Five applicants to be interviewed for position of visitors bureau director

YORK – Bob Sautter is in the last month of his long-held position as York County Visitors Bureau director.

​He announced his retirement earlier this year.
Since that time, applications have been coming in from interested persons, seeking to fill Sautter’s shoes.
Sautter is the first person in York County history to work full-time in that position.
This week, during the regular meeting of the York County Commissioners, Chairman Randy Obermier said there are five applicants for the position and the YCVB board would be conducting interviews on Friday.
It was June, 2001, when Sautter was hired for this position. Prior to him being at the helm of this department, it had only been a part-time endeavor under the auspices of the Greater York Area Chamber of Commerce.
Once Sautter was on board, it became a full-time position. He’s the first and only person to hold the full-time job, promoting York County tourism, since that happened.
“Well, 23 years is a long time,” Sautter said laughing. “And now I’ve decided it’s time for me to retire. I always heard people say a person just knows when the time is right to retire and now, all of a sudden, I’ve realized that.”
Over the course of decades, strong relationships have developed between the visitors bureau, the chamber of commerce, the York County Development Corporation and the York County Foundation, as the entities have historically been housed together and the officials find themselves helping the others out when they can and when warranted.
The job is a county position which is supported by the county’s lodging tax receipts.
Sautter will continue in his position until Aug. 31. He said he plans to work with whomever assumes this position after him, until that date.