Whatcom County Council granted the Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce $100,000 to pay for the operations of the Birch Bay Visitor Center and the promotion and advertising of its events for 2021.
Whatcom County and the chamber entered into a contract, whereby the chamber will receive $100,000 to “fund the operations of the visitor center” and “fund the advertising and marketing for annual multi-day events designed to promote tourism and overnight stays.” According to the memorandum, funding will come out of the county’s Convention Center Fund as recommended by the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.
This is the county’s general yearly funding for the visitor center, said Liz Thornton, executive director of the Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce. While funding from the county is not guaranteed every year, the chamber has received $100,000 for 2018, 2019 and 2020. Before that, it received $86,500 for 2017. Thornton said the visitor center depends on the funding.
“It’s a big chunk of it [the chamber’s funding],” Thornton said, while other funding comes from memberships and sponsorships.
The multi-day events to be promoted, she said, include the Sand Sculpture Competition, Rollback Weekend and Birch Bay Discover Days.
“We’re hoping we can have in-person events [this year], similar to what we had in the summer,” Thornton said.
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