June 5, 2023 |
Photo – CCVC Logo – Courtesy CCVC
The CCVC is working on a tourism master plan to increase recreational travel into our area.
The Carbon County Visitor’s Council, also known as Discover Carbon County, has received money from the Wyoming Office of Tourism. CCVC Chief Executive Officer Leslie Jefferson said she will use a portion of the state’s Destination Development funding to create a Carbon County Tourism Master Plan. Jefferson explained what a tourism master plan is.
According to the Wyoming Department of Tourism website, the Destination Development program was founded last December to help local communities become more visitor-ready.
The Carbon County Visitor’s Council has never had a tourism master plan. Jefferson said in the past, she has teamed up with other hospitality-focused organizations to conduct tourism studies. However, Jefferson said a county-wide tourism master plan would be far more comprehensive.
Jefferson said the tourism master plan process is broken up into two phases. She said the research phase began at the May 19th Steering Committee Kick-Off meeting in Rawlins.
Jefferson said the Carbon County Visitor’s Council has teamed up with Darren Rudloff, of Rudloff Solutions, to create the tourism master plan. Rudloff Solutions is a Cheyenne based company that specializes in tourism strategies and market research. Jefferson said Rudloff walked the steering committee through the research procedure.
Under Rudloff’s direction, Jefferson said the steering committee will consult other master plans from municipalities around Carbon County. She said the committee will use the information to determine how to improve tourism in the county.
Jefferson said the completed tourism master plan will benefit the entire county. She said out-of-state businesses can use the master plan to justify expanding into our area.
Jefferson quoted Carbon County Visitor’s Council Marketing Coordinator Megan McComas: “A place that people like to visit is a place people like to live.” Jefferson said anything done to increase our area’s appeal to travelers will also improve the quality of life for Carbon County residents.
