Tamara Pigott, executive director of Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, to retire

Apr 29, 2026 By Nathan Mayberg 3 min read

Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau Executive Director Tamara Pigott announced she will be retiring in July after 33 years working for Lee County. Photo provided

Tamara Pigott, the longtime executive director of the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, will retire in July following a record month for air travel into Lee County.

Pigott, who worked in Lee County government for 33 years, will retire effective July 8. She will be replaced by Deputy Director Pamela Johnson, a 31-year county employee who has been deputy of the bureau for the past 12 years.

Southwest Florida International Airport reported 1,521,149 passengers in March, edging out the previous record set in March of 2022. Travel to Lee County has steadily grown during Pigott’s tenure, with more than 3 million more passengers going through Southwest Florida International Airport than when she first began as executive director 16 years ago.

Lee County Board of County Commissioners Chair Cecil Pendergrass, who also chairs the Lee County Tourist Development Council, said Pigott “will truly be missed by all of us at Lee County and the hospitality community.”

Pendergrass said that after being elected to the county commission in 2012, “I had the honor of being chairman of the Tourist Development Council, and Tamara made my job so easy. Day one, she and her staff welcomed me with open arms, and we had many years of success working together.”

Pigott helped the county navigate through a number of economic headwinds that challenged the county’s tourism, including a major red tide event in 2019 and the covid epidemic of 2020.

“Tamara kept our mission going in the right direction through many challenges, such as the BP Oil spill, multiple hurricanes, water-quality issues and economic hardships,” Pendergrass said. “No matter what the crisis was, she was determined to continue our mission in Southwest Florida, focusing on ‘heads in beds’ and recovery to keep our strong tourism economy moving forward. She was successful because she trusted her staff and provided them with a work environment to grow and be successful. She truly left her mark on the Southwest Florida community, and we all will miss her. I wish her the best in her retirement with her family.”

In a statement provided by the county, Pigott said “”It has been the honor of a lifetime to work with Lee County leadership and staff along with our tourism industry partners in shaping and promoting Lee County as a world-class destination. Together, we have navigated growth, challenges and recovery, always with a shared commitment to our visitors, our community and each other. I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished. The strength, resilience and collaboration of this community have always set this destination apart, and I have no doubt that will continue well into the future.”

Pigott’s retirement follows positive tourism numbers in the county that were reported at a recent meeting of the county’s tourism council. The preliminary resort tax collected for February was $7.5 million, up 23% over the same month last year. Fiscal year-to-date preliminary tourist tax collections are approximately $25.8 million, up 24.7% year-over-year. There were more than 1.9 million passengers who traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport in February, which was a 1.4% increase over the same month last year. Year-to-date, airport traffic is up .5%.