By Charles Romans
Carter County Times
Grayson tourism board will need to find a new treasurer in the near future.
The current board treasurer, Don Combs, made the board aware during their last regular meeting (July 10) that he would be stepping down as treasurer to avoid a conflict of interest as he steps into a new role for the county.
The reason behind his resignation, he explained, was that he discovered there was a clear conflict and prohibition for any individual to serve on both a county and city government entity at the same time.
Combs is the current chairman of the Carter County Health Department and told the commission that this would disqualify him from serving on the city board.
“So, I am prepared to withdraw from the (tourism) commission,” Combs told the board. “But at the same time, I am still very interested in tourism.”
Combs, who said he was very interested in the Blue Goose, the sports park, and the county bookkeeping, said he would continue to offer his assistance to help new appointees to those positions at no charge, and to help out however he was able. Combs also offered his help to transition over the next year.
Mayor Troy Combs praised Don Combs for his work in the city.
“Don has worked very hard on the (tourism) commission,” Grayson Mayor Troy Combs told the board. “I would like for him to be involved over the next year. And I would like for him to be involved with the architectural firm that’s been working on the Blue Goose and to continue working with the commission.”
Combs recommended the commission appoint an interim secretary and interim treasurer until such time as the commission could appoint individuals officially to those positions.
Mayor Combs took the opportunity during the meeting to execute the oath of office to one commission member, Daniel White. White was named as interim treasurer later in the meeting by unanimous vote of those commissioners present.
The board heard the report on the Blue Goose, and Don Combs told the commission that they had a bid opening for concrete and plumbing work and had received a bid on plumbing, but at that time had not received any bids on the concrete work. The plumbing bid was from Riverside in the amount of $32,850. Combs told the commission that the original bid was for $45,000 and that the commission decided to rebid that separately to secure a better price. There was an allowance included in the recent bid for $13,500 to cover the pipes.
The commission also discussed the impact of various tourism events, and board member Shadow Skaggs presented information on potential economic impact provided by Backroads of Appalachia. According to the group, a motor sports tourist who is not spending the night at an area hotel generates $256. Skaggs said that figure could be adjusted higher or lower by numerous variables. But according to the group, that money changes hands seven times.
“If you consider the total impact of that event, and we had thirty teams sign up, then the total impact was $11,500. But if you eliminate the multiple changing of hands, we still had about $2,000.”
The Grayson Tourism Commission is dedicated to promoting tourism and attracting tourism dollars to the City of Grayson through sponsorship of multiple events. The overall goal is to attract tourists through highlighting what the City of Grayson and surrounding areas has to offer.
Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com
