Greater Rochester Visitors Association Inc

What it reported doing in 2025

Tourism/Leisure Marketing: Tourism marketing and development attracts out-of-town leisure visitors who spend time and money at Monroe County attractions, cultural institutions, festivals and events, and in recreational pursuits. The leisure market creates the most personal impressions of the area because of how visitors spend their time and what they experience while here. Monroe County has significant appeal to leisure travelers and is geographically located to capitalize on its internationally known attractions.(Continued on Schedule O)GRVA's tourism and marketing division develops and implements advertising programs, collateral distribution systems, resource enhancement programs, market promotions, and travel-trade partnerships that reach broad tourism markets and special interest groups. Many programs are developed in collaboration with GRVA member organizations and with regional destination marketing partners including entities in the Finger Lakes region and Erie Canal Corridor.Target markets include:- A major focus for year-round visitation encompassing markets within a 250-mile radius including Canadian populations, attracted through digital, print, connected tv, and ooh tactics. - Family travelers from the downstate region of New York state, I-81 corridor in Pennsylvania, and surrounding drive-in markets including western Massachusetts, Vermont, and Cleveland, Ohio. These visitors are attracted through a major campaign that includes digital, print, and connect tv.- Travelers who are already in, or planning visits to nearby regions with an ability to include our county in their travels- International visitors who are traveling by ground transportation from New York City to Niagara Falls, attracted through a program called Wine, Water, and Wonders of New York State in conjunction with Corning Museum of Glass, Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance, Destination Niagara USA, Visit Ithaca, Watkins Glen Area Chamber of Commerce, Hudson Valley Tourism, Discover Long Island, and Delta Air Lines- Group tour/travel trade, attracted through direct sales programs and with the help of packaged visits that include nearby attractions, wineries, etc.- Encouraging local residents to invite their families and friendsGRVA estimates that a combined 2 million visitors came from at least 50 miles away, across all tourism segments (leisure, business-conventions and sporting event, and international) in 2024. Specific tracking of programs is difficult and research is generally accomplished with regional and state partners. Locally, anecdotal information provided by attractions, weekend and holiday hotel occupancy, comparative event attendance, and industry data tools is largely the source used to measure tourism and related expenditures. Activity indexes are used as a reliable source to help determine leisure interest and resulting business

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: Limited
• Program expense ratio: Limited
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Pass
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 0.4%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.43; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.72; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 28.2%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: Limited
• Revenue growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 1.9% per year; rating input score 100; 17th percentile among comparable filings