Feature Article October 9, 2002
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Grant for tourism promotionby Jeff Green A big ceremonial cheque read $400,000 at a media announcement event organised by the provincial government and the Land OLakes Tourist Association (LOLTA) at the Loughborough Inn near Battersea last Friday.
MPP Doug Galt, the Chief Government Whip, presented the symbolic cheque to Chris Ler of LOLTA on behalf of Brian Coburn, the Associate Minister for the Ministry of Municipal affairs and Housing, responsible for Rural Affairs. Members of the South Frontenac Council were out in force, and there were representatives from North Frontenac and Lennox & Addington in attendance as well.
The location of the ceremony serves to emphasise the vastness of the region served by the LOLTA, whose office in Kaladar serves Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Counties and the Tweed region of Hastings County.
The provincial government calls the initiative Jump Starting Land OLakes Tourism Products Development, and says it will increase awareness of the Land OLakes region through the use of highway signs and the development of information, tools and resources to attract tourists.
Chris Ler of LOLTA said the proposal has been in the works for at least six months following on the report of a consulting Jump Team that visited the region last winter. We were slowed down by the government worker strike in the spring and by the reorganisation of provincial ministries that took place this year as well, but this was being developed through the summer, he said.
The funding for the program comes from the Ontario Small Town and Rural Development-Rural Economic Development (OSTAR-RED) program which has a $200 million budget.
What this all amounts to, once all the government acronyms and public relations lingo is put aside, is a program to help fund five initiatives being undertaken by LOLTA between now and the end of 2004.
One of the initiatives involves the development of market-ready tourist products, according to Ler. These are packages, things like $250 weekends including meals, accommodation, sightseeing and entertainment. They are common elsewhere but are not available in the Land O Lakes as of yet.
A signage campaign on the highways is also planned, possibly using billboard-sized signs. We are also going to improve our website to world class standards, including adding a GIS service. This will enable an individual to click on a spot on the website map, and see everything that is available within a given radius.
The third initiative will involve placing computerised information terminals in the five Tourist Information booths LOLTA runs. Ler admits, however, that the booths themselves are not all in the best state of repair, and will need upgrading before the information terminals are put in. In Sharbot Lake, for example, the booth is in a state of deterioration and doesnt even have electricity with which to run a computer terminal. Well have to look at upgrading the booths in general, Ler said.
Finally, a glossy full colour magazine-sized tourism guide for the Land O Lakes is planned.
We have a lot of work to do to make all these things happen, Ler says. The way this grant works is we have to go out and fund these projects from the local business community, through our membership and beyond, and then we will send the paid bills to the province. Only then will they reimburse us for 50% of the costs. The $400,000 represents the maximum amount they will pay over the life of the grant. It will only happen if we raise $400,000 ourselves.
