Sooner or later, Erin council will have to decide to which of the province’s tourism regions it wants to belong.
“It’s going to be a very difficult decision,” Mayor Lou Maieron said last week.
When the town’s service agreement with The Hills of Headwaters Tourism Association expires at the end of this year, it will have to decide between two of the province’s 13 Regional Tourism Organizations (RTO).
Established in 2009, the RTO system created a conundrum of sorts for several municipalities who were already members of an existing tourism group.
In Erin, the debate will be between remaining with Hills of Headwaters, which is part of RTO-6, or joining the rest of Wellington County in RTO-4.
“I think Erin is best served by being with the Hills of Headwaters,” executive director Michele Harris told council last week. She said about $100-million is spent annually in the association’s area, of which Erin constitutes about 10%.
She also noted Hills of Headwaters has equal representation alongside the huge areas of York and Durham Regions at RTO-6, which has an annual budget of $2.21-million.
“When you chose all those years ago [to be with Hills of Headwaters] you didn’t do it because of political boundaries,” Harris explained. “You did it because of travel patterns and product synergy – and I don’t think that has changed.”
Councillor John Brennan expressed surprise that the province would just let the town choose its own RTO, given the province has been less conciliatory in other matters.
Harris reiterated that Hills of Headwaters is recognized as an official part of RTO-6, and thus so is Erin, which means it will be up to the town to decide going forward.
“You’re going to have to make a choice at some point,” she said.
Brennan said Hills of Headwaters officials do a great job and has served the town well.
“This is where I think we naturally belong,” he said.
Jo Fillery, who owns What’s Cookin’ in Erin and sits on the RTO-6 board, agreed, and said it’s important for the public to realize why that’s the case.
“It’s a really exciting time, I think,” said Fillery, noting the opportunities for growth in the RTO-6 area are great.
Councillor Josie Wintersinger said Hills of Headwaters has done a great job for Erin, but she too hinted council will have a difficult decision to make when the time comes.
When it comes to the RTO-6 budget, 60% is spent on marketing, 25% on product development, 10% on workforce development and 5% on investment attraction – the latter which Maieron has suggested should be somewhat higher.
