People of the Earth Days on hold

Thursday evening at the Thermopolis-Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce Board Meeting, Barb Heinze announced at this point there is no People of the Earth Days in the works for 2017. The event has been done annually for the past three years.

Heinze said there have been efforts made to advertise the event as much as possible. She pointed out attendance was up the second year but down this year, and noted Michael and Kathy Gear approached her and Chamber Executive Director Meri Ann Rush, and said they would like to take a hiatus.

Doing another People of the Earth is a possibility in a couple years, Heinze said. Rush noted people who attend not only have costs of the event to take into account, but also travel expenses, and they weren’t sure if they could do it a fourth year.

According to a breakdown sheet from this year’s event, there was $7,149.13 in revenue and $5,400.11 in expenses, for a total net proceed of $1,749.

Thursday evening’s meeting of the Thermopolis-Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce was also the last for Board Chair Damien Oliver. During the meeting, Oliver said he was resigning his membership and chairmanship “due to our selling our business and moving on to new adventures.” The resignation was effective Monday, and Greg Willson was appointed the interim chair.

Later in the meeting, applications were accepted from Robin Griffin of Red Rock Family Practice and Sam Needham of St. Paul Lutheran Church, to fill the board vacancies created by the resignation of Oliver and former Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital CEO Robin Roling.

Also during the meeting, the board tabled action regarding a contract with Scott Mecca — a consultant who is really into astronomy — for the 2017 solar eclipse. Rush explained there was a possible contract with Mecca presented, at $5,000, to help with advertising. Rush, along with staff from Hot Springs State Park, Boysen State Park and Shoshoni Chamber of Commerce, told Mecca $5,000 wasn’t possible especially with budget cuts.

There was also concern from board members as to what they would be getting for their money. Should Mecca agree to the price, Rush would have him draw up a contract that states what they’re getting.

Mecca requested a lower figure, and Rush noted the Shoshoni Chamber has stated they could contribute $1,000 and Hot Springs State Park can kick in $500. She suggested the Thermopolis Chamber also contribute $1,000, and propose $2,500 for Mecca to help advertise it. She acknowledged people will still be coming through for the event, regardless, but suggested still putting out some advertising. If Mecca doesn’t accept the offer, Rush said there would be no higher offer.

Reservations are already being taken at local hotels for the eclipse, and it’s projected to bring in an additional 10,000 people to the Thermopolis and Shoshoni area. An idea that was presented to Rush was a coupon book, though a local merchant questioned why they should give discounts when people will be here anyway. Rush suggested another option could be to put merchant logos on a website to generate interest and business.

Other items that are being looked at for the upcoming eclipse include having enough restrooms, possibly lowering the speed limit through the canyon and making sure grocery stores and the hospital are well stocked.