Columbus and Lowndes County’s tourism agency is looking for a new bus.
Mechanical issues with the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau’s 1984 Leyland Motors Olympian double decker led CVB board members last month to ask executive director Nancy Carpenter to begin soliciting quotes for a new one.
At the board’s Monday meeting, Carpenter told the board her staff is working with the same London-based company that supplied the current bus and gathering quotes for a replacement. The quotes submitted thusfar range from $30-70,000, Carpenter said.
“At some very inopportune times, (the current bus) has quit,” Carpenter said. “We do have some wonderful mechanics that work on it on a regular basis. We just feel that we could either move that one and purchase a newer model.”
The word “newer” is relative, however, as Carpenter said the replacement bus will have to be at least 25 years old in order to dodge extra costs associated with emission standards. While the Olympian is used each day during Pilgrimage and rented throughout the year for private events, it’s not used enough to justify extra costs, she said.
The bus has been used 37 times this year, Carpenter said. The CVB charges $150 for the first hour to rent the bus and $100 for each subsequent hour to pay for a driver, gas and upkeep. It is usually rented out for school events and weddings, as well as family and school reunions.
The engine on the bus being used now has over 100,000 miles, Carpenter added. While there is no money set aside specifically in the upcoming fiscal year budget specifically for purchasing the new bus, the CVB will have options such as selling the current one to offset costs.
The matter will likely be taken back up at next month’s meeting, Carpenter said.
“There is so much that has come out of us having the bus that we’re almost being known like some other cities as having a double decker bus,” she said.
In other business Monday:
■ Carpenter reported to the board that the 75th Annual Pilgrimage has been selected as one of the Southeast Tourism Society’s top 20 events for 2015;
■ The board approved funding the second half of a $10,000 grant to the Juneteenth festival and the first half of a $10,000 grant to Seventh Avenue Heritage Festival;
■ After a 45-minute executive session, the board received and approved the tabulation of Carpenter’s performance evaluation to be placed in Carpenter’s personnel file. With the evaluations complete, Carpenter received a 4.5 percent raise as executive director of the CVB and Columbus Cultural Heritage Foundation. Carpenter will receive $83,600 a year beginning in October to lead the CVB and $15,675 to direct the CCHF.
Nathan Gregory covers city and county government for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.