The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community is partnering with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies to build a Major League Baseball spring training facility on Community land. The Community’s Vice President Martin Harvier and the facility’s architect Mo Stein spoke at the CVB’s Quarterly Update Meeting. Here are some facility highlights they shared:

• The site, near Indian Bend Road and the 101 Freeway, is on 140 acres with views of five mountain ranges.
• The facility will open for spring training 2011.
• The 11,000-seat capacity ballpark has 12 practice fields and office buildings that will include Major and Minor League clubhouses, training facilities, and offices for each team.
• The stadium will have the Cactus League’s largest lawn seating with room for 4,000 fans.
• The roof is shaped to maximize shade, maintain views and collect water.
• The Diamondbacks and Rockies will each have one practice field with the same dimensions and outfield walls that mimic their home stadiums.
• Fans will be able to interact with players at each team’s batting cages, pitching mounds and fields.
• There will be a full-size football field for agility drills and a 1.75-acre special-events area.
• Design elements and displays reflecting the heritage of the two tribes – the Pima and Maricopa – will be an integral part of the complex.
• This project represents another national “first” for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.
• This project will be a magnet for other quality projects to develop along the north Pima Coridor presenting new jobs and increased business opportunities.

Site Plan by HKS Architects & Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Additional renderings and location images can be viewed online.

March 3, 2010 | Tags: Diamondbacks, Martin Harvier, Mo Stein, Rockies, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, spring training | Category: Member News, Scottsdale Tourism News | Leave a comment

The Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau and city of Scottsdale have partnered with the Fiesta Bowl for eight years. The first four-year lodging agreement with the Fiesta Bowl was set in 2002 for the 2003-06 games. In 2006, the CVB entered into a 20-year agreement with the Fiesta Bowl to keep the teams, alumni, media, university bands and other official groups in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley through the Bowl’s 2026 games.

March 3, 2010 | Tags: Fiesta Bowl, occupany, RevPAR, room rate | Category: CVB News & Events, Scottsdale Tourism News | Leave a comment

The Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau welcomes its newest members who joined in February 2010.

Howl at the Moon (Live Music in the Nightlife Category): Home to the world’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll dueling piano show, Howl at the Moon offers music from the 70s to today.

MC Vacations (Apartment, Condo & Vacation Reservation Services in the Accommodations Category): MC Companies has provided furnished and unfurnished housing for more than 10 years.

March 3, 2010 | Tags: Howl at the Moon, MC Vacations, members | Category: Member News | Leave a comment

Part 5 in a 5-part series

In this five-part series, you’ll hear from the Scottsdale CVB’s President & CEO Rachel Sacco as she speaks with our Vice President of Marketing Lauren Simons and Executive Vice President Brent DeRaad about finding fresh ways to position Scottsdale to current and new customers, programs that are showing a substantial return on investment, and our expectations for the coming year.

Part 5: Expanding Our Sales Efforts

Summary: Learn about the impact additional funds could have on the Scottsdale CVB’s sales programs and our ability to book more meetings business in the year to come.

Time: 5 minutes, 4 seconds

Watch:

Additional Resources:

For more information on Prop 200, visit www.JobsAndTourism.com.

March 1, 2010 | Tags: Brent DeRaad, convention sales, meetings, Prop 200, Rachel Sacco | Category: CVB News & Events, Scottsdale Tourism News | Leave a comment

As part of the Scottsdale CVB’s winter campaign in Chicago, the CVB is using Video on Demand. For two months, Scottsdale commercials are on a variety of networks targeting mainly women between the ages of 25 and 54. Networks include A&E, BRAVO, Discovery Health, FOOD Network, HGTV, Lifetime, SOAP, Style Network, TLC, TNT, Travel Channel and Women’s Entertainment.

New Campaign Element: A new element added to this year’s campaign was a “request overlay” where Chicago residents can order an Experience Scottsdale destination guide directly from the commercial with just a click of their remote control. All three of the CVB’s commercials are tagged with this overlay and are running in equal rotation throughout the duration of the two-month schedule in February and March.

Results To Date: In its first three weeks, the campaign has produced nearly 3,900 inquiries. Plus, the CVB’s visitor center has seen an uptick in calls from the Chicago area! 

View Technology: View how the request overlay technology works with the Scottsdale CVB’s commercials on Video on Demand in Chicago:

Other Marketing Efforts: In addition to Video on Demand, the CVB is also running ads in a variety of outlets and online, including outdoor digital ad boards. Here’s how Scottsdale shines against the cold, gray skies of Chicago. These digital boards showcase Scottsdale’s daily high temperature.

February 24, 2010 | Tags: billboards, Chicago, commercials, Marketing, video-on-demand | Category: CVB News & Events | Leave a comment

Approximately 100 Scottsdale CVB members and industry partners gathered Feb. 17 at Geisha A Go Go in downtown Scottsdale to experience the restaurant’s quirky blend of Asian tradition and Tokyo’s pop culture, while sampling light bites including fresh sushi and select Asian-inspired cocktails.

Thank you to our host and all our members who were able to come out for a great evening.

February 24, 2010 | Tags: Geisha A Go Go, Network Night | Category: CVB News & Events, Member News | Leave a comment

The author of Travel Therapy Where Do You Need to Go?, Karen Schaler, recently visited us here in the sunny desert and filed a juicy blog post on her site traveltherapytrips.com. Here is an excerpt:

“Of all the places I’ve visited across the country I adore Scottsdale, Arizona, for so many different reasons from the top championship golf courses to the world class resorts, spas and dining venues, but most of all for the TRAVEL THERAPY feeling I get when I visit this unique desert destination.”

She also appeared on ABC News discussing Scottsdale as the perfect getaway from the harshness of winter. You can watch the video clip on their site.

The CVB’s communications department, along with many of our resort partners, has a long-standing relationship with Karen and assisted her with her recent story highlighting spring specials and warm weather in Scottsdale.

February 24, 2010 | Tags: ABC News, Coverage, Karen Schaler, media, press, Travel Therapy | Category: CVB News & Events | Leave a comment

Part 4 in a 5-part series

In this five-part series, you’ll hear from the Scottsdale CVB’s President & CEO Rachel Sacco as she speaks with our Vice President of Marketing Lauren Simons and Executive Vice President Brent DeRaad about finding fresh ways to position Scottsdale to current and new customers, programs that are showing a substantial return on investment, and our expectations for the coming year.

Part 4: The CVB’s Convention Sales Vision for 2010

Summary: Learn about Scottsdale’s meetings demand and new tactics helping us book business for you.

Time: 5 minutes, 25 seconds

Watch:

Additional Resources:

For more information on the Scottsdale Room Rate Challenge program, visit www.ScottsdaleRateChallenge.com.

February 22, 2010 | Tags: Brent DeRaad, convention sales, meetings, Rachel Sacco, Room Rate Challenge | Category: CVB News & Events, Scottsdale Tourism News | Leave a comment

Part 3 in a 5-part series

In this five-part series, you’ll hear from the Scottsdale CVB’s President & CEO Rachel Sacco as she speaks with our Vice President of Marketing Lauren Simons and Executive Vice President Brent DeRaad about finding fresh ways to position Scottsdale to current and new customers, programs that are showing a substantial return on investment, and our expectations for the coming year.

Part 3: Stretching Our Marketing Dollars Further

Summary: Learn about the impact additional funds could have on the Scottsdale CVB’s marketing programs and our ability to attract more visitors, as well as how we convert inquirers into visitors.

Time: 4 minutes, 23 seconds

Watch:

Additional Resources:

Current Inquirer Projected Economic Impact Formula

The dollar amount for projected economic impact of visitor inquiry conversion is based on the calculation of:

# of Visitor Inquiries X $224.04 (average expenditure per person, per night, per stay)* X 2.8 (party size)** X 5.5 (average # of nights stay) X 76% (percentage of inquirers that said they had either already visited Scottsdale within the past 6 months or plan to visit Scottsdale in the next 12 months)** X 57% (percent of visitors who stay in hotels/resorts)**

*The Scottsdale/Paradise Valley Tourism Study – Part II: Visitor Statistics, September 2009

**Behavior Research Visitor Inquiry & Profile Study, August 2009

Proposition 200

For more information on Prop 200, visit www.JobsAndTourism.com.

February 16, 2010 | Tags: Lauren Simons, Marketing, Prop 200, Rachel Sacco, Scottsdale CVB, visitor conversion | Category: CVB News & Events, Scottsdale Tourism News | Leave a comment