SDTMD Awards a Record $52.5 Million in Annual Grants to Sustain Tourism’s Recovery

 San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) has allocated $52.5 million in funding for marketing programs and events over the next 12 months to continue attracting tourists and increasing local hotel occupancy.  

SDTMD’s funding allocation for the 2024 financial year, which begins July 1, is the largest in the organization’s 15-year history, surpassing the $48 million available in the 2020 financial year which was later cut short due to the pandemic. This year’s high-water mark results from a very strong tourism rebound in the City of San Diego over the past 12 months. 

“Our TMD board provides reliable and critical financial support for a great cross-section of effective marketing programs and exciting events that attract out of town visitors to San Diego while driving increased hotel occupancy,” said SDTMD Board Chair Richard Bartell. “The industry’s recovery last year exceeded expectations, but growth is beginning to level off and these funds will be vital to keep San Diego among the top destinations in its market.” 

The SDTMD is self-funded through a small assessment on room nights in City of San Diego hotels with 70 rooms or more. The proceeds are designated for tourism marketing to help increase overnight hotel stays. Overnight visitors generate transient occupancy tax, or TOT, which helps fund city services, and tourism supports thousands of direct jobs while attracting billions in visitor spending to the region.  

In its 2022 financial year, SDTMD awarded $26.6 million in marketing grants that delivered a return on investment of $31 in hotel room night revenue from every $1 of grant funding invested. The 2024 financial year grants include:  

  • San Diego Tourism Authority – The City’s destination marketing organization continues to be SDTMD’s primary recipient of funding and will receive more than $50 million for strategic marketing programs.  
  • Sports San Diego – Now in its second year of operation, Sports San Diego markets San Diego to athletic tournaments and competitions, which have become a big driver of travel to San Diego. It is receiving over $1.5 million to market the San Diego Holiday Bowl, the California State Games and the Rady Children’s Invitational Men’s College Basketball Tournament by the Beach to overnight visitors and to market San Diego to attract future major athletic events. 
  • Other Events – An additional $501,000 will support several established tourism generating events and programs that have received funding previously and have yielded a strong return. Returning events include U.S. Police & Fire Championships, San Diego Crew Classic, San Diego Open, USTA Billie Jean King Girl’s 16 & 18 National Championships and the USTA League National Championships and San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival.   

SDTMD targets events scheduled for traditionally slower travel periods for its funding. This helps to sustain steady year-round tourism. It also looks for programs that drive tourism across the city.  Additionally, SDTMD seeks to support events that give back to the local community.  

Examples of funded events featuring community programs include the San Diego Bay Food + Wine Festival’s partnership with Fast Forward Futures to support hospitality, culinary and enology arts scholarships and the San Diego Crew Classic Freedom Rows event that supports military veterans recovering from injuries, emotional trauma and PTSD. 

Collectively, the SDTMD’s grants are projected to drive approximately 5.7 million room nights to generate over $1.1 billion in room night revenue in addition to $115 million in TOT for the city. For more information, visit www.sdtmd.org. 

 Event organizers around the City of San Diego are encouraged to prepare and submit grant requests in October 2023 when the SDTMD issues its next call for applications. Learn more at www.sdtmd.org/applications. 

 

About San Diego Tourism Marketing District 
The San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) is a nonprofit, mutual-benefit corporation dedicated to improving lodging room night consumption in the City of San Diego. SDTMD provides a private, nonprofit funding vehicle to stimulate City of San Diego lodging room demand through tourism promotion, marketing and advertising programs. The judicious allocation of these resources creates a positive economic, fiscal and employment impact on lodging businesses in the City of San Diego. For more information, please visit: www.sdtmd.org 

SDTMD FY24 Funding Applications Available Oct. 14

San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) will begin accepting applications for Fiscal Year 2024 grants on October 14, 2022. Tourism-generating events and programs occurring July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024, that can demonstrate an increase in stays at SDTMD-assessed hotels (City of San Diego hotels with 70 rooms or more) and a measurable return on investment (ROI) are encouraged to apply. 

Interested applicants can access the application through SDTMD’s online portal at www.sdtmd.org/applications beginning October 14. Applications must be completed by 5 p.m. on Friday, November 18, 2022. 

All applicants are encouraged to attend a virtual application workshop to learn more about the process, funding criteria, and application. 

  • Workshop #1: Monday, October 17, 2022, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. 
  • Workshop #2: Wednesday, October 19, 2022, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. 

To register for the workshop, please email or call Executive Director Colleen Anderson.

SDTMD’s Colleen Anderson Celebrated as a San Diego Woman of Influence

Colleen Anderson
Colleen Anderson

Understanding the crucial role the San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) plays in the economic health of San Diego’s tourism industry and the benefit tourism provides to local residents has never been more important.

Congratulations to our executive director, Colleen Anderson, who was recently recognized by the San Diego Business Journal as one of San Diego’s Top 50 Over 50 Women of Influence in 2022 for her tireless dedication to San Diego’s hospitality industry and stewardship throughout the pandemic in the City’s tourism recovery.

See the full list of 2022 honorees in the San Diego Business Journal:

Read More

SDTMD Allocates $38 Million in Grants for FY 2023 to Support Tourism Rebound

Budget includes funding for a record number of tourism-generating programs including several new events 

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – June 29, 2022— San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) continues to support tourism recovery with nearly $38 million in funding allocated for destination marketing programs in Fiscal Year 2023, which begins July 1. Bolstered by an increase in assessments due to the robust rebound in leisure travel, SDTMD funding allocations for FY23 have increased by $10 million from the previous year. Funding remains $10 million short of the record $48 million allocated for programs in FY20 prior to the pandemic.

 
“The tourism industry has made great strides when compared to the previous fiscal year during the depths of the pandemic,” said SDTMD Board Chair Richard Bartell. “We are pleased to support a great cross-section of tourism-generating programs in the upcoming year that will continue to drive the recovery, especially with respect to meetings and events.”
 
San Diego Tourism Authority (SDTA), the City’s destination marketing organization, continues to be SDTMD’s primary recipient of funding and will receive approximately $35 million for strategic marketing programs.
 
An additional $2.6 million will support a record number of tourism generating events and programs, including several new events and four high-profile sports events that fall under the umbrella of the newly formed non-profit Sports San Diego.
 
Among the new events supported by SDTMD for FY23 are the Zero Emissions Summit and Expo that focuses on advancing zero-emissions technologies, the Old Town Luche Libre Festival highlighting the Mexican cultural tradition of Luchador Wrestling plus the Winter Gold Squash Tournament, Legit Rare Football All-American Championship and World Lacrosse Championships.
 
Through Sports San Diego, SDTMD is supporting additional new sporting events including the Donate Life Transplant Games of America, which honors organ donors and raises awareness of organ donation, as well as prestigious boys and girls ECNL soccer tournaments. The 2nd Annual Wonderfront Music and Arts Festival, which returns after a two-year pandemic hiatus, is another high-profile grant recipient for FY23. A full list of FY23 contractors can be found at sdtmd.org.
 
SDTMD funding decisions continue to support a responsible tourism approach. A majority of funded events fall during traditionally slower travel periods, which promotes stable business levels year-round while reducing stress on the region during peak travel times. Programs are also scattered throughout the city to benefit lodging in more districts and lessen impact on any single city area.
 
Several of SDTMD’s sponsored events also include non-SDTMD funded components that focus on giving back to the local community. San Diego Bay Food + Wine Festival partners with Fast Forward Futures to support hospitality, culinary and enology arts scholarship programs for students and professionals in the City of San Diego. The World Gold Squash Tournament helps support Access Youth Academy, a San Diego nonprofit that uses the sport of squash to fuel academic success for low-income youth. The San Diego Crew Classic Freedom Rows events support military veterans recovering from injuries, emotional trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
 
Established in 2008, SDTMD collects a small assessment on room nights from City hotels with 70 rooms or more. These assessments are designated for the sole purpose of funding tourism marketing. Tourism marketing helps increase overnight hotel stays, which generate tax dollars to fund the City’s essential services, support thousands of direct tourism jobs and attract billions in visitor spending to the region. Collectively, the FY23 events are projected to drive approximately 164,000 room nights to generate over $35 million in room night revenue in addition to $3.7 million in Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) for the city. For more information, visit www.sdtmd.org.
 

About San Diego Tourism Marketing District

The San Diego Tourism Marketing District (SDTMD) is a nonprofit, mutual-benefit corporation dedicated to improving lodging room night consumption in the City of San Diego. SDTMD provides a private, nonprofit funding vehicle to stimulate City of San Diego lodging room demand through tourism promotion, marketing and advertising programs. The judicious allocation of these resources creates a positive economic, fiscal and employment impact on lodging businesses in the City of San Diego. For more information, please visit: www.sdtmd.org

###

San Diego hotel tax higher than expected, helps boosts city coffers

Better than expected leisure travel is helping boost revenues for the City of San Diego. 

Hotel tax, or TOT, which is typically the city’s third highest source of revenue was $9.2 million higher than expected last spring, jumping to $68.1 million.

According to this article from the San Diego Union Tribune, sales tax, property tax and consumer buying power has also played a role in the city’s revenue surge.

Read More