NC govwatch

← All meetings

September Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Advisory Board

Orange County · Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Advisory board meeting Budget and appropriationsEconomic development incentivesTax rate and revaluation

Agenda document Watch

What's on this agenda

Hoteliers in Orange County, Chapel Hill and Carrboro have been talking among themselves about restructuring the Visitors Bureau and changing the local occupancy tax statutes. Chair DR Bryan briefs the advisory board on those discussions Wednesday morning. The agenda is careful to say the ideas are early and that neither the bureau's board nor Orange County has endorsed them.

This is also executive director Laurie Paolicelli's next-to-last meeting before she retires on November 2. She reports on tourism projects planned for 2027, the events the bureau will support with advertising, and Clean Design's recent Orange County Today presentation. Matt Hughes and Hannah Hemphill give the budget update.

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

Speaking at this meeting

Orange County's own rules for public comment — check them before you rely on anything here.

Agenda items (4)

Staff or committee report · 2Minutes approval · 1Discussion item · 1
  1. III Approval of August 2026 Minutes
    Minutes approval
    Approval of the board's August minutes.
  2. IV Hotel Industry Update
    Discussion item Economic development incentivesTax rate and revaluation
    Chair DR Bryan reports on preliminary talks among some Orange County, Chapel Hill and Carrboro hoteliers about how the Visitors Bureau might be organized in future and about possible changes to local occupancy tax statutes. The agenda notes these are early ideas that neither the bureau's board nor the county has endorsed.
  3. V Executive Director's Report
    Staff or committee report
    Laurie Paolicelli's next-to-last report before she retires on November 2, 2026. She covers tourism projects planned for 2027, major events the bureau will support through advertising, and Clean Design's recent Orange County Today presentation.
  4. VI Budget Update
    Staff or committee report Budget and appropriations
    A budget update from Matt Hughes and Hannah Hemphill.

Other recent meetings of this board