Christmas Debate Discussed at City Hall

During Tuesday’s Board of Aldermen meeting, Christmas was a topic of discussion; while Ozark Mountain Christmas and America’s Christmas Tree City are separate titles and marketing items, the two could be used together.

Ann McDowell has been in the tourism industry for 35 years. During the public comment section, she spoke about Christmas on behalf of the non-profit Branson Christmas Coalition. McDowell has been the Executive Director of the coalition since it started in 2015. She said the non-profit’s mission is to “grow and enhance the Ozark Mountain Christmas season.” The organization is supported by more than 30 donors including businesses and other organizations. The aldermen received the coalition’s membership list during McDowell’s presentation.

The group’s board of directors meets every month every year to “develop and implement initiatives that will grow visitation during November and December.” She said that the effort to make the area famous for Christmas trees began in 2016. McDowell said in 2020 they documented 60 landmark Christmas tree displays throughout the Ozark Mountain area. Those displays feature Christmas trees 20 feet or taller, have ten or more trees in one display or have a single, unique display.

McDowell gave consumer research stats from 2017 to 2019. 49% of visitors said Christmas tree promise was very or extremely important when deciding to visit Branson. 90% enjoyed a Christmas tree display while visiting. McDowell said 82% agreed Branson “delivered on the promise of being America’s Christmas tree city.” McDowell said based on that, it can be estimated that there is $20 million of economic impact yearly because of the Branson America’s Christmas Tree City campaign.

Following McDowell’s speech, Jason Outman of the Chamber of Commerce delivered a presentation. Outman said the Chamber takes “pride in the fact that we represent both Ozark Mountain Christmas as well as America’s Christmas Tree City.” “In fact, if you look at our analytics, what people search the most is actually Christmas in Branson or Branson Christmas,” Outman said. He added that he thinks unfair that the Chamber has been targeted and said to have taken Christmas out of Branson. “Our tax collections and our visitors numbers show that Branson has continued to grow year over year during the Christmas season.” Outman said the Chamber is a member of the Branson Christmas Coalition.

After an array of public comments, Michael London gave his presentation called Revitalizing Ozark Mountain Christmas. London said he was stunned that Outman said that the words “Ozark Mountain Christmas” appeared on the Christmas landing webpage; London claimed those words were not there until a meeting two weeks ago. London said he sent a video to the aldermen documenting what was on the mentioned webpage and that those words were not present. In the middle of the presentation, London said “our shows should be the face of Ozark Mountain Christmas marketing, not trees.”

Outman spoke again during the meeting. He said he appreciates the insight London shared. Outman said the slides shared during London’s presentation showing the Chamber’s website are invalid. “We have gone back and actually looked at [the website] to try to figure out where he even pulled those from,” Outman said. He also said those images were probably from 2015 or 2018 before Outman himself was present. Outman said he thanks London for his research and that it “keeps us on our toes.” The final person to speak said there should be no fighting. Several aldermen commented about their appreciation for the final speech and expressed favor for using both Ozark Mountain Christmas and America’s Christmas Tree City together.