--- title: Akron Summit Convention Visitors Bureau staff-page changes description: "Summit County's tourism bureau, a 501(c)(6) on about $7.4M a year: 56% from the county lodging tax and 44% from running the city-owned Knight Center and Greystone. Marketing is a three-person in-house team; no agency of record has been found." canonical: https://destinationpulse.mandalivia.com/org/akron-summit-convention-visitors-bureau/ --- > This is the Markdown twin of https://destinationpulse.mandalivia.com/org/akron-summit-convention-visitors-bureau/ — an index of all Markdown pages is at https://destinationpulse.mandalivia.com/llms.txt. # Akron Summit Convention Visitors Bureau ## Sales brief (beta) As of Oct 12, 2026. ## Why now? - **July 2026:** published its 2025 Year in Review, which reports a net loss of $337,117. The 2024 Year in Review had reported a net gain of $129,325 "on our operating budget".[^s5][^s6] - **July 2026:** released the 2025 Tourism Economics study. Direct visitor spending was $1.65B, against $1.67B in 2023 and 2024.[^s10][^s5] - **February 2026:** Destination Development Grants totalled $50,000 across 35 organizations, from nearly 60 applications. In 2025, 35 organizations shared $100,000; in 2024, 34 shared $100,000, "the largest award year to date".[^s11][^s12][^s6] - **November 2025:** Summit County Council renewed the bureau's lodging tax contract for 2026 to 2030, 11-0. Council members Rita Darrow and Christine Higham, who voted, also sit on the bureau's board.[^s27][^s5] - **2026:** the Summit Brew Path is in its 10th year, now down to 16 stops after one brewery left and one closed.[^s13][^s22] - No changes on the staff page since Destination Pulse started reading it.[^s1] ## Is there money? - 2025 revenue was $7,352,947 against a $7,656,345 budget. 56% came from industry bed tax and 44% from operations; 79% of spending went to sales, marketing and client event support.[^s5] - The FY2024 990 shows revenue of $7,939,955 and a net loss of $265,263.[^s8] - The bureau receives 72% of Summit County room taxes; the county lodging excise tax is 5.5%.[^s6][^s24] Gross county bed tax collections were $5.48M in 2023.[^s31] - In the 2023 state audit, the bureau's own segment took in $4.10M and spent $1.63M. The Knight Center segment lost $2.51M on operations, against a $1.88M loss in 2022.[^s31] - Advertising and promotion was $376,000 in 2021, $705,000 in 2022 and $769,000 in 2023.[^s31] - Professional fees were $303,453 in 2023, against $142,865 in 2022.[^s31] - The City of Akron pays $138,000 a year.[^s31] - Media budget: not published. ## Who decides? **Runs marketing** - Stephanie Berry, Vice President of Marketing & Brand Management; media contact[^s2][^s20] - Ty Johnson, Marketing & Social Media Manager; contact for the Summit Brew Path[^s2][^s13] - Jim McConihe, Senior Graphic Designer[^s2] **Leads the bureau** - Gregg M. Mervis, President & CEO since 2012; joined as Director of Sales in 1995[^s4] - Morell Mendiola, Chief Financial Officer[^s2] - Ren Camacho (Akron-Canton Airport), board chair. The 15 seats are appointed 7 by the City of Akron, 7 by the County of Summit and 1 by the Tri County Labor Council.[^s14][^s31] Titles from the staff page, the history page and the Year in Review. Contact details are on [their staff page](https://www.visitakron-summit.org/about-us/staff/). ## Who do they work with? - **Website:** Simpleview; new sites for the bureau, the Knight Center and Greystone launched in April 2024.[^s23][^s6] - **Visitor measurement:** Arrivalist, implemented in 2025.[^s5] - **Research:** Tourism Economics with TourismOhio; STR for hotel data.[^s10][^s31] - **Digital passport:** LoyalBrew, for the Summit Brew Path.[^s22] - **Visitors guide:** the 2026 guide is on the "greatlakespublishing" Issuu account.[^s21] - **Creators:** Brandy Gleason (Ohio Road Trips) and Dina's Days.[^s5] - **Agency of record:** not found on the 990, the website, the 2024 and 2025 Years in Review or the 2023 audit. The FY2024 990 lists no contractor paid over $100,000.[^s1][^s5][^s6][^s31] ## When do they buy? - The fiscal year ends in December.[^s8] - The next board meeting is 19 November 2026, at noon at the Knight Center.[^s3] - The county lodging tax contract runs to 31 December 2030.[^s27] - Grants are announced in late January or early February; the Tourism Economics report comes out in July, followed by the Year in Review.[^s11][^s12][^s10] - No procurement or vendor RFP page was found on the site.[^s7] ## What they're running - **Summit Brew Path,** 10th year: 1,729 completed passports and 1,618 at the Bash in 2025.[^s5] - **The Drip Drive,** 7th year: 22 coffee shops from 28 February 2026. 2025 had 28 shops and more than 630 passports, the largest to date.[^s16][^s5] - **Summit Sweet Stroll,** 2nd year: 21 stops from 13 June 2026.[^s15] - **Treasure Trail:** launched November 2024 with 20 stores; creator Dina's Days drew 685,000 views.[^s6][^s5] - **Tourism Drives Us:** an advocacy campaign launched in 2025, citing $758 in tax savings per household.[^s5][^s18] - **Savor the Scenic in Summit:** a 2024 campaign, with a national TV commercial in July 2024 through the Kaulig Companies Championship.[^s6] - **Sports Alliance of Greater Akron:** 120 sports events in 2025, and a new logo.[^s5] ## Worth knowing - 2025 sales results: 157 RFPs (124 in 2024), 56 site visits (33) and 52,254 room nights (50,938).[^s5][^s6] - Website users rose from 154,116 in 2024 to 278,551 in 2025.[^s6][^s5] - Three venue staff are on the FY2024 990 but not on the staff page: the head electrician and the VPs of food and beverage and of operations.[^s8][^s2] - The 2023 audit says management "anticipates a flat revenue stream and will continue to contain costs".[^s31] [^s1]: Destination Pulse org page, roster captured 2026-10-07. [^s2]: Staff Directory, ASCVB, read 2026-10-12. [^s3]: About the ASCVB (2026 board schedule), read 2026-10-12. [^s4]: Our History, ASCVB, read 2026-10-12. [^s5]: 2025 ASCVB Year In Review, 2026-07, pp. 1-17. [^s6]: 2024 ASCVB Year In Review, 2024, pp. 2-13. [^s7]: visitakron-summit.org sitemap, read 2026-10-12. [^s8]: Nonprofit Explorer, EIN 34-1131390, FY2024 990 filed 2026-03-24. [^s10]: "New Report Shows Tourism Continues to Fuel Summit County's Economy", ASCVB blog, 2026-07-23. [^s11]: "2026 Destination Development Grants Fuel Tourism Growth Across Summit County", ASCVB blog, 2026-02-03. [^s12]: "2025 Destination Development Grant Recipients", ASCVB blog, 2025-01-28. [^s13]: "Summit Brew Path Raises a Glass to 10 Years", ASCVB blog, 2026-01-07. [^s14]: "Summit County Tourism Industry Celebrated at 2026 Zenith Awards Luncheon", ASCVB blog, 2026-05-11. [^s15]: "Summit Sweet Stroll Returns for a Second Year", ASCVB blog, 2026-06-12. [^s16]: "The 2026 Drip Drive is Here!", ASCVB blog, 2026-02-27. [^s18]: Tourism Drives Us, ASCVB, read 2026-10-12. [^s20]: Media, ASCVB, read 2026-10-12. [^s21]: Akron/Summit County Insider Guide 2026, Issuu. [^s22]: Summit Brew Path, ASCVB, read 2026-10-12. [^s23]: visitakron-summit.org page source, read 2026-10-12. [^s24]: Lodging Excise Tax, Summit County Fiscal Office, read 2026-10-12. [^s27]: Resolution No. 2025-300, County of Summit Council, adopted 2025-11-10. [^s31]: Regular Audit for the Year Ended December 31, 2023, Ohio Auditor of State, 2024-11-20, pp. 5-11, 21-23, notes 1, 10. ## Changes (0) No staff-page changes recorded for this organization yet. ## Current leadership (3) - Gregg M. Mervis — President & Chief Executive Officer - Morell Mendiola — Chief Financial Officer - Stephanie Berry — Vice President of Marketing & Brand Management ## Team Captured Oct 14, 2026 from the official team page: ### Sales & convention services (5) - Autumn Ritchie — Destination Sales Associate - Cindy Coontz — Director of Sales - Kari Pekar — Destination Sales Manager, Sports Alliance of Greater Akron - Lydia Oravetz — Destination Sales Manager - Sean McAllister — Destination Sales Manager ### Marketing & communications (2) - Jim McConihe — Senior Graphic Designer - Ty Johnson — Marketing & Social Media Manager ### Finance & administration (2) - Diane Miller — Administrative Assistant - Jazmyne Powell-Johnson — Payroll & Human Resources Manager ### Other (1) - Nicole Clough — Accounts Receivable Specialist ## From the IRS Form 990 (FY2024) Revenue: $7,939,955 Contractors (0), largest first: None listed. Officers and directors (21): - GREGG MERVIS — CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER & PRESIDENT — $225,778 - ROBERT CZUP — HEAD ELECTRICIAN — $157,674 - RONALD DORSEY — VICE PRESIDENT OF FOOD & BEVERAGE — $146,801 - MORELL MENDIOLA — CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER — $137,093 - KEITH POMERANING — VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS — $128,254 - STEPHANIE BERRY — VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING & BRAND MANAGEMENT — $102,079 Others listed without compensation: RENATO CAMACHO (CHAIR); MAUREEN M SCHNEIDER (VICE CHAIR OF THE BOARD, DIRECTOR); JEFFREY LYNCH (TREASURER OF THE BOARD, DIRECTOR); SHARON REAVES (SECRETARY OF THE BOARD, DIRECTOR); DAVID LIEBERTH (DIRECTOR); ISMAIL AL-AMIN (DIRECTOR); JACK DELEO (DIRECTOR); SANDRA HAMAD (DIRECTOR); CHRISTINE WIEDIE HIGHAM (DIRECTOR); SHIRLENE KRAMER (DIRECTOR); JEANNINE MARKS (DIRECTOR); DON PADGETT III (DIRECTOR); DAVID E PRENTICE (DIRECTOR); BOB PURDY (DIRECTOR); MARCO SOMMERVILLE (DIRECTOR) Source: IRS Form 990, tax period 202412: ## Contact details This site publishes names, titles, sections and detected changes. Email and phone for the people on a roster are not published here; they come through the MCP server at https://destinationpulse.mandalivia.com/mcp (tool dp_get_org, per organization). Sign-in is a free email code, and new accounts get 10 free calls. - Chat apps: in Claude, open Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector and paste the URL. ChatGPT has an equivalent custom connector setting; paste the same URL there. - Shell agents: run `claude mcp add --transport http destination-pulse https://destinationpulse.mandalivia.com/mcp`, then have the user sign in by running `/mcp` inside the agent and following the email-code prompt.