Eugene A. Magnetti to Head Bureau that Promotes Tourism

Eugene A. Magnetti a resident of Mamaroneck and .an expert on marketing and Internet commerce, has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of the Westchester Convention and Visitors Bureau, Harold E. Vogt, chairman of the Bureau's board announced today.

"Gene has the experience and background to take tourism to a new level in this county," said Vogt, who is also President and CEO of The County Chamber of Commerce, Inc. "And with more and more people turning to the web to make their travel plans, his background in technology makes him particularly qualified for this position."

Magnetti, a top executive with two White Plains marketing firms, will replace Robert Elliott who is leaving effective May 31 to pursue his candidacy for Congress- Vogt thanked Elliott and four others who recently left the board, Alan Steel, Kathryn A. Coulam, Ernest H. Rechtermann and Debbie Scates for their contributions to the Bureau during their tenure.

The Bureau, incorporated in 1990, is a public/private partnership between Westchester County and The County Chamber of Commerce, Inc. Its mission is to develop and implement strategies to promote Westchester's tourism industry, which generates about $1 billion in annual revenues in the County.

County Executives Andy Spano said that he expects Magnetti to work closely with the County's Office Economic Development.

"There is a link between economic development and tourism," he said. "Consultants who helped us. put together our economic development strategy and who identified five 'clusters' we should concentrate an said that tourism could be a sixth cluster. It is one of the key growth areas for our County,"

He added, "Westchester has so much to offer potential visitors. The county offers an unusual combination of country ambiance and big city excitement, We have world class hotels, thousands of acres of parkland, fabulous restaurants, historic sites, cultural attractions and some of the best shopping anywhere."

Magnetti has had more than two decades of experience in marketing. Most recently, since 1998, he was Vice President Business Development of ImageWork Technologies Corp., based in White Plains. In that job, he had responsibility for all the firm's expansion activities including sales, marketing, business partnership and alliances. He was also, since 1995, President of Digital Possibilities, a White Plains firm that he co-founded that helps clients expand their business on the Internet.

Magnetti has held marketing positions at Fortune 500 corporations as well as at smaller entrepreneurial corporations and has conducted seminars for executives in the United States. Canada and Europe, He has trade show experience and is also an e•Business instructor for The County Chamber's Westchester Small Business Council's Sigma business program at Westchester Community College.

Said Magnetti, "I recognize the value of the tourism industry in Westchester County and look forward to meeting the challenges of my position."

The Westchester Convention and Visitors Bureau is funded mainly by the County from proceeds of the County hotel room tax. In 2000, County funding is $522,259, or approximately 80 percent of the Bureau's total budget of $655,750. Another 10 percent of the budget comes from a New York State: "I Love New York" tourism grant, and the balance from the County's tourism industry.