NC govwatch

← All meetings

Tourism Board Regular Meeting

Town of Hillsborough · Tourism Board
Monday, May 4, 2026 at 5:30 pm

Regular meeting Budget and appropriationsArts and public artContracts and procurementGrants and outside fundingSchools and education

Agenda document Full packet Minutes Meeting page Watch Meeting recap

What's on this agenda

Hillsborough's Tourism Board works through its FY2027 draft budget and funding requests from five local partner organizations: the visitor center operator, the Arts Council, the county museum, the Chamber of Commerce's parade and tree-lighting program, and the Burwell School, whose request is included for the first time this cycle. The board also hears from the town's finance director on investing the board's fund balance.

Summarized from the published agenda. Read the agenda itself before acting on it.

Meeting recap

What happened, drawn from the records published after the meeting. Minutes

Finance Director Dave McCole told the board that North Carolina law limits public fund investments to four vehicles, and that the board's balance, held in the North Carolina Capital Management Trust Fund, is yielding about 3.62 to 4.32 percent. The board then voted 8-0 to approve its FY26 audit contract with Preston Douglas & Associates, and voted 8-0 three more times to approve $3,000 for the Hillsborough Garden Club's garden tour, $10,000 for the Orange County Arts Commission's UPROAR public art event, and $7,996 for Orange Community Players' production of "Anything Goes," pushing total grant spending slightly over its $20,000 budget. It declined, without a recorded vote, to fund a puppet-theater application from Chickenfoot Art Collective and a proposed yoga festival, Flow Fest, from Humanity International.

On contract updates, the board learned Burwell School is asking for $85,000 in FY27, up from $65,000 in FY26, and voted 8-0 to direct staff to ask the school to bring its request closer to the FY26 amount and attend the board's next meeting. It also continued work on its FY 2027 draft budget, including a $14,000 line item -- matched by the county tourism development authority -- to rebuild the Visit Hillsborough website for ADA compliance, and heard that the Orange County Visitors Bureau is drafting a new strategic plan.

How the votes went

All recorded votes passed 8-0: the amended agenda, the FY26 audit contract, the Hillsborough Garden Club grant ($3,000), the Orange County Arts Commission's UPROAR grant ($10,000), the Orange Community Players grant ($7,996), and a motion directing staff to ask Burwell School to reduce its funding request. The board declined, without a recorded vote, to fund grant requests from Chickenfoot Art Collective and Humanity International.

From the published minutes.

Speaking at this meeting

Town of Hillsborough's own rules for public comment — check them before you rely on anything here.

Agenda items (11)

Procedural · 3Discussion item · 3Staff or committee report · 2Minutes approval · 1Presentation · 1Contract or award · 1
  1. 1 Call to order and confirmation of quorum
    Procedural
  2. 2 Agenda changes and approval
    Procedural
  3. 3 Minutes
    Minutes approval
  4. 4.A Presentation: Investing Fund Balance
    Presentation Budget and appropriations
    The town's finance director presents options for investing the board's fund balance.
  5. 5.A Tourism Board Audit Engagement Letter and Audit Contract (FY26)
    Contract or award Budget and appropriationsContracts and procurement
    The board considers hiring an auditor for its FY26 financial audit.
  6. 5.B Tourism Grant Requests and Scoring Totals
    Discussion item Arts and public artBudget and appropriationsGrants and outside funding
    The board reviews scoring for this round's tourism grant requests.
  7. 5.C Contract Scope of Work Response Updates
    Discussion item Arts and public artBudget and appropriationsContracts and procurementGrants and outside fundingSchools and education
    The board reviews funding updates for five tourism partners: the Alliance visitor center, the Arts Council, the county museum, the Chamber of Commerce's parade and tree-lighting program, and the Burwell School, whose request is included for the first time this cycle.
  8. 5.D Continue Discussion of FY 2027 Draft Budget
    Discussion item Budget and appropriations
    The board continues work on its draft budget for the fiscal year beginning July 2026.
  9. 6.A Tourism Staff/Visitors Center/OC Visitors Bureau Updates
    Staff or committee report Budget and appropriations
    Staff reported that the Orange County Visitors Bureau is developing a new strategic plan and shared food and beverage tax revenue data through December, including a strong August that members tied to the UPROAR event.
  10. 6.B Tourism Board Member Comments & Updates
    Staff or committee report
    Board member Spencer Welborn described the Zwanze Day event at The Wooden Nickel, where an informal survey found about 80 percent of attendees came from outside Hillsborough.
  11. 7 Adjournment
    Procedural

Other recent meetings of this board