The District Development Program is an element of the Healdsburg Tourism Improvement District (HTID) Management District Plan, which was drafted in accordance with the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994, Streets and Highways Code section 36600 et seq (TID Statute) and was authorized by the City of Healdsburg (City) and the Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) and went into effect on January 1, 2023. 

District Development (DD) projects will be designed to improve the visitor experience in an effort to increase overnight visitation at lodging businesses paying the HTID assessment. Working collaboratively with the City, the Chamber has developed specific DD funding criteria.

DD Projects/Events Policy:

• Services designed to improve the visitor experience, such as but not limited to, transportation and parking solutions;
• Improvements designed to improve the visitor experience, such as but not limited to, benches, restrooms, and lighting improvements;
• Activities designed to improve the visitor experience, such as but not limited to, Tuesday Music on the Plaza, Healdsburg Farmers Market, Healdsburg Center to the Arts, and/or creation of new Arts, Cultural, and Educational activities.

Organizations are permitted to file as many applications as they wish for individual projects/events in accordance with the parameters above, but only one application shall be authorized per event, per year.

The grant funding cycle will open twice a year to fund DD projects/events: one grant funding cycle will be opened for the Spring/Summer season and one grant funding cycle will be opened for the Fall/Winter season. After each grant funding cycle’s application deadline, the DD Committee will meet to review the applications and make a recommendation to the Chamber Board of Directors. These DD Committee meetings shall be conducted in accordance with the California Brown Act. The Board of the Chamber will vote to approve all grant funding recommendations during the next regularly scheduled meeting. The DD Committee and Board will review all applications in accordance with the following review criteria/procedure:

• How the event/project will be marketed to destination travelers outside of the area to drive demand for overnight visitation to lodging businesses paying the HTID assessment.
• Timing of the event/project. The goal is to avoid multiple events on the same day and to support initiatives that drive mid-week, shoulder-season, and multi-night stays.
• How the event/project will measure overnight stays to lodging businesses paying the HTID assessment in Healdsburg.
• How the event/project enhances the current visitor experience to drive visitation to lodging businesses paying the HTID assessment.
• If the event/project has received funding before, the DD Committee will review the most recent event recap to review metrics used to show increases in attendance and event growth.
• If outside vendors or event staff require overnight accommodations, preference should be given to lodging businesses paying the HTID assessment.

If a DD grant is awarded by the Board of the Chamber, the applicant must agree to ensure the Chamber/Stay Healdsburg logo, branding, and website is used appropriately on all event materials and every effort is made to promote the entire Healdsburg destination. DD grants are highly competitive. Partial or no funding for particular events is not uncommon, and is not a judgment by the Chamber Board of Directors of the inherent value of the event to the Healdsburg community, but rather reflective of the funding priorities required by the TID statute, and the City Ordinance under which the grants are governed.

At the conclusion of the funded DD event/project, grantees must submit a written recap report which includes attendee information, use of the funds, and the event/project's overall success. This report is to be submitted to the Chamber within 30 days following the completion of the DD event/ project in order to be eligible for a future grant.

If the approved DD event/project will not take place on the proposed date due to a cancellation or postponement, or if the base premise of the DD event/project is modified or restructured in any way, the grantee must contact the Chamber at info@healdsburg.com as soon as possible for the DD Committee and Chamber Board of Directors to review the changes. The Chamber Board of Directors reserves the right to request a full or partial refund of grant monies should the event not take place on the proposed date or the structure no longer meets the above policies and procedures of DD events/projects to the same extent.

Application Process and Schedule

Before filling out the grant application linked below, please be sure to read all of the policies and procedures above. There is no option to save the application progress once you have begun and it is therefore recommended to have materials and questions ready before continuing to the next page. 

Applicants must complete the online application and include a cover letter (options to upload or copy and paste the cover letter included in the online application).

Applications for the Fall/Winter grant funding cycle for projects taking place between November 2023 and April 2024, will be due on September 6, at 5 pm. If you have any questions regarding the application or process, please email info@healdsburg.com.

 

ONLINE APPLICATION