Some tense moments between the Manager of Tourism and the Northwood Councillor over support for a Thunder Bay word sign.
Council originally supported the idea of spending $100,000 on a Thunder Bay sign on the waterfront, modelled off of a similar sign outside Toronto’s city hall. However, Council changed its mind in October and referred the decision to the 2021 budget process.
Tourism Manager Paul Pepe, after making a presentation to council about grim 2020 tourism numbers, was asked by At Large Councillor Peng You about the project which needs a concept design before getting final council approval.
“I think the sign is a great addition to the waterfront at a time when [the tourism] industry is doing well, and right now the industry is in a prolonged period of economic turmoil. The losses are mounting for a lot of the festivals, events, attractions and even the accommodation sector. From what I gather from the business community is will the sign have an immediate and significant economic impact to tourism today?”
When the time came, Northwood Councillor Shelby Ch’ng pushed back against Pepe, claiming this is a different tune than the one he was singing back in April.
“Both you and the [Municipal Accommodation Tax] board were very enthusiastic about the word sign, which prompted me to put a motion forward to council,” stressed Ch’ng. “Now you and the board are no longer enthusiastic about the sign and have even spoke discouragingly about the project, what changed?”
Ch’ng went onto say: “You told me everyone was super excited about the word sign and that it would be an economic driver. In that context, I just don’t know what is and isn’t an economic driver for tourism anymore.”
The sign is estimated to cost a total of $150,000.
2020 Facts and Figures from CEDC
- Tourism sector is estimated to have lost as much as $100 million
- 80% reduction in air travel
- Unprecedented need for relief liquidity, operations and labour supports from different levels of government
- Annual occupancy rates of accommodations of 50.6%, which is down from 71.6% in 2019
Paul Pepe, in his presentation to council Monday, projected that the recovery will likely take between 18 and 36 months.
