The City of Cranbrook and tourism partners have launched an online survey available to residents and business owners aimed at helping to develop a tourism master plan. The City hopes to have community members be part of tourism goals and objectives moving forward.
The plan will create a vision and path forward for Cranbrook to achieve community-supported tourism objectives and become a year-round destination for travellers, the City said in a release.
The first step in community engagement is through the online survey, which asks a variety of questions about tourism in the city.
One such question is, “ten years from now, what is the image you would like to have come to mind when the world is talking about the destination Cranbrook?”
The tourism master plan was designed to compliment both the City’s Official Community Plan (OCP) and the Downtown Revitalization Plan, the City adds.
“Cranbrook has come a long way as a tourism destination,” said Chris Andrews, Chair of the Board of Cranbrook Tourism. “We have so much to offer travellers as the gateway to the Kootenay Rockies with access to incredible outdoor recreation at our doorstep and a vibrant history and culture that first recognizes the Ktunaxa homeland, followed by more recent colonial and rail history. This tourism master planning process will allow us to build on our strengths to achieve a set of community-informed goals.”
According to some facts provided by the City, in 2019, tourism contributed more to GDP than any other primary resource industry at $7.4 billion. Oil and gas came behind at $4.8 billion, agriculture and fishing at $3.3 billion and forestry and logging at $1.6 billion.
Tourism also employed 130,300 people in 2019 - roughly one out of 16 people employed in the province.
READ: Significant funding awarded for Cranbrook tourism master plan
Heading up the research for this tourism process is a steering committee comprised of the Cranbrook Business Development office, Cranbrook Tourism, the Cranbrook Chamber and the Ktunaxa Nation. There is also an advisory committee that will oversee a variety of local interests.
Darren Brewer, Business Development Officer for Cranbrook says that the survey will help the committee to better understand the needs of residents and business owners, while also taking into account the visitor experience.
“While it is important to understand the visitor perspective in developing Cranbrook’s tourism master plan, it is also imperative that we understand and respect the values and aspirations of our residents and business owners,” said Brewer. “This community provides a ‘social license’ to tourism operators, allowing them to share Cranbrook with the world. The tourism master planning process provides a platform for residents of Cranbrook to contribute their ideas and we look forward to hearing what our community has to say about our tourism future.”
The survey is available for all residents and everyone is encouraged to participate. It can be found online through this link, or by scanning the QR code below. There will be surveys available at the Cranbrook Farmers’ Market as well.
The City also encourages residents to view more about the OCP, downtown plan and tourism initiatives at choosecranbrook.ca.
corey.bullock@cranbrooktownsman.com
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