OLDS — Fostering tourism is a major focus of the town’s economic development secretariat, and that involves not only encouraging people to visit Olds but also to let them know what’s here, including art, heritage and Indigenous culture, strategy and technology officer Larry Wright says.
Wright made that point in a presentation to town council’s policies and priorities meeting in early March. He said the town’s system of trails is another attraction.
“Part of our economic development understanding is always that with visitors, tourism, art, heritage and indigenous (is) that it pays to have the resources, it pays to have all the services and the unique aspects to bring visitors into the community,” Wright said.
He praised the work done by community services director Doug Wagstaff and heritage advisor Michelle Jorgensen to highlight historical and cultural assets in Olds.
"We really have to recognize that heritage is a part of the community. I look at the Cipperly garage and I work with a family there to see if we can’t do something with that facility. It’s just a wonderful place,” he said.
He also pointed out that the vision to attract tourists to the community includes the installation of kiosks where people can obtain tourism information.
Coun. Mary Jane Harper asked if those kiosks will be interactive, “not just a television screen.”
"That would be my wish,” Wright said, adding from what he’s seen, tourism kiosks in places like the United Kingdom, Ireland and Europe are interactive.
He’d also like to see kiosks manned by people during tourist seasons.
Wagstaff said the first part of the town’s wayfinding strategy includes signage, some of which is already up in town.
He said the plan also calls for four interactive kiosks to be set up which would be located inside facilities so they’d be safe from the weather.
He said a third group of interactive kiosks could also eventually be set up, but they would be more expensive because they would be outside, and thus exposed to weather.
