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OUR VIEW Our View: It's time to separate Travel Medford from the chamber MailTribune.com Writer Posted Feb. 28, 2016 @ 12:01 am Posted Feb. 28, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Last May, members of the Medford City Council expressed frustration with The Chamber of Medford/Jackson County over Travel Medford, the city's tourism marketing agency the chamber operates under contract. At the time, councilors said then City Manager Eric Swanson had engaged in a battle of wills with the chamber, although several councilors said they, too, were unhappy with what one called the "incestuous relationship" between the two entities. In June, the council fired Swanson. Now, more than eight months later, concerns about Travel Medford haven't gone away. Clearly, the problem wasn't confined to the city manager. Travel Medford's job is to promote tourism, attracting visitors to Medford and the surrounding area through ad campaigns and other means. The Chamber houses the agency in its downtown office and shares staff with it. The city gives Travel Medford 25 percent of the proceeds from the lodging tax visitors pay when they stay in Medford hotels and motels. That amounts to $750,000 a year. The continuing friction between the city and the chamber has stemmed in part from the fact that Travel Medford reports its expenditures to the city in a different format than other city operations, leading council members to complain that they can't determine what services the city is getting for its money. All of this has hampered the work Travel Medford does, such as buying ad campaigns to promote the city. After last year's dispute, the council renewed Travel Medford's contract for only one year, starting July 1. Contracts for media buys are customarily signed months in advance, and local hotel operators pleaded with the city to sign a longer contract to facilitate long-range marketing efforts. On Tuesday, the council said it would extend the contract for two more years from this coming July, while it explores separating Travel Medford from the chamber. One of the criticisms of the status quo is that businesses that are not chamber members don't get the same treatment in Travel Medford's promotional materials as chamber members. That's unacceptable, and another reason why Travel Medford should have more autonomy. That autonomy would come at a price, because sharing staff and office space with the chamber means lower overhead costs for Travel Medford. But that sharing also leads to confusion. Anne Jenkins, senior vice president of Travel Medford, answers to Brad Hicks, chamber president and chief executive officer, and cannot always speak freely when questions are raised by the city about her agency's activities. The chamber is a private organization that promotes the interests of its members, and it maintains a political action committee that contributes money to candidates for office, including several City Council members. There's nothing wrong with those efforts, but when the chamber also receives three-quarters of a million public tax dollars, it creates at the very least the appearance of a conflict of interest. None of this is a reflection on Jenkins, who by all accounts does a fine job of promoting Medford. But she finds herself in a difficult spot, stuck between her employer and her agency's funding source. That makes it harder to do her job effectively and ultimately hurts the community that Travel Medford was formed to serve. With the amount of tax dollars dedicated to the tourism effort, it's time for Travel Medford to answer more directly to the public that funds it, rather than the chamber. It's time for the tourism professionals to manage tourism efforts for Medford without having to fight through channels. It's time for Travel Medford to be its own master and for the city to deal with it directly. MailTribune.com Writer Posted Feb. 28, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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