In July 2022 the NC General Assembly passed House Bill 1057. This bill gave the Mitchell County Board of Commissioners the power to create a Travel and Tourism Development Authority Board (TDA). The TDA is responsible for managing the proceeds of an Occupancy Tax. An Occupancy Tax is generated when individuals visit the area and stay in a short term rental inside Mitchell County. Some examples of short term rentals include airbnb, hotels and vacation rentals. The past five months the members of the TDA Board have held public meetings to learn General Statutes they must adhere to, set up bylaws, and discuss marketing ideas to promote the entire county. These meetings are held the first and third Tuesday of the month. They have been and will always be open to the public. The meeting schedule and agendas are shared with the Mitchell News Journal and WTOE. They can also be found inside the County Administration building and will be on the TDA website when it is complete. If you would like to be added to the TDA’s Email list to receive future information please make that request to mitchellcountytda@gmail.com. The board’s top three immediate goals are to create an online presence, develop a county-wide map, and compile a list of all the short term rentals in the county. The new website will be a central location for access to important information about promoting tourism throughout the entire county. The map will display activities and tourism related information. The members of the TDA Board were appointed by the County Commissioners on October 3rd, 2022 in their regular session meeting. Board members include one county commissioner, individuals involved with tourism, and individuals who pay occupancy tax. Current board members are Whitney Ledford, Misty Self, Joe Glenn, Matt Ward, Sharon Rowland, Libby Phillips, and Harley Masters. The TDA currently has one vacancy and will be filled by the Board of Commissioners in one of their regularly scheduled March meetings.
