The results were steady, the vision was clearly stated, part of the mission looked westward across the Pacific and the winners seemed difficult to choose given a strong slate of nominees.
So went the fifth annual meeting and tourism awards Tuesday sponsored by the Tacoma Regional Convention + Visitor Bureau, with nearly 200 tourism professionals in attendance at the Cheney Stadium Summit Club.
But for a scratchy Skype connection with former bureau chairman Mark Van Cooney in San Diego, the two-hour luncheon program progressed well through brief speeches and the presentation of four “Tourism Celebrity” awards.
• The results: Visitors to Pierce County in 2010 – 4.6 million of them – spent $900.3 million, supporting 10,490 jobs and generating $71 million in state and local tax revenue. Similar to 2009 numbers and minimally below the halcyon figures from 2008, bureau CEO Tammy Blount noted after the meeting, “We’re holding steady, that’s a good sign. We’re starting to trend back up. Business travel is up.”
• The vision: “Tourism Matters.” That was the hashtag people were asked to tweet during the luncheon and that was the message on the two-page fold-out in the program that guests were asked to post and share. The stated vision of the bureau is to lead tourism initiatives, develop partnerships and help market the county as a destination. “The main message is that tourism is something that supports our quality of life, but that takes all of us working together,” Blount said. “We need everyone to know that tourism matters. It’s not just business people – it’s everybody, people who invite people to visit, people with ideas about tourism.”
• Trends: Blunt outlined China as one of the trends for international travel. Where the average international visitor will spend $3,000 on a trip, the average Chinese visitor spends $7,000.
“They travel longer and spend more,” she said. “We’ve seen a huge amount of growth in the international travel market from China.”
The bureau is fostering an increased awareness of Pierce County by developing partnerships not only with Seattle interests, but by working with offices in Beijing and Shanghai.
Then there’s “agritourism,” and “culinary agritourism.”
Bureau chairwoman Shelly Schlumpf said that tourism vendors “are hearing people asking where to dine on local products.”
She also noted the variety of experiences that vendors are selling, including maritime in Gig Harbor, the fair in Puyallup, museums in Tacoma, rhubarb in Sumner and the overall majesties of Mount Rainier.
Echoing Blount’s emphasis on partnerships, Schlumpf said officials and vendors from Pierce County are taking a major role in the Washington Tourism Alliance, a private group formed after budget cutbacks beheaded the state tourism office earlier this year.
• The envelopes please: From 13 nominees for the “Community Unity Award,” judges selected Erin Hunter of Sound Transit for her work “to unite the community through collaboration, innovation and regional projects.” She represented Sound Transit at meetings and offered printed updates “to keep tourism professionals knowledgeable” about construction projects and various routes visitors could use.
From seven nominees for the “Tourism Professional of the Year,” judges selected Laureen Lund of the City of Gig Harbor for her passion and accomplishments – including a “Meet in Gig Harbor” marketing campaign; an initiative to change local regulations to accommodate events; and the creation of new events including the Gig Harbor Paddlers Cup and Gig Harbor Beer Festival.
From four nominees for the Sports Tourism, the judges chose Karen Zediker of Tacoma’s gymnastics-focused Iron Cross Foundation. Zediker has been instrumental in bringing events to Pierce County, including next January’s Iron Cross Challenge, which could “help ensure that Tacoma is the home of men’s gymnastics in the Northwest.”
Finally, from among six nominees, the judges chose David Nicandri to receive the Allen C. Mason Tourism Visionary Award.
Nicandri recently retired after 24 years as director of the Washington State Historical Society, and was one of the chief advocates for bringing the state historical museum to what has since become a revitalized slice of downtown Tacoma.
His dedication to Tacoma as the site of the museum helped foster what has become a neighborhood that is home to a university, an art museum and a museum of glass.
“I’m very humbled by it,” Nicandri said Thursday.
He recognized the vision of Tacoma commercial pioneer Allen C. Mason, and said he was proud to be named by the bureau – which was one of only three local organizations that stepped in to save his museum from death-by-budget.
C.R. Roberts: 253-597-8535
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