Tourism plays an integral role in the local economy and on hand to highlight that fact at a regular meeting of Yorkton City Council Monday evening was Neil Thom, President of Tourism Yorkton. Thom presented a recap of the happenings in 2013 and also spoke of plans for the coming year.
Thom says through the creation of a formal 'Community Action Plan' document in 2013 plans are in motion to see continued economic growth and enhancements in the Tourism industry.
The action plan calls for 10 steps, the first being, to better utilize the current Tourism Centre.
"It turns out... our visitor centre has been contracted for a 2014 pilot project to provide enhanced service and tracking for visitors. The added responsibilities will allow us to hire additional staff and from May until September we will be open seven days a week, with extended hours."
Thom says meetings with key stakeholders are continuously ongoing and updates on progress will be forthcoming.
Growth and change are ongoing to adapt to changing times. New for the local tourism office is a wedding planning guide which covers everything from A to Z on hosting a Yorkton wedding. Also planned for 2014, among numerous additional events, is a meeting of the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses, and also Sask Culture.
A tourism guide was distributed to 20,000 homes and discussions are underway to enhance the Crops of the Parkland display.
Any dollars directed towards tourism is money well spent says Thom. "Tourism continues to be an important economic driver providing employment for more than 1,000 people and travel receipts in the tens of millions... tourism plays an important role in our local economy and 2014 looks to be another exciting year."
