Chicago City and Buckingham fountain at sunset in Chicago, Illinois

Chicago’s Tourism Improvement District

Chicago is at a crossroads.

Choose Chicago, the city’s official destination marketing organization (DMO), is significantly underfunded compared to competitor markets. These funds are also vulnerable, inconsistent, and designated based on the grant or financial source.

The time is now to invest in Chicago’s tourism landscape.

To be a competitor in the convention and global marketplace Chicago needs a Tourism Improvement District (CTID) — a stable funding source for DMO sales and marketing efforts.

How does a TID work?

A TID is a mechanism for funding tourism promotion and destination development activities. Funds raised through a small assessment (not a tax) on lodging stays within a designated geographic area are used to provide services desired by and directly benefiting the district. There are currently 210 TID’s nationwide and counting raising over $540M for tourism promotion.

Why does Chicago need a CTID?

Chicago is at risk of losing our competitive edge. Establishing a CTID is an investment in Chicago, and the future of our industry. A CTID will elevate Choose Chicago’s sales and marketing efforts to:

Increase our presence in national and global markets to deliver more leisure travelers.
Increase ability to compete with financial incentives and a hotel fund to deliver more conventions, meetings, events, and sports.
Drive ADR, occupancy, and compression to maintain the integrity of our rates.

How would CTID funds be used?

The CTID funds would be used in a variety of ways:

Financial incentives & hosting obligations
Hotel grant fund
Global meetings & event strategy
Full-funnel marketing campaign
Investment in travel-trade representation
Global media & influencer engagement
Consistent public relations
Creative partnerships

How will the CTID function?

The term of the CTID is 5 years. Hotels with 100+ rooms in the zip code boundaries of 60601, 60602, 60603, 60604, 60605, 60606, 60607, 60610, 60611, 60612, 60615, 60616, 60654, 60661 will be part of the CTID.

How is the CTID governed?

The CTID will be mandated to establish a committee of 9 to 11 members.

Meeting on a quarterly basis, this committee assumes responsibility for overseeing the funds collected within the CTID and ensures equitable representation by including stakeholders from various hotel sizes and geographic locations.

This framework guarantees that diverse interests are duly accounted for and facilitates effective financial management within the CTID.

Are there additional resources on the CTID?

Check out these helpful case studies from Civitas.

Questions about the CTID?

For media inquiries, please contact:

Lisa Nucci at lnucci@choosechicago.com
Cynthia McCafferty at cynthia@hawthronestrategy.com