advisory board whose members include Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and hoteliers.

“Overall we’re seeing significant increases in visitor spending, jobs created, wages and benefits paid to the workforce as well as an increase in state and local taxes,” she said before playing a video testimonial from a tourism expert.

Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics, said the economic impact of visitor spending in Orlando reached an all-time high last year, describing it as the equivalent of the community hosting 1,500 Taylor Swift concerts.

“I think it definitely puts into perspective the industry we have,” Matej said.

shudak@orlandosentinel.com