CITY of BARRIE TOURISM MASTER PLAN OCTOBER 2020 the Tourism Master Plan Was Researched and Conducted by FLOOR13 and Its Partners, KWL Advisory and GM Event Inc
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DEVELOPING TOURISM FOR BARRIE’S ECONOMIC FUTURE CITY OF BARRIE TOURISM MASTER PLAN OCTOBER 2020 The Tourism Master Plan was researched and conducted by FLOOR13 and its partners, KWL Advisory and GM Event Inc. It is the first of its kind for the City of Barrie and was realized through public and private sector industry stakeholders’ generous collaboration efforts. The Tourism Master Plan has been developed using best industry practice, stakeholder input and up-to-date research and data analysis. While this Plan takes a 10-year timeframe view of tourism development in Barrie, it nonetheless acts as a guide for shorter-term initiatives and actions to be realized by the City of Barrie and other related industry stakeholders. The Tourism Master Plan examines current tourism infrastructure in the Barrie area and provides a proposed investment needs analysis of potential tourism offerings that support the growth of visitor spending. A key focus on sport and conference assets is included in the Tourism Master Plan, highlighting two of Barrie’s future growth opportunities. Additionally, the study provides clarity on all available tourism funding that currently supports tourism organizations within Ontario. As Barrie’s visitor economy continues to grow, so will Barrie’s reputation as a progressive, lifestyle-orientated place to live – contributing broadly to the City’s economic development goals for talent and business attractions. This Tourism Master Plan, in summary, provides a roadmap for achieving the City of Barrie’s goals and its desired future state in relation to tourism. In the realization of this Plan, FLOOR13 and its partners would like to acknowledge the ongoing support and encouragement of the City of Barrie’s Invest Barrie team, Tourism Barrie, the Barrie Hotel Association, Simcoe County Tourism, RTO7 and members of the Barrie tourism industry. 2 CITY OF BARRIE - TOURISM MASTER PLAN DEVELOPING TOURISM FOR BARRIE’S ECONOMIC FUTURE 3 TOURISM MASTER PLAN IN THE TIME OF COVID-19 OVERVIEW Planning for the future can be a challenging undertaking at the best of times. The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated economies around the world, and the tourism sector’s core areas, such as travel and lodging, have been hit particularly hard. Destination marketing organizations and related service companies have seen revenue streams reduced by around 75%. The reality is that no one knows when we will see a return to normalcy or what “normal” may look like. At the same time, the Tourism Master Plan is not a short-term COVID-19 recovery plan. Rather, the following pages are dedicated to building the visitor economy of Barrie over the long-term. The Tourism Master Plan represents a highly strategic approach for taking Barrie’s visitor economy and with it a sizeable portion of Barrie’s overall economy, from where it was pre-COVID-19 to where it can be five to ten years from now. The mandate of the Tourism Master Plan is to identify and enable implementation of fundamental investments and initiatives that will result in a solid foundation of infrastructure and product offerings, quality visitor experiences, and brand messaging that will not only grow the destination but also accommodate and absorb any necessary short-term adjustments required by external factors. Ultimately, the end game of the Tourism Master Plan is to positively transform the destination over time and enable a range of positive outcomes for both visitors and residents. PRE-COVID-19 EFFORTS Although the final development stages and submission of the Tourism Master Plan occurred during the height of the pandemic, the majority of the research and stakeholder consultations, destination and asset analysis, and identification of strategic directions and recommendations took place prior to the influence of the current pandemic conditions. The extended time period was proven to be advantageous, as the consulting team could remain focused on the project’s long-term mandate. 4 CITY OF BARRIE - TOURISM MASTER PLAN TOURISM MASTER PLAN IN THE TIME OF COVID-19 CHANGES DUE TO COVID-19 Due to the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism industry, the Tourism Master Plan’s timelines for initiating some of the Plan’s recommendations have been altered to reflect future time periods when the successful implementation can be realistically achieved. As the Plan is eventually moved forward, sensitivity to realistic timing will continue to be required. It was also decided to postpone public consultation until it is once again safe to conduct it in a face-to-face environment. A public consultation is a valuable form of research and input for the Tourism Master Plan, as Barrie’s residents will hopefully play a significant role in delivering the destination’s brand promise. Accordingly, a public consultation will be scheduled at a time when it is deemed safe to assemble. OPPORTUNITIES The regional leisure market will likely be one of the first to recover post-COVID, followed by sport tourism and events. As a destination, the tourism sector recovery for Barrie has significant growth potential in leisure travel, festival and events, and sport tourism. The destination’s proximity to Canada’s largest consumer and travel market, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), drives this optimism. The focus on leisure experiences, including outdoor recreation, shopping and dining, will yield increased visitor stay and spend. Regional sport tournaments are also more likely to return more quickly to pre-COVID-19 market conditions. Positioning local assets to leverage sport opportunities in a safe manner will create an advantage for the City and uniquely position Barrie in the broader marketplace. Tourism Barrie is also a critical component in this path to economic success and recovery; its management and board have recently concluded a three-year strategic plan and COVID-19 recovery plan. One of the Tourism Master Plan’s most important recommendations is for Tourism Barrie to be adequately funded from Municipal Accommodations Tax (MAT) revenues so that it can properly market and promote the City of Barrie, as well as assist in the pursuit of destination development opportunities. If appropriate investments in capital, marketing and human resources are deployed in accordance with the Tourism Master Plan’s strategic directions and recommendations, it is reasonable to expect that the significant upside potential to Barrie’s visitor economy, beyond the pandemic, will be positively realized within the ten-year mandate of the Plan. DEVELOPING TOURISM FOR BARRIE’S ECONOMIC FUTURE 5 6 CITY OF BARRIE - TOURISM MASTER PLAN TOURISM MASTER PLAN CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8–11 INTRODUCTION 12 BACKGROUND 14 METHODOLOGY 15 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS 16–31 TARGET MARKETS 32–35 ASSET ANALYSIS & MARKET READINESS 36–43 DESTINATION GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES 44–49 STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS 50 BUILDING THE DESTINATION 51–71 DELIVERING THE EXPERIENCE 72–75 TELLING THE TOURISM STORY 76–81 ACTIONS AND TIMELINES 82–84 ANNEX A – STAKEHOLDER INTERVIEWEES 85 ANNEX B – ASSET ASSESSMENT CHARTS 86–88 ANNEX C – GOVERNANCE 89–91 ANNEX D – TOURISM WAYFINDING 92–93 ANNEX E – ACRONYMS 95 DEVELOPING TOURISM FOR BARRIE’S ECONOMIC FUTURE 7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PROJECT SCOPE Barrie is one of the fastest-growing cities in Ontario and is ideally situated one hour north of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), with strong transportation links via GO Transit and Highway 400. It boasts a diverse economy, of which tourism is a significant contributor, given that Barrie is a tourism destination and hub for regional sport and outdoor activities. Supporting the growth of the tourism industry as a driver of economic prosperity is one of the City of Barrie Council’s Strategic Priorities, which led to the recommendation for this Tourism Master Plan. The consulting consortium of FLOOR13, KWL Advisory, and GM Event Inc. was contracted to lead the Tourism Master Plan’s development effort, initially by conducting stakeholder research, site reviews of tourism assets, and planning sessions with industry and City of Barrie representatives. These consultations led to various observations and ultimately to the key recommendations for guiding Barrie’s future growth potential in a way that is both strategic and supportive of the City of Barrie’s economic development objectives. Research and due diligence conducted from September 2019 to February 2020 highlighted that Barrie and“ the surrounding region possess a variety of well-managed tourism attractions and assets and a steady flow of visitor traffic throughout the area. However, it also illustrated that much traffic flows through Barrie on its way to other destinations, rather than stopping and overnighting in Barrie. There are opportunity costs of Barrie’s low brand awareness within primary markets, such as the GTA and corresponding visitor profiles, as well as gaps within the inventory of tourism assets. Several opportunities for the destination were identified during the research phase of the Tourism Master Plan, including around: product and infrastructure investment, brand awareness, visitor experience design, and the use of social media and digital marketing. The phase also identified the opportunity for and benefits of a dynamic and well-governed Destination Marketing Organization; as well as a responsibly administered Municipal Accommodations Tax (MAT) used for marketing and promoting the destination through the Destination Marketing Organization, by supporting its administrative costs and providing seed funding for tourism development opportunities. Finally,