About a month after the Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau split from the nonprofit group that oversaw both it and the Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area, the organizations are establishing themselves as separate entities.

They’re also more clearly defining how their relationship will continue moving forward.

The Lawrence City Commission voted in September to establish a seven-member board to operate the CVB now known as eXplore Lawrence, and separate it from Destination Management Inc., which had managed it and Freedom’s Frontier since 2008.

Megan Gilliland, the city of Lawrence’s communication manager and interim director of Destination Management Inc., said that as director, she worked to help the CVB and Freedom’s Frontier “go forward into the future.”

Both organizations have started the search for new directors.

“With the hiring of two directors, it allows each organization and staff to focus on the mission for each,” Gilliland said. “The CVB will work on the economic impact of tourism and travel to Lawrence.”

An ordinance approved by city commissioners dissolved the existing CVB advisory board. The new governing board will have more authority, including the ability to hire and fire staff, manage the organization’s finances and create eXplore Lawrence’s long-term plans.

The CVB’s director will handle day-to-day operations of eXplore Lawrence, which is tasked with attracting visitors to Lawrence.

Gilliland said the CVB started receiving applications a few weeks ago. The position closes in early November.

The seven-member governing board that will select the next director will be established sometime in November, Gilliland said.

Volunteers for the board are currently being accepted on the city’s website.

It will include one representative each from Lawrence’s cultural, sports and recreation and service/event management industries. A city commissioner, a representative from an educational institution and two employees from local hotels would take the other four positions.

Members will be appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the City Commission.

Jody Craig, chairman of the Freedom’s Frontier board, said the organization was close to selecting its new director after a nationwide search.

The goal of Freedom’s Frontier is to bring awareness to the struggles during the Civil War era in 29 eastern Kansas counties and 12 counties in western Missouri.

“I think we may be approaching the last inning,” Craig said. “We’re close. If all goes well, we will probably have someone selected before this year is out.”

Both Freedom’s Frontier and eXplore Lawrence have headquarters in Lawrence’s Carnegie Building.

Craig said that location — and the cooperation between the two organizations — would continue for the foreseeable future.

“They’re still in the same space; they’re still able to talk to each other on a daily basis,” Craig said. “They share thoughts and ideas about different events or elements of their work. They still talk and try to work together. I don’t anticipate that changing.”

Both entities were allocated funding in the city’s 2016 budget.

Gilliland said eXplore Lawrence is slated to receive $880,000, and Freedom’s Frontier $90,000.

Last year, when both organizations were under the umbrella of Destination Management Inc. and shared a director, they received a total $860,000, said Assistant City Manager Casey Toomay.

The increase in 2016 is for both organizations to have their own directors, Toomay said. Gilliland said eXplore Lawrence also requested more funding for an additional sales person to grow events that would generate transient guest tax dollars for the city.

The $90,000 allocated to Freedom’s Frontier includes $30,000 that will be programmed into its budget in 2016 and 2017 to help the organization develop.

“I think that extra $30,000 was given with the understanding that maybe they’d receive it for one or two years to help them get on their own feet as a separate entity from eXplore Lawrence,” Toomay said.

Freedom’s Frontier, through Destination Management Inc., will still be able to apply for funding from the city in coming years, Toomay said.