Santa Ynez Valley Hotel Association Awards $25,170 in First Quarter 2013 Community Grants

According to SYVHA Executive Director Mary Harris, a total of $25,170 has been awarded in the first quarter 2013 (listed alphabetically by organization):

1. Buellton Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau 1st Annual Wine & Chili Fest (March 17, 2013)

2. Buellton Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau 2nd Annual Brewest (May 11, 2013)

3. Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum 3rd Biennial Carriage Symposium (April 10-13, 2013)

4. Santa Ynez Valley Visitors Association Bacon & Barrels Festival (July 19-21, 2013)

5. Solvang 3rd Wednesday 2nd Annual Midsummer Musik Festival (June 19, 2013)

6. Solvang 3rd Wednesday Social Media Campaign Extension (Spring 2013)

These are the first grants to be awarded under the new, streamlined community grant process that became effective January 15, 2013. From that date forward, applications are accepted throughout the year and grant awards may be made monthly. However, grant applications submitted for consideration must be no more than 6 months and not less than 3 months prior to the event date; and applications are due before the 15th of each month prior to the board meeting at which they are considered. Grant awards may be made during the following month’s SYVHA board meeting, which is open to the public and held on the first Thursday of each month at 9:00am at the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott located at 555 McMurray Road in Buellton. Official SYVHA 2013 Community Grant Award application forms are available by contacting Mary Harris at mary@syvha.com or calling 805-325-3528 or downloading the application PDF at www.SYVHA.com.

SYVHA community grant funds are to be used for out-of-Santa Barbara County area advertising/publicity and must include reference to overnight hotel stays, including the website (www.SYVHA.com) and logo. Preference is given to activities which occur in the Sunday-Thursday time frame and in the slower hotel occupancy seasons, generally January through April and September through November. New events are welcome, but established events may also be supported, particularly if they show evidence of “stretching” to include part of the Sunday -Thursday time frame. Grant amounts are in the $1,000 – $5,000 range.

Current members of the Santa Ynez Valley Hotel Association Board of Directors are President Mike Hendrick (Santa Ynez Valley Marriott; Buellton); Secretary Linda Johansen (Pea Soup Andersen’s Inn, Buellton and King Frederik Inn, Solvang); Treasurer Douglas Ziegler (Santa Ynez Inn, Santa Ynez); Jim Colvin (Hotel Corque, Solvang); Bent Olsen (Solvang Inn & Cottages; Solvang) Jessy Osehan (Hamlet Inn, Solvang) and Christine Forsythe (Ballard Inn & Restaurant, Ballard).

SYVHA was formed in 2010 and is comprised of 32 member hotels in the communities of Solvang, Santa Ynez, Los Olivos, Los Alamos, Buellton and Ballard to administer funds collected by the Santa Ynez Valley Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) promoting overnight stays and economic vitality in the region. For more information about the Santa Ynez Valley Hotel Association, please contact Executive Director Mary Harris at 805- 325-3528 or mary@syvha.com or visit www.SYVHA.com.