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MINUTES
ORO VALLEY TOURISM ADVISORY COMMISSION
REGULAR SESSION
April 20, 2026
HOPI CONFERENCE ROOM
11000 N. LA CAÑADA DRIVE

***Please note: due to technical failures, an audio/video recording of the meeting is not available***

REGULAR SESSION AT OR AFTER 4:00 PM

CALL TO ORDER

Chair D'Angelo called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Present:

Sasha Case, Commissioner

Christopher DeSimone, Commissioner

Malarie Puggioni, Commissioner

Mark Van Buren, Vice Chair

Tony D'Angelo, Chair

Staff Present:

Steven Zraick, Town Attorney

Paul Melcher, Community and Economic Development Director

Commissioner Case attended the meeting remotely via Microsoft Teams.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Chair D'Angelo led the Commission and audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.

COUNCIL LIAISON COMMENTS

Council Liaison Mary Murphy provided updates on the new general plan, Oro Valley's Path Forward; a ribbon cutting at the community center, the Northwest Recharge, Recovery, and Delivery System (NWRRDS) project; new police main station; and new development occurring in the Oro Valley Marketplace.

REPORTS ON CURRENT TOURISM EVENTS

Several commissioners reported on recent events, including a hosted culinary event, El Conquistador wedding events, and a Tohono Chul fundraising campaign.

CALL TO AUDIENCE

There were no speaker requests.

REGULAR SESSION AGENDA

WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION OF TOWN ATTORNEY STEVEN ZRAICK

New Town Attorney Steven Zraick introduced himself and provided a brief summary of his work experience and how he will serve the commission.

REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF THE MARCH 16, 2026 REGULAR SESSION MEETING MINUTES

Motion by Commissioner Christopher DeSimone, seconded by Vice Chair Mark Van Buren to approve the March 16, 2026 meeting minutes as presented.

Vote: 5 - 0 Carried

UPDATE AND POSSIBLE DISCUSSION REGARDING THE DMO STAKEHOLDER STRUCTURE AND JUNE 2026 MEETING

Community and Economic Development Director Paul Melcher provided a presentation that included the following:

- Town of Oro Valley DMO Partner Meeting information
- DMO Partner Meeting Tentative Agenda
- Partner categories
- Initial Stakeholder List (Primary vs. Secondary)
- Questions?

Discussion ensued among the commission and staff, including the following questions asked by the commission:

- How will the stakeholders be notified?
- Will the commission see the new DMO website prior to the June meeting?
- Have participants committed to attending?
- What are the objectives of the stakeholders in the meeting? If effective, what is the expected outcome?
- Reviewing the list of stakeholders, would you consider including shopping center managers?
- When did we first begin creating the website?
- Who is the vendor working on the website?
- How complete is the website?

DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION REGARDING TOURISM ADVISORY COMMISSION ATTENDANCE OF THE AZ GOVERNOR'S CONFERENCE ON TOURISM AUGUST 12-14, 2026, AT THE JW MARRIOTT TUCSON STARR PASS RESORT

Community and Economic Development Director Paul Melcher advised the commission that there are funds in the Commissions training budget to allow two commissioners to attend the upcoming Arizona Governor's Conference on Tourism that will take place in Tucson on August 12-14, 2026. The Town will cover the costs of registration for the event. Mr. Melcher asked the commission to elect two commissioners to attend, taking advantage of early bird pricing. Several commissioners noted they had attended the event in the past and provided their views on the conference.

Motion by Chair Tony D'Angelo, seconded by Commissioner Christopher DeSimone to send Commissioners Case and Puggioni to represent the commission and attend the conference.

Vote: 5 - 0 Carried

DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION REGARDING THE 9 ACTION RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE ORO VALLEY LEISURE TRAVEL MANAGEMENT PLAN

Chair D'Angelo allowed for public comment:

Oro Valley resident Richard Furash spoke about his perspective of the struggles he sees with the Commission and Town Council on this item. He stated that he does not believe there is any obligation of the Commission to approve the nine action recommendations. Mr. Furash stated focus should be on Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) and much can be done without the nine recommendations.

Community and Economic Development Director Paul Melcher stated he met with the Vice Mayor to seek clarity on the recommendations. Mr. Melcher drafted a document that reviewed each recommendation in detail and provided examples. Mr. Melcher would like to review the document with the Commission as well.

Discussion ensued among the commission:

- The commissioners stated they struggle with the overlap with Parks and Recreation.
- The commissioners stated they had named their top three recommendations at the previous meeting and questioned the reason for reviewing all nine recommendations. The emphasis and focus should be on those top three items. Resources should only go to those items that were prioritized.
- Regarding sports tourism and a possible assessment, the Commissioners asked the following: What are the assets we do have? Why aren't we getting more tournaments? How do we promote with what we have now?
- Is there a status update on the relationship between El Conquistador and the Town?
- The Commission members requested their recommendations should be at the top of the list.

Motion by Chair Tony D'Angelo, to recommend that our top three priorities are what is presented to Town Council as a focus for our tourism efforts, but not discounting the other priorities with the focus on the three from the perspective on what we currently have and not what we don't have.

Motion died for lack of second.

Town Attorney Steven Zraick stated that the motion should be more specific and succinct.

Motion by Commissioner Christopher DeSimone, seconded by Vice Chair Mark Van Buren the Tourism Advisory Commission approve the updated ranking spreadsheet information and recommendations summary, but limiting to the three preferred initiatives: 1. develop a regional events and festivals strategy; 2. increase sports tourism development; 3. activate Steam Pump Ranch as a community venue.

Vote: 5 - 0 Carried

Motion by Commissioner Christopher DeSimone, seconded by Commissioner Sasha Case to recommend to Town Council that tourism development strategies feature existing infrastructure and staffing.

Vote: 5 - 0 Carried

ADJOURNMENT

Motion by Chair Tony D'Angelo, seconded by Commissioner Christopher DeSimone to adjourn the meeting.

Chair D'Angelo adjourned the meeting at 5:33 p.m.

I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the regular session of the Town of Oro Valley Tourism Advisory Commission of Oro Valley, Arizona held on the 20th day of April 2026. I
further certify that the meeting was duly called and held and that a quorum was present.

______________________________________
Jeanna Ancona
Senior Office Specialist