Salt Lake County Council member Jim Bradley recently questioned the budgeting process of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau as it pertains to its sponsorship of the Novell Utah Showdown. On behalf of the tournament, consider these facts:
1. The $862,000 the SLCVB has spent on the tournament over the past four years has "been directly responsible for us bringing in $85 million in convention business to Salt Lake County," says Diane Binger, interim president/CEO, as well as other members of the SLCVB executive committee.
This is documented and available for inspection by the County Council. By using the hospitality available at the tournament and showing prospective convention clients the tremendous venues, convention facilities and visitor opportunities available to a convention, the SLCVB had an incredible 95:1 return on investment! We invite the county to show us other business development programs within its purview with that kind of success.
2. The Novell Utah Showdown is a Utah event, not just a Summit County event. Though the playing venue for the tournament is in Summit County, all conventions booked are held in Salt Lake County. Conventioners and visitors to Utah don't recognize political boundaries between Salt Lake, Summit and other surrounding counties. When positioning Salt Lake City as a place for business, Salt Lake County, the state of Utah, Olympic organizers and others regularly highlight Wasatch Front recreational and visitor attractions, including Park City, Sundance, the national parks, Uinta and Wasatch Mountains, ski resorts and other areas beyond the Salt Lake County line.
The mission of the Novell Utah Showdown is to provide business development opportunities for our sponsors, showcase Utah as a tremendous area to live, work and visit, and to benefit local charitable organizations, such as the University Hospital and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Salt Lake. The mission of the SLCVB is no different. The Novell Utah Showdown, for the past 20 years, has been the only consistent major sporting event in the state that pursues this mission. The Olympics will come and go, but we'll be here for another 20 years or as long as we have the support of the business and political communities, including Salt Lake County and the Convention and Visitors Bureau.
3. Because of Novell's strong commitment to our tournament, we have been able to dramatically increase the quality of our event, making the Novell Utah Showdown one of the top Senior Tour Events. Sports Illustrated recently ranked the Novell Showdown among the top 10 Senior PGA events. The Novell Utah Showdown, Salt Lake City, Park City and many surrounding areas have now been featured for many years on ESPN and CNBC, on the Internet and in many publications, reaching a national and international market of more than 40 million people in 60 countries. On a stand-alone basis, the SLCVB could not replace this positive media coverage for the amount of its modest tournament sponsorship.
We have been able to make more than $1 million in charitable donations since 1993, with virtually all money going to charities in Salt Lake County.
Like other businesses, the SLCVB's investment in our tournament is a wise use of marketing dollars, generates business and recognition for Utah and Salt Lake County and benefits many local charities.
Brad Baldwin, chairman of the Salt Lake-based Friends of Utah Golf board of directors, writes on behalf of fellow board members Larry Mankin, Tom Love, Pat Shea, Michael Bailey, Barbara Zimonja, Jerry Howells Sr., David Hanna, Mark Stromberg and Jack Hansen.