Communications and destination services report highlights city outreach, market, ice rink and media work

Communications and Destination Services staff gave a lengthy departmental briefing covering marketing, digital media, special events, tourism, the Mayborn Convention Center, creative services and public relations. Staff outlined recent campaigns, planned events and operational changes and flagged several near-term public programs.

Why this matters: The department steers citywide public information, event promotion and tourism functions that shape how residents and visitors learn about services, schedules and special events. Several items — the Santa Fe community market, a winter ice rink, and monthly downtown programming — have direct implications for downtown businesses and visitors.

Key takeaways

- Brush-and-bulk and solid-waste outreach: Marketing worked with solid waste on a citywide brush-and-bulk communications campaign that included social media, billboards, a utility-bill insert and door hanger distribution. Staff said a temporary door-hanger team began on Oct. 14 and that blanket distribution will take about 30–45 days for the entire city; staff said phased roll-out is intended to avoid overwhelming the customer service schedule.

- Santa Fe community market and Mayborn updates: Construction for the Santa Fe market was described as nearly complete with an anticipated opening in spring 2026 (end of Q1); staff said they plan a grand opening in early 2026 and discussed vendor recruitment and a monthly market cadence. At the Mayborn, staff reported progress on catering agreements, Momentus event-management software deployment, Wi‑Fi and AV upgrades, parking-lot restriping and HVAC work.

- Seasonal ice rink downtown: The department described a funded temporary ice rink to operate at MLK Festival Grounds/behind the Sunwell Building from Dec. 12 through Jan. 4 with a 90‑minute session priced at $12 and skate aids available for $5. Staff said they were working on corporate bookings, sponsorship opportunities and holiday lighting.

- Video series and public education: The "Let's Talk Temple" and "Behind the City" video series continue to be published by the PR team to explain budgets, pavement maintenance and water system topics; staff said these videos are hosted on the city newsroom and linked from social channels to reach residents and to supplement written materials.

- Downtown events and tourism outreach: Staff described Trackside Cinema (outdoor movies), Oktoberfest, Jingle Jam, a haunted digital downtown tour and new quarterly First Friday block parties. Downtown outreach includes text-message contact for downtown businesses, a quarterly downtown newsletter and regular committee meetings.

- Awards and staffing: The communications team reported more than 20 awards year-to-date across multiple organizations (government-communications, marketing and destination accolades). The Mayborn reported new staff hires and administrative improvements to contracts and client systems.

Ending

Staff asked council to use the communications team for outreach needs and noted multiple upcoming community events (Veterans Day, City Center grand opening Nov. 7, Community Summit Nov. 14, and holiday programming) where the department will lead logistics and promotion. No council action was taken at the workshop.