Last quarter, VisitTulsa announced the implementation of a new housing software to improve clients’ interface experience when booking group travel to Tulsa. That software is officially in use this month as groups begin making hotel reservations for more than 3,000 attendees traveling to Tulsa April 15 for the SKILLS USA 2012 Annual Leadership Conference. The GroupMAX ME software allows users to easily access needed information and offers an enhanced level of service to VisitTulsa customers.

VisitTulsa is also working to roll out the VisitTulsa and Tulsa Sports Commission PartnerNet for hotel and attractions partners. This program allows these partner hotels and attractions to view and respond to leads and service requests online. The PartnerNet is one component of VisitTulsa’s investment in simpleView CRM, the industry standard in client relations management software for destination marketing organizations.

The PartnerNet will streamline VisitTulsa and the Tulsa Sports Commission’s internal processes for completing requests or bids for exciting events and conferences considering Tulsa’s outstanding hotels and facilities as their next destination.

Beginning March 15, 2012, a new round of Accessibility Guidelines under the Americans with Disabilities Act will go into effect.  These changes will impact everything from bathrooms to pools to service animals, and hefty fines could be imposed if you fail to meet the new mandates.

Get up to speed – fast with the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s (AH&LA) free tools.

AH&LA members only resources:

ADA Quick Guide to Compliance 
ADA Title III Regulations Effective March 15, 2012
New ADA Regulations for Pools and Spas Defined
3-Part Webinar Series

History of the new regulations: AH&LA proactively engaged the Department of Justice (DOJ) early in the process of shaping the new ADA standards, ensuring that the new regulations addressed the needs of guests, while weighing the practicality of implementation.  AH&LA’s efforts were successful in preventing numerous unnecessary and costly regulatory changes.

As a part of these efforts, DOJ hired legal counsel to represent AH&LA and an economist to study the economic impact of the new regulations and greatly reduced the number of rooms that were required to be accessible.

In addition, AH&LA won a helpful interpretation of renovations and service animals, gained flexibility in signage posting locations, limited expansion into condo/time-share segments, secured reasonable grandfathering “safe harbor” for existing properties, and secured a reasonable 18-month implementation date.

In an effort to provide as much clarification and assistance as possible, an extensive list of resources is available in the Members Only section of the AH&LA Website.
 

It is time to renew membership for 2012!

Many thanks to all the Allied Members who have supported THLA in 2011.  With your support and membership, we are able to promote and educate the lodging industry, governmental entities, and local citizens about tourism and lodging industry issues.  You help us solve problems at the property level, and, provide advice on a broader spectrum.

Which Membership Level is best for you?

• Allied Member – for the suppliers that support the lodging industry
• Allied Attractions- for museums, meeting venues, and other attractions
• Diamond Sponsor Member – Includes membership and other recognition throughout the year;
• 5 Star Sponsor Member – Includes membership and the most recognition throughout the year.

Contact Trisha Kerkstra now for member level details.  918-691-1912 or director@tulsahotels.org

The Arabian Horse Association U.S. National Arabian and Half-Arabian Championship Horse Show competition brought approximately $33 million in local economic impact to the Tulsa region last week.

Arabian Horse Association U.S. National Arabian and Half-Arabian Championship Horse Show

Competitors represented at least 47 states, three Canadian providences and three international countries including Brazil, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. Nearly 2,000 horses competed, with stalls in three buildings on Expo Square grounds.

“Equestrian events brought to the region with the help of VisitTulsa create an annual economic impact of hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Ray Hoyt, senior vice president of VisitTulsa and the Tulsa Sports Commission. “Their national and international reach is great exposure for the Tulsa metro region and promotes us as a visitor’s destination and the premier location for equestrian competition.”

To view competition results, footage or coverage visit www.arabianhorses.org. For more information on VisitTulsa or upcoming events in the area, go to www.visittulsa.com.

News Release courtesy of Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department

New Economic Impact Study Released at 2011 Governor’s Conference on Tourism

(Tulsa, OK) – Today, the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department unveiled findings from a new study showing the economic impact of tourism in Oklahoma. The results were announced at the 2011 Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Tulsa.

Domestic travelers directly spent nearly $6.2 billion in Oklahoma during 2010, an increase of 7.2 percent over 2009. Travel-generated employment is also up 4.3 percent with employees earning more than $1.8 billion in payroll income during 2010.

Additional highlights from the study include:

• Oklahoma’s tourism industry is a vital employer – 74,900 jobs were generated by Oklahoma’s tourism industry in 2010.
• Without these jobs generated by domestic travel, Oklahoma’s 2010 unemployment rate of 7 percent would have been 4.3 points higher than it was, or 11.3 percent of the labor force.
• On average, every $82,790 spent in Oklahoma by domestic travelers generated one job in 2010.
• Oklahoma tourism generates significant tax revenue – Domestic spending in Oklahoma generated more than $1billion in tax revenue for federal, state and local governments in 2010. This is up 4.1 percent from 2009.
• Tourism benefits all 77 counties in Oklahoma – Travel expenditures occurred throughout all of the 77 counties in Oklahoma, with 16 counties receiving more than $50 million in domestic travel expenditures in 2010.
• Six counties indicated 1,000 or more jobs directly supported by domestic travel.
• Tourism generated more than $2.1 billion in Oklahoma County and close to $1.5 billion in Tulsa County for 2010.

The economic impact study was conducted by the research department of the U.S. Travel Association and provides preliminary 2010 estimates of domestic traveler spending, employment, payroll income and state and local tax revenue directly generated through tourism in Oklahoma.

Contact: Austin Tackett

Phone: 405-808-5929 (mobile) or 405-230-8413 (office)

Email: Austin@TravelOK.com

 The Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department (OTRD) is working to advance the exceptional quality of life in Oklahoma by preserving, maintaining, and promoting our natural assets and cultural richness. The department is the steward of the state park system and also promotes Oklahoma as a travel destination through many award-winning programs. To learn more about Oklahoma’s unique events and attractions, please visit www.TravelOK.com or follow us at Facebook.com/TravelOK or Twitter.com/OklahomaTourism.

After many months of meetings between the Food Service Advisory Council, on which the OH&LA is represented, and the State Health Department, the latest revisions to the Oklahoma Food Code have been approved by the Legislature and went into effect yesterday,  November 1st.

On September 12-13, all Health Inspectors met in Oklahoma City to go over the new Food Code and received training on the changes and also received training on how to work closely with restaurant managers to help ease the transition to the new rules.  Although enforcement of the changes began on November 1st, OH&LA has been told that inspectors will not be citing restaurants for violations of the new changes until everyone has had an opportunity to be told of the changes and how to comply, even for those restaurants not inspected prior to November 1st.  The new Chapter 257 of the Food Code is now online at the Health Department website and can be downloaded here.

Many of the changes are not significant, but we wanted to make you aware of several that you will be hearing about when your inspector makes his/her next visit.  You may want to consider having your manager in charge call you if you are not already present when the inspector arrives, with the thought you could be there and work “hand in hand” with the inspector to make any necessary decisions or changes.

Templates/guidelines that will help you comply with the new Food Code will be provided to you by your inspector. With the exception of information that is required if you chose Bare Hand Contact with Ready to Eat Foods, the templates are not mandatory.  They can, however, be a good guideline to help you comply with the changes to the Code.

• Bare Hand Contact with ready to eat foods will still be allowed under the new changes, according to this template.  You will continue to have a choice of wearing gloves, using utensils, or having bare hand contact with ready to eat foods.  Gloves will not be required.  But you will need to have a written employee health policy and will need to provide documentation that your employees have been trained in proper hand-washing and other procedures before handling ready to eat food.
• Managers – Information on Food Allergies and which foods on your menu are most likely to cause allergic reactions for your customers will be an increased focus under the new Food Code.  The inspectors will have materials that will help you identify the most common foods that cause allergies and how to train your employees in this information.
• Employee/New Hire Information  - Information about what and when your employees/potential hires should tell you about their illnesses and symptoms of illnesses will be shared with you.  You can download the template here. Again, your inspector will have templates that will help you and your employees know, in layman’s terms, when to report to you they are sick and when you should restrict them from working.
• Inspection Reports – These have changed significantly.  No longer will the terms Critical Violations be used.  Rather, Priority, Priority Foundation, and Core Violations will be used.  Your inspector will go over the new form with you and answer your questions about the changes.
• Your Inspector – He or she will talk to you about several policies and procedures you should have in place on hand washing, employee illness reporting, and other requirements of the Code.  Although there will not be a requirement for having these written procedures in place, having them may assist you in being in compliance with the Code.
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) – A template is available from the Health Department that can be used to provide information to the Department on how you operate.  This information will be required only when remodeling, a change of ownership, and for new restaurants.
• Templates/Guidelines – These new templates/guidelines will help you comply with the new Food Code. Your inspector will provide them to you. Although the templates are not mandatory, they can be a good guideline to help you comply with the changes to the Code. 

As always, if you have questions or need additional information, please call Jim Hopper or Rick Hughes at the OH&LA office, (800) 375-8181 or (405) 942-6462.

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) recently announced the new Fiscal Year 2012 (FY2012) federal per diem rates, which take effect October 1, 2011, and run through September 30, 2012.

GSA establishes the per diem rates for the lower 48 continental United States (CONUS), which are the maximum allowances that federal employees are reimbursed for expenses incurred while on official travel. The CONUS per diem rate for an area is actually three allowances: the lodging allowance, the meals allowance and the incidental expense allowance.

Read more about the announcement at the Oklahoma Hotel & Lodging Association.

Every year in September, THLA hosts a bed making contest that rewards the fastest and neatest housekeepers. As you’ll see in the images below, this year’s event was full of excitement!

Congratulations to the winners of THLA’s Annual Bed Making Contest:

• First Place:  Jessica Franks, Hampton Inn Sand Springs, 1:27 minutes
• Second Place:  Celia Mora,  Doubletree Warren Place, 1:33 minutes
• Third Place:  Dee Dee Weeden, Hyatt Regency, 1:35 minutes

Big thanks to Steve Micheal’s Photography for taking the pictures! You can see the entire group of photos by visiting his Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/StevenMichaelsPhotography.

Thank you to everyone who volunteered on September 9th at DVIS’s Transition Apartments for the 2011 Day of Caring.

DVIS, or Domestic Violence Intervention Services, operates with the mission of, “Rebuilding lives affected by domestic violence and sexual assault through advocacy, shelter, counseling, and education.” DVIS’s Transition Apartments in Tulsa play a vital role in our community by helping women (and their children) recover from domestic violence and sexual assault.

But it doesn’t stop there. DVIS also  helps these innocent women transition their lives, so that they are able to provide for themselves and their children in the future.

So, it should be no surprise that THLA requested assignment to DVIS’s Transition Apartments.

Again, thank you to everyone who participated. Your hard work is what keeps non-profits, like DVIS, alive and able to serve our local community.

Last but not least, here are pictures of THLA members from the 2011 Day of Caring: