IMPLEMENTATION
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Fernie’ s tourism success is due much in part to the investment and collaboration of passionate entrepreneurs, organizations and individuals. Essentially, people, working together. Tourism is unique this way when compared to other industries, perhaps most of all in the cooperation and partnership required to deliver the‘ experiences’ sought by visitors and the community alike.
To facilitate continued success in tourism and the effective roll out of this master plan and associated projects / actions clear roles have to be defined, additional funding needs to be committed and sourced and implementation of actions need to begin. A key part of this was the transition of the TMP Task Force in early 2020 to a TMP Champion Group with commited organizations and industry stakeholders and the addition of new representation in key areas as detailed further on.
FUNDING & NEXT STEPS
Some of the Actions identified within this plan have already begun or in a few circumstances been achieved, many are a part of the normal course of business for the implementing organizations, while others will require further research, collaboration and funding. A few of the primary funding sources to help continue this work are the Resort Municipality Initiative( RMI) funding, the Municipal Regional District Tax( MRDT – hotel tax) and other funding and granting institutions such as Columbia Basin Trust, Destination BC, Regional District of East Kootenay and Western Economic Diversification. An initial list of funders is located on page 43.
The next steps for the Tourism Master Plan is the rescheduled industry and public launch for fall 2020. Then further initiatives to engage the tourism businesses, sectors and community members in supporting the vision, goals and actions outlined in this plan. The TMP Champion Group will schedule quarterly meetings to check in on progress of actions, ensure continued implementation of the plan’ s actions, evaluate the progress and adapt where needed.
ACTION PLAN
Prioritizing the aforementioned Strategic Directions led to a review of community, business and tourism stakeholder input on specific projects and ideas. New ideas were brainstormed and finally prioritized and organized for implementation( see Appendix A on page 48). Action implementation is organized into a table represented by the following priority and action category.
Catalyst Actions: High value | Achieve multiple goals | Start within the first year
Short Term Priority: High value tactics with low complexity & can be achieved within 1-2 years
COVID 19
The pandemic’ s effect and associated government orders and health directives hit Fernie mid-March 2020 causing many businesses to drastically limit services or shut their doors. Ski resorts closed for the season and visitors quickly went back home. Tourism in Fernie, and around the globe, went from near full occupancy to near empty within a few days.
The tourism industry and many local businesses were in a crisis mode, as health directives kept people from travelling and even moving around within their own community in order to ensure the health and safety of the population.
As the world adapted and learned, so did Fernie; and continues to do so. Governments launched a diversity of support programs for citizens and businesses to weather the storm as best as possible. Locally, the community came together to support each other in various ways.
Medium Term Priority: High value, somewhat complex or requiring lead time or other actions to accomplish
Long Term Priority: High value, somewhat complex and requiring lead time and other actions to accomplish 9