November 2014
Submitted by Jeff Metzger — Chairman, DeKalb County Board
DEKALB COUNTY CONVENTION & VISITOR’S BUREAU ANNUAL REPORT
Debbie Armstrong, Executive Director at DeKalb County Convention & Visitors Bureau, presented her annual report to the County Economic Development Committee this month. Ms. Armstrong’s report highlighted several accomplishments for the past year. The revenue generated from tourism in 2013 was $81.58 million. Ms. Armstrong indicated that the economic impact generated from tourism revenue has gone up five years in a row.
One of the biggest accomplishments was hosting the successful IHSA State Football Championship in DeKalb County at the NIU Huskie Stadium. This event alone had an estimated economic impact of $800,000 for the area. Another key factor from the IHSA games was $200,000 in free publicity.
Ms. Armstrong indicated that their website has generated 37,790 visits so far in 2014 or 19,700 more visits than in 2013. She has featured an article in Group Tour Management on DeKalb County that saved her agency $6,300 in advertising costs. KiteFest was the largest one to date, which was just held in September. If you have not already, you should visit their website at http://dekalbcountycvb.com.
Most recently, Ms. Armstrong was featured in a segment on Chicago Today on FOX 32 television. This was great publicity for DeKalb County, and the video clip can be seen on their website, along with several other videos.
PROPOSED FOOD ORDINANCE
Ms. Jane Lux DeKalb County Public Health Administrator, and Mr. Greg Maurice from the County Health Department, presented information to the Health and Human Service Committee regarding the revised Food and Food Establishments Code. Ms. Lux explained that the reasoning behind the revisions is because the Code has not been updated since 1979, and the State Code was updated in November of 2013. The Health Department surveyed 13 surrounding Counties for their Food Establishment Fees for their study. Ms. Lux reviewed the revised Ordinance with the Health & Human Service Committee. She summarized the main changes that are being proposed such as:
Illinois Foodservice code references were updated.
Definitions were updated.
Right of inspection and Enforcement procedures were included.
Food establishments will be classified based on the potential risk of foodborne illness (menu items/preparation of food) to comply with the Illinois Foodservice code in addition to the size of the establishment.
Exemptions that contradicted with the Illinois Foodservice code were removed.
Clarification on the frequency of inspections, based on the potential risk of foodborne illness, were included.
Employee requirements for food service worker and the food service manager were included such as the employee notifying the manager if they have been sick while at work or outside of work.
Additional information can be found at the County Health Department website at http://dekalbcounty.org/Health/
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