The End of the BeginningAt last night's council meeting, Council Member Mary Murphy, the Town’s liaison to the Tourism Advisory Commission (TAC), publicly announced the resignation of four of the Commission’s five members. But that is only the tip of the iceberg. These resignations mark the “End of the Beginning" of TAC. This is the focus of today’s article. Next Tuesday, in Part 2, we focus on an event that may have precipitated the resignations. We call that “The Middle.” Wednesday, we conclude our coverage in Part 3: “The Beginning of the End.” Together, this will be the most complete coverage published this very significant event.
The four resignations
The Town Council established the five-member Commission on June 4, 2025. It was to be an advisory group to council. According to the enabling resolution, its members were to provide input on strategic marketing, special events, hotel and resort partnerships, and budget priorities; review the Town’s tourism plans and strategies; and undertake specific reviews assigned by the Council or Town Manager. [See the panel below].
The four commissioners—Chris DeSimone, Tony D’Angelo, Sasha Case and Mark Van Buren—brought experience and knowledge from different areas related to tourism. They were eager to contribute as Oro Valley expanded its own destination-marketing efforts.
…of commissioners who expressed deep disappointment
Their resignation letters differed in detail and tone, but several central themes were consistent. DeSimone described a Commission expected to rubber-stamp staff recommendations. This is far different than the scope of the work as defined in the resolution and shown in the panel. D’Angelo wrote that its impact on tourism decisions had been “negligible.” Case said that the Commission’s advice appeared to “fall on deaf ears.” Van Buren called his service on the Commission “one of the most frustrating endeavors” of his career.
Still, despite their frustration, they remained committed throughout nine months and nine meetings to strengthening tourism and helping Oro Valley succeed in its strategic decision to conduct its own destination marketing.
…for many reasons
As individuals, they also raised concerns that reflected their particular experiences and areas of expertise:
The resignations do not, by themselves, establish the accuracy of every allegation made in the four letters. The resignations do, however, establish that within days, 80 percent of the inaugural Commission expressed essentially the same conclusion... that their advice was neither wanted nor meaningfully used.
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Their resignation letters differed in detail and tone, but several central themes were consistent. DeSimone described a Commission expected to rubber-stamp staff recommendations. This is far different than the scope of the work as defined in the resolution and shown in the panel. D’Angelo wrote that its impact on tourism decisions had been “negligible.” Case said that the Commission’s advice appeared to “fall on deaf ears.” Van Buren called his service on the Commission “one of the most frustrating endeavors” of his career.
Still, despite their frustration, they remained committed throughout nine months and nine meetings to strengthening tourism and helping Oro Valley succeed in its strategic decision to conduct its own destination marketing.
…for many reasons
As individuals, they also raised concerns that reflected their particular experiences and areas of expertise:
- Chairman Tony D’Angelo objected to the Commission’s exclusion from the development of the Town’s tourism app, brand and website, and questioned the accuracy of bed-tax information presented to commissioners.
- Vice Chairman Mark Van Buren criticized the Town’s limited relationships with hotels and resorts, and a tourism plan he considered generic and insufficiently tailored to Oro Valley.
- Chris DeSimone felt that the town overlooked tourism’s importance to local restaurants and Town revenue.
- Sasha Case said she had come to believe the Commission was created primarily to satisfy a requirement in the Town’s tourism plan, rather than to provide advice that staff and Council intended to use.
The resignations do not, by themselves, establish the accuracy of every allegation made in the four letters. The resignations do, however, establish that within days, 80 percent of the inaugural Commission expressed essentially the same conclusion... that their advice was neither wanted nor meaningfully used.
Was their resignation simply the result of unmet expectations, restrictions imposed on the Commission’s formal duties or the way Town staff managed the advisory process?
Or was there a deeper cause?
That is what we will examine next Tuesday in "The Middle".
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