Aggressive Campaign Seeks To Increase Tourism

By: Mireya Garcia

COLORADO SPRINGS- Financial problems have recently put the Springs in the national spotlight, and the reviews haven’t been very positive. Now the Experience Colorado Springs Convention and Visitor’s Bureau is looking to change the City’s image.

It plans to accomplish this with a 400k media campaign that seeks to entice people in surrounding states to visit the Springs and Pikes Peak area, but the negative coverage creates a problem.

“That results in less demand for people to come and vacation here, so as a result of that I saw a need to ask the City to keep about 140k,”says Terry Sullivan of the Experience Colorado Springs Visitors Bureau.

Experience Colorado Springs owes the City about 320k and wanted to keep some of the money to supplement their campaign. It petitioned the City Council for the funds, but after listening to some of the municipal financial shortfalls during a council meeting, Sullivan decided to withdraw the petition.

The aggressive media campaign will still occur because of the tax revenue it provides the Springs.

Experience Colorado Springs will dip into its reserve funds to pay the City in full.