Parry Sound to play up its cultural assets.
With the new economic development tool, place-based cultural tourism, the vista, across the street from Belvedere Heights Home for the Aged, could be considered an asset of the Town of Parry Sound.
Beacon Star file photo
PARRY SOUND – Parry Sound is going to play up its assets – cultural assets that is.
Using an economic development tool, place-based cultural tourism, an ad hoc committee will be formed to look at what aspects of the region set it apart from other similar areas.
Last week, town council approved the move upon the recommendation of staff and the Regional Economic Development Advisory Committee (REDAC).
“Ms Middaugh you’re caught in the middle of all this I’m sure - place-based cultural tourism economic development, could you explain what the heck that means,” asked Coun. Conrad van der Valk with a chuckle.
“Well, it’s a bit of a difficult one to get your head around, but it is just that,” answered town director of economic development and leisure services Lynn Middaugh with a laugh. “It looks at what makes a place unique. What sets it apart from another like community, so if it’s folklore, its assets, its people, its memories, its views, its vistas - so it’s all of that. It’s all encompassing, it’s all-inclusive and this recommendation is really the next step to the Culture is Cash workshop, which was held earlier this year.
“The recommendation basically speaks to working with representatives from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to look at identifying what we have.”
This tool will also maximize the region’s appeal, visitor length of stay and visitor spending Middaugh said.
“Just in discussions with the people that were at that workshop, we are quite rich in cultural assets and we don’t know everything that’s out there,” she said. “So it’s to look at what we’ve got, inventory what we have, identify where we want to go with it, develop terms of reference from objectives, work with the community stakeholders and, because this is coming forward from REDAC, it would also then be to work with the municipality of McDougall and Seguin Township to just kind of get our heads around this – what is this exactly.
“We had 10 people from the community that attended that workshop come forward with a lot of enthusiasm wanting to be apart of an ad hoc committee, so this same recommendation will come forward to McDougall and to Seguin and, if approved collectively, we will look at establishing an ad hoc committee. I would say that probably over the course of four months we would have something to come back to council to consider. It is to come up with the idea, see if there’s merit or benefit that could be realized in the area as a result of the initiative and then let another group take the lead with it and so that is the intent with this.”
Council approved Middaugh’s recommendation.
“(Place) based tourism is the opportunity for Parry Sound to positively exploit assets that already exist,” said town chief administrative officer Rob Mens. “It should be an important part of our economic development strategy. The concept will facilitate the development of a strategy to capitalize on what we already have with minimal cost.”