provided to The Santiva Chronicle
The Lee County Tourism Development Council (TDC) anticipates $52 million in bed tax revenue for 2026, Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau executive director Pamela Johnson told a joint gathering of the Greater Fort Myers and Sanibel-Captiva Chamber of Commerce and Florida Restaurant & Lodging (FRLA) Lee Chapter at an Aug. 26 luncheon meeting at Sundial Beach Resort & Spa on Sanibel Island.
That figure approaches 2021 revenue of $53.3 million. In 2022, the TDC collected a record $66.5 million before Hurricane Ian hit in September. Last year, collections amounted to $46.8 million.
“So, we’re getting there. We’re going in the right direction,” Johnson said. “Everybody in this room — bravo to you, because, you know, as a community, it’s just been incredible to see where we live and where we are now.”
The TDC revenue pie gets sliced 53.6 percent for advertising and promotions, 26.4 percent for beaches and shoreline, and 20 percent for Lee County’s two major-league baseball stadiums, Johnson said. She emphasized the crucial impact of tourism on local economy, beyond bed tax to the sales tax visitors pay on all purchases.
In addition to advertising across traditional and social media, the VCB promotes the destination through domestic and international sales to the convention market, working with journalists on “earned media” impact, greeting arrivals at Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), and Guests First training to heighten the visitor experience.
Reading trends and looking into the future, Johnson sees the typical Lee County visitor profile has expanded from largely Midwestern to also Northeastern, particularly Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York. She takes a personal interest in expanding markets to the west through added air service.
“California, Arizona, those areas, we still have a lot of work to do, but we’re getting there,” Johnson said. “We are still working on a nonstop international flight from Fort Myers to the UK. I will continue to do that until I’m like 86.”
She directed local business owners to LeeVCB.com’s Destination Toolkit to help “businesses talk in the same language that we were talking about.”
Johnson also reported on recent and upcoming accommodations openings, noting the VCB no longer reports in terms of percentage of rooms that have reopened since Ian.
“And we’ve reached a point now where we believe that everything for now that’s going to come back, has come back,” she said. Captiva Island Inn will add its 10 rooms to the inventory later this year.
Sanibel’s Wild Mile digital pass program and September’s annual Island Hopper Songwriter’s Festival in Captiva Island, downtown Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, and Cape Coral keep the destination front of mind for markets where the VCB promotes while making sure the public understands the recovery status.
“Pamela leads with intelligence, humility, and heart,” said John Lai, president and chief executive officer of the collaborative chambers and FRLA. “She’s passionate about tourism, but even more passionate about the people and the communities that make Lee County such a special place. That combination is what makes her not only an exceptional leader, but an exceptional person, and one I am proud to call a friend and colleague. We thank her for her very helpful, at-the-helm perspective of where tourism is headed in our communities.”
Sponsors for the Aug. 26 meeting included Annual Luncheon Sponsor HBKS Wealth Advisors, along with FISH of SanCap, Quantum Fiber, and Simple Social.
The topic of the next joint meeting of the Greater Fort Myers and Sanibel-Captiva Chamber and Lee Chapter of the FRLA on Wednesday, Sep. 16, will be “Behind the Bill: A Property Tax Discussion” with Lee County tax appraiser Matt Caldwell and Lee County tax collector Noelle Branning at Luminary Hotel & Co. downtown Fort Myers. HBKS Wealth Advisors is Annual Luncheon Sponsor. Other sponsors include Macro Office Supply, Furniture & Printing, Inc.; Sunny Baker SWFL; and Community Cooperative.
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