During her time with Visit Longmont, Sarah Leonard tried to champion Longmont’s best features. From its excellent breweries to its convenient location along the Front Range, Leonard made sure to listen to what Longmont fans loved about the city. Leonard served as the chief executive officer of Visit Longmont, the destination marketing organization for the city, from early 2023 until earlier this month. On Dec. 1, Leonard will become the CEO of Visit Estes Park, which promotes the amenities of the Estes Park region. As CEO of Visit Longmont, Leonard guided the nonprofit through decisions aimed at making Longmont a true tourist destination. One of those decisions was the sponsoring the Ice Climbing and Dry Tooling World Cup, which was held at Longmont Climbing Collective in February. The event attracted athletes from around the world. By sponsoring and spreading the word about the event, Visit Longmont helped bring the ice climbing competition to Longmont for the first time. Longmont Climbing Collective, which has a five-year deal to host the competition, is already gearing up for next year’s World Cup weekend. “I just think that is the right size, the right vibe,” Leonard said of the competition. “Teams came and spent time at our hotels and also at our short-term rentals.” Another recent addition to the city’s tourism sector was the Longmont Tourism Improvement District. The special district places an additional fee on lodging businesses in the city, and the revenue will fund marketing programs and tourism improvements for Longmont. Visit Longmont spearheaded the formation of the district, talking to hotel partners about the program early last year. The Longmont City Council approved the establishment of the LTID in August. The proposed 2% tourism improvement district fee is estimated to raise an additional $450,000 annually. While the district is still in its infancy, Leonard believes that the revenue generated by the LTID will strengthen Longmont’s reputation as a vibrant place to visit. “It all goes into a pool for destination marketing, which makes, I think, Longmont more competitive,” Leonard said. “When we bring in new visitors who stay overnight, they’re spending more time and then more money supporting our local businesses. That can benefit everyone.” Leonard also presided over Visit Longmont during the birth of its mascot, Monty the Longmonster. Monty was chosen by locals to be the face of the city and can be spotted at community events. Leonard anticipates staying involved in Longmont’s activities going forward, citing “great collaboration” between the northern Colorado destination marketing organizations. Reflecting on what makes Longmont stand out as a tourist destination, Leonard highlighted the city’s museum, evolving food scene and diverse population. “Having that infusion of culture is really appealing to both visitors and residents,” she said. Applications for Visit Longmont CEO are open for another week. Leonard said she hopes the next leader of the nonprofit will take advantage of the new events coming to the region, such as the Sundance Film Festival. “Longmont is in such a good place for the next person to really take it to the next level, because it has so many exciting things going on,” she said.
https://www.dailycamera.com/2025/11/19/sarah-leonard-leaves-city-in-good-place-for-next-visit-longmont-ceo/