The Sundre and District Chamber of Commerce has asked Mountain View County to provide $10,000 in support of the chamber's visitor information centre (VIC) in 2016.
Chamber president Mike Beukeboom appeared as a delegation before the policies and priorities committee at the committee's recent regularly scheduled meeting.
A stand-alone facility, which is open year round, the centre continues to be a stopover for thousands of people heading to county facilities, businesses and tourist locations outside Sundre, he said.
“A large percentage of our guests do move through town to the county and beyond for golf, hiking, rafting, fishing, camping and more, he said. “Sometimes it is just to stop for directions on how to get to Ya Ha Tinda and other places. In a lot of ways we are a gateway to the West Country.
“In 2014 we had 3,004 visitors and that was a 58 per cent increase over the previous year, so a massive increase. And guess what, we've already surpassed 4,000 visitors in 2015, so we've had a 33 per cent increase plus over last year. That's a new record for us. In 2006 we had 3,500 visitors.”
As the centre gets busier, there is a need for ongoing staff support and maintenance, he said.
“I would like to ask the county to help us with these upcoming costs, to help with the operations and maintenance,” he said.
The Town of Sundre helps support the centre with an annual $10,000 contribution, he said.
“We would greatly appreciate it if the county could match that amount,” he said. “Many of our businesses and most of our large businesses in our community lie within the county boundary.”
Plans are in the works to create an interpretive visitor boardwalk on the berm just west of the centre, he said.
“The goal here is to create a provincial/national park quality facility or higher in that particular area,” he said. “It's a great place for a structure like this.”
Coun. Angela Aalbers suggested the chamber consult with Olds College regarding the boardwalk project.
The chamber would like the county to participate in the 2016 business awards event, Beukeboom said.
The chamber would also like to take part in future discussions regarding the future of the former county shop site on Centre Street in south Sundre, he said.
Beukeboom requested that the county provide a county flag to fly at the VIC.
Coun. Al Kemmere asked if the chamber has a five-year business plan in place.
“If you could get the business plan of the chamber to us, that would include where the VIC fits into it, it would give us a good overview picture,” said Kemmere.
Beukeboom said he would provide that plan to the county soon.
The chamber's funding request has been forwarded to budget deliberations.
