Tourism Application
The Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce is responsible for distributing the share of the Rio Grande County Lodging Tax for the Monte Vista area. The Chamber has set up a committee to handle this task which includes members from the Rio Grande County and the City of Monte Vista as well as Chamber representatives.
On this page you will find information about the application process and requirements as well as downloadable PDF documents available for the process.
The purpose of the Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce Tourism Committee is to assist with funding to advertise and market tourism for the benefit of the municipality of Monte Vista where the County Lodging Tax is collected. In furtherance of this goal, the Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce Tourism Committee will consider funding for Advertisements and Events. The Committee reserves the right to grant or refuse funding. Additionally, if any major funding is requested, current committee members with any relationship to the entity requesting funding must fully disclose that relationship. If in the estimation of the committee this relationship will cause a conflict of interest, the member must abstain from voting on the request.
*FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY THE MONTE VISTA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TOURISM COMMITTEE THROUGH COUNTY LODGING TAX COLLECTED. ALL PROJECTS/FUNDING MUST INCLUDE THE MONTE VISTA CHAMBER TOURISM LOGO AND CHAMBER WEBSITE. THE MONTE VISTA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE MUST BE INCLUDED ON ALL LISTINGS AS A SPONSOR.
Advertisements should be placed outside of Rio Grande County and are used as a tool to attract tourism to the area; these can include but are not limited to: Magazines, Newspaper, Radio, Television, Web, and E-mail based media.
Events should be those designed to draw in outside guests and encourage overnight stays, not those that are established just to keep the locals busy. Advertisements for events should be placed outside the county.
TOURISM
Economic activity resulting from tourists, which may include sales of overnight lodging, meals, tours, gifts, or souvenirs.
TOURISM PROMOTION
Activities and expenditures designed to increase tourism, including but not limited to advertising, publicizing, or otherwise distributing information for the purpose of attracting and welcoming tourists; developing strategies to expand tourism; and funding marketing of special events and festivals designed to attract tourists.
WHO MAY APPLY?
The funding program is open to organizations with the demonstrated ability to achieve tourism goals within Monte Vista as outlined below:
Increase hotel occupancy in Rio Grande County by creating overnight stays.
Increase overnight stays during the off season.
Provide visitor attractions and/or promote the area’s existing attractions.
Attracts more businesses to Rio Grande County thereby generating business for hotels and motels.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
All organizations seeking funding under this program must submit a completed application form along with all required documentation to be considered for funding. Applications are requested to be submitted a minimum of 60 days prior to the event itself and 5 days prior to the next Committee meeting. Meetings will be held on the first Monday of each month. This will allow Committee members sufficient time to fully review, understand, and vet the proposal. If necessary, the Committee will postpone funding decisions to the next meeting if clarification(s) are required for the proposal.
It is incumbent on the applicant to submit all proposals and funding requests in a timely manner. The Committee will not hold special meetings, nor go to extraordinary lengths to accommodate an applicant’s compressed schedule.
INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.
Funding through the Rio Grande County Lodging Tax is not meant to be a lifetime funding source.
Year 1-5 are considered start up years, with funding requests reduced annually by 10% as the event/project becomes established.
After 5 years, the event/project should show enough community/sponsorship/matching funds as to need no more than 50% of its whole budget from the Tourism Committee, at which time the Committee should become a standard sponsor versus a funding source.
GRANTS/PROJECTS
In addition to the standard application form, Grants and Projects require a written proposal, a detailed project budget and a final report with copies of all receipts.
PROJECT PROPOSAL
The project proposal will consist of a detailed description of the purpose and goals of the project and the impact on tourism within the Monte Vista zip code (81144). The effective organization of the project proposal is an efficient tool in determining the scheduling of periodic disbursement of funds. The proposal must include the name(s) of the individual(s) who have fiscal responsibility for the funds provided by the Tourism Committee.
PROJECT BUDGET
The project budget should include, but not be limited to, the various matching funds, income, and expense categories associated with the project. Please refer to the attached example of the project budget.
PROJECT FUNDING
Project funding will be provided by the committee as the receipts of the project are presented until the maximum granted funding is reached. There will be no payment for pre-paid invoices until services are rendered. A reimbursement request form is included at the end of this document.
Organizations awarded funds will be required to provide a “follow-up report” within 60 days of completion of the event. Funding will be disbursed as the committee receives receipts and reimbursement requests. Please refer to the attached Reimbursement Request form. The final report must include copies of receipts, ad copies, and/or other details of how the funding was spent. Advertising and Event Funding should also include statistical data that can be used to help determine the value of future funding.
FUNDING REQUEST PROTOCOL
To be considered by the committee, all funding requests must be accompanied by the appropriate paperwork as outlined in the Committee’s Granting Policy. Applicants may present an idea to the Committee prior to submitting a formal funding request to explore if it is something that would qualify for funding. However, no action will be taken until a formal request has been submitted.
All proposals must contain sufficient, specific details to enable the Committee to fully understand the proposal and to make an informed decision.
No changes may be made to an approved funding request without prior approval of the Committee.
As required by the Granting Policy, recipients of the Tourism Committee Funding must submit all required follow-up reports. Failure to do so will disqualify you from future funding.
FINAL REPORT
The final report will be a summary of the event, with information regarding how funds were utilized and project success. The final report must include receipts to substantiate the work in which the Tourism Committee funds were utilized. All unused funds must be returned to the Tourism Committee.
All applications, proposals, inquiries, documentation, and final reports can be submitted electronically to chamber@montevistachamber.org, or mailed in or delivered in person to the Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce during business hours.
COMMITTEE MEETINGS ARE HELD THE 1ST MONDAY OF EACH MONTH. APPLICATIONS/FOLLOW-UP REPORTS MUST BE RECEIVED A MINIMUM OF 5 DAYS PRIOR TO THE MEETING. APPLICANTS ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND OUR MEETINGS & PRESENT A SHORT 5-MINUTE OVERVIEW.
Monte Vista Chamber of Commerce
947 1st Ave, Monte Vista CO 81144
719-852-2731