UNIVERSITEIT GENT Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte Academiejaar 2006-2007

City marketing of a medium-sized town -An internship at Temse’s local government-

Promotor: G. Jacobs Verhandeling voorgelegd aan de Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte voor het verkrijgen van de graad van master na master in de Meertalige Bedrijfscommunicatie, door Stefanie Ceelen. Table with description of the internship

Bedrijf Stage-begeleider Afdeling

Gemeentebestuur Temse

A.C. De Zaat Mevr. Dominique Oste, informatieambtenaar Frans Boelplein 1 Informatiedienst Dhr. Luc De Ryck, 9140 Temse burgemeester

03 710 12 89

Taken Talen tijdens de stage Stageperiode

- vertaalopdrachten toeristische gids Nederlands - redactie gemeentelijke informatiegids 23 april 2007 - opstellen trefwoordenlijst Engels informatiegids tot - ontvangen Amerikaanse toeristen Frans - opstellen toeristische brochure 1 juni 2007 - … Duits

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WORD OF THANKS

This dissertation would not be a sincere one if I would forget to thank the people who stood by me throughout its realisation process. Therefore, I would like to express my gratitude towards the following persons.

Firstly, lots of thanking words go to the mayor of Temse, Luc De Ryck, to whom I owe most of this work. He has given me the opportunity and honour to work for and with him. Moreover, he has provided me with all the necessary information.

Secondly, I wish to thank Dominique Oste and Rebecca Hulleghems, both public information officials, for guiding me through my internship. Of course I may not forget the encouraging slaps on the back I got from all the colleagues at the AC De Zaat I worked with.

And last but not least, there is only Luc De Bie left to thank for giving all students the opportunity to fulfill an instructive internship and for always being – and staying – calm, positive and supportive throughout the entire MTB-year.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

WORD OF THANKS ...... 1

FOREWORD ...... 6

1. AN INTRODUCTION TO TEMSE ...... 7 1.1. Facts & Figures ...... 7 1.2. Local Government ...... 8 1.2.1. Political Parties ...... 8 1.2.2. College of Mayor and Aldermen ...... 9 1.2.3. Local Council ...... 11 1.2.4. Mission Statement...... 12 1.2.5. Policy Statement 2007-2012 ...... 12 1.2.6. Local Services ...... 13 1.2.7. Means of Communication with the Inhabitants...... 16 1.3. Projects led by the Local Government ...... 18 1.3.1. De Zaat Project ...... 19 1.3.2. AC De Zaat & Restoration of the Old Town Hall ...... 19 1.3.3. Second Bridge over the Scheldt ...... 20 1.4. T-Day ...... 20 1.5. Satisfaction of Temse’s residents: Inquiry by Het Nieuwsblad ...... 22 1.6. Temse’s image as observed by outsiders ...... 23 1.7. SWOT-analysis ...... 25 1.7.1. Strengths ...... 25 1.7.2. Weaknesses ...... 26 1.7.3. Opportunities ...... 27 1.7.4. Threats ...... 28

2. CASE: CITYMARKETING ...... 29 2.1. Introduction ...... 29 2.2. City Marketing defined ...... 30 2.3. Why City Marketing? ...... 31 2.4. Main elements of City Marketing ...... 32

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2.4.1. Parties concerned ...... 32 2.4.2. Marketing factors ...... 33 2.4.3. Target markets ...... 33 2.5. City Marketing Objectives ...... 34 2.5.1. Increasing the attractivity of a city as a place to work ...... 34 2.5.2. Increasing the attractivity of a city as a place to live ...... 34 2.5.3. Increasing the attractivity of a city as recreation and leisure area ...... 35 2.5.4. Increasing the attractivity of a city as place of economy ...... 35 2.5.5. Support of tourism ...... 35 2.5.6. Acquisition of capital ...... 35 2.5.7. Improvement of the city’s image ...... 36 2.5.8. Social welfare ...... 36 2.6. The four main City Marketing Activities ...... 36 2.6.1. Developing a strong city image ...... 37 2.6.2. Efficiently and openly supplying the city products and services ...... 37 2.6.3. Promotion and communication ...... 37 2.6.4. Convincing the inhabitants of the effectivity of city marketing ...... 37 2.7. City branding ...... 38 2.7.1. Definition ...... 38 2.7.2. Difference between city marketing and city branding ...... 38 2.7.3. Identity and perception ...... 38 2.7.4. How to implement city branding? ...... 39 2.8. Keep in mind that… ...... 40 3. City marketing in Temse ...... 41 3.1. City marketing: an unknown concept in Temse… or not? ...... 41 3.2. The positioning of Temse ...... 41 3.3. City branding in Temse ...... 42 3.1. Temse’s unique and distinguishing features in the field of tourism ...... 44 4. My internship at the tourism and information services of Temse’s local government ...... 46 4.1. Main activity ...... 46

APPENDICES ...... 51

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APPENDIX 1: INTERVIEW WITH THE MAYOR, LUC DE RYCK Thursday, 5 July 2007 ...... 51

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FOREWORD

Temse is my hometown in which I have been living for 20 years now. Since 2 years, I’ve worked as a job student in its best-known sandwich bar in the centre. During my last year of Germanic languages, I questioned 5 born and bred residents to get to know their language better as my dissertation dealt with the phonology of Temse’s dialect. All this taught me a lot about the joy and sorrow the residents share, the local rumours and the inhabitants’ opinion on the local government and its decisions. And as always, there are people who are in favour of the mayor and people who are against him. Mayor-lovers call him enthusiastic, a man who knows what he says and does, equipped with good future perspectives, passionate about his work and in love with Temse. The mayor-haters will sneer at his one-sided cultural and tourist-oriented view on Temse and on his so-called delusions of grandeur.

I got in touch with Temse’s mayor, Luc De Ryck, during my last year of Germanic languages. I wrote my dissertation on the phonology of Temse’s dialect. He helped to find the oldest dialect speakers to interview them. As he studied Dutch and English himself, he was very enthusiastic about this work. He even came up with the idea to start a dialect association, which will be set up in September.

In January 2007 I sent him an e-mail to ask him to do my internship at the local authorities. After a short job interview, my request was being discussed during the local council meeting of February. They approved of it and I got to start working under the watching eye of Dominique Oste, Temse’s public information official. My job would among others include the translation of Temse’s detailed tourist brochure and the composition of a keyword index for the information guide.

The reason why I wanted to work for Temse’s local government is simply because I live in Temse and I am interested in what goes on in my hometown. Temse is, to my opinion, a beautiful town as it is situated alongside the river Scheldt. Inspired by the idea that I could work for this town, I thought it would be unique to bring in the things I learned during my MTB-year (especially during the City of Ghent project) and to make one hell of an experience out of it. The fact that the administrative centre is only 10 minutes away by bike is just a sheer coincidence!

This dissertation deals with my internship at the local authorities of Temse. The case I chose to concentrate on is citymarketing and how the local authorities try to apply this modern trend to Temse. I had no particular job title, but I especially worked for the information service and the tourist department.

The first chapter of this work gives an introduction to Temse and its local government and ends with a SWOT-analysis. The second chapter

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1. AN INTRODUCTION TO TEMSE

1.1. Facts & Figures (www.temse.be / www.wikipedia.be)

To begin this introduction to Temse, I would like to give away these facts and figures. They prove that Temse is a medium-sized town and summarise some general standard information.

Geography Region Flanders Province East-Flanders District Sint-Niklaas

Formerly independent municipalities Surface area 9140 Temse 3991 ha 9140 Elversele 2243 ha 9140 Steendorp 506 ha 9140 Tielrode 743 ha

Population Inhabitants 26.666 (31/12/2006)

- Men 49,85%

- Women 50,15% - Foreigners 3,447%

Economics

Unemployment figure 8,41% (01/01/2006) Average income 13.402/inh. (2003)

Politics Mayor Luc De Ryck (CD&V) Government CD&V / Open VLD

Distribution of seats 30 CD&V / NVA 12 Open VLD 6 Vlaams Belang 7 Sp.a / Spirit 4 Groen! 1

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1.2. Local Government

1.2.1. Political Parties

Since the introduction of the Belgian compulsory voting in 1893, a catholic government has become tradition in Temse. So far, no other party has been able to turn the tide. It was only in 1921 that other political parties like the liberals and the socialists stood up for the municipal council. Still, the bench of Mayor and Aldermen kept the orange colour until the local elections of 1982 decided to introduce a liberal Alderman. From then onwards, catholic orange has always been governing the municipality of Temse together with liberal blue.1

Today, the local government of Temse consists of a coalition between CD&V and Open VLD. During the elections of 2006, CD&V affirmed the tradition and won convincingly with an 8,3% rise. CD&V, obtaining 36,6% of the votes, decided to continue the coalition with Open VLD, good for 18,5% of the votes, in order to obtain the majority. Nevertheless, it needs to be mentioned that the blue party suffered a great loss of 7,8%. As a result, Vlaams Belang became the second biggest party in Temse as it possesses 5, 7% more votes than Open VLD. But because of the so-called cordon sanitaire, Vlaams Belang is not allowed to govern together with CD&V. Therefore, orange and blue stay in charge during the next six years (2007- 2012).2

Political parties Temse (in %)

36,6 2001 2006 28,3 26,3 24,2 20,2 18,5 14,1 13,6 8,4 6,7 3,1 0 0,5 0

CD&V / Vlaams Open VLD Sp.a / Spirit Groen! Vivant TEST NVA Belang

1 Gemeenteraad Temse, De legislaturen van de voorbije honderd jaar. Working version of 11 juni 2007. (Text set up to be included in a book about the former town hall) 2 http://www.nieuwsblad.be/GT/Index.aspx?genericId=153 8 | P a g e

1.2.2. College of Mayor and Aldermen

Since 1993, Temse has been governed by Luc De Ryck. He was appointed mayor after the former, Desideer Van Riet, elected in 1988, decided to quit. Luc De Ryck has been alderman since 1983. In 1994 this decision was affirmed as he was re-elected mayor.3 His number of write-in votes increased every 6 years. During the last elections (2006), Luc De Ryck convincingly won with 3567 write-in votes.4 It is the highest number of votes that a politician of Temse has ever obtained.

De Ryck is an English and history teacher. His father, Albert De Ryck, was mayor in 1953 and 1954. Luc De Ryck is especially known for his love and passion for the history and culture of Temse. Therefore his policy is especially culture- and tourist-oriented. He believes in a Temse that moves forward without losing touch with the past. For recent examples I would like to refer to the projects explained in 1.3.

Luc De Ryck, mayor

During the term 2007-2012, the College of Aldermen consists of the mayor, 7 aldermen and 1 town clerk. That means that there is one alderman more than in 2000-2006. On the next page the aldermen and their responsibilities are represented.5

3 Gemeenteraad Temse, De legislaturen van de voorbije honderd jaar. Working version of 11 juni 2007. (Text set up to be included in a book about the former town hall) 4 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (see Appendix 1) 5 http://www.temse.be/bestuur_college.html#college 9 | P a g e

Function Name Political Party Responsibility Mayor Luc De Ryck CD&V General direction and coordination Archives Churchyards Cultural and tourist manifestations Elections Festivities Fire brigade and police Information Public relations Public safety Registry office Traffic 1st Alderman Marc Cordeel Open VLD Direction of labourers Self-employed entrepreneurs Sports Technical equipment and public utilities Works under own direction 2nd Alderman Hugo Maes CD&V Employment promotion Seniors Welfare Youth infrastructure 3rd Alderman Freddy Verbeke CD&V Construction and parcellation licences Patrimony and infrastructure of the local government Personnel Public works Social housing Slum prevention Town and country planning Town centre revaluation 4th Alderman Franky De Graeve CD&V Agriculture Education Environment Finance National government assignments Nature 5th Alderman Debby Vermeiren CD&V Mobility Youth 6th Alderman Annemie Blommaert CD&V Culture Library Tourism 7th Alderman Ingrid Meeus Open VLD Social welfare (OCMW) Town Clerk Luc Verhulst - Direction and coordination of the services Personnel

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The College of Mayor and Aldermen

1.2.3. Local Council6

Next to the College of Mayor and Aldermen, 22 other members complete the local council. That makes that Temse is governed by 31 local councillors who meet every last Monday of the month at 8.30 pm.

The seats are divided as follows: CD&V 12 Open VLD 6 Vlaams Belang 7 Sp.a/Spirit 4 Groen! 1

The entire local council

6 http://www.temse.be/bestuur_college.html#gemeenteraad 11 | P a g e

1.2.4. Mission Statement7

The local government of Temse follows a certain vision, a general idea that is kept in mind every time a decision has to be made. This became clear during the interview with the mayor: ‘Our mission statement is that we always want more and better for our people.’ This idea means two things. On the one hand, the local authorities aim to ameliorate what already exists. On the other hand, they try to make the most of every new opportunity. Temse wants to move on and will thus seize every chance that fits the town’s culture of dynamism and inspiration.

In order to accomplish this mission, absolute flexibility is needed. One always has to anticipate new developments and possible obstacles. In case of problems, it comes down to making the most of it. During the interview, the mayor gave the example of the changes between the policy statements of 2001-2006 and 2007-2012 in connection with the De Zaat project. This project occupies years of work. As a consequence, one simply cannot predict at the beginning of 2001 what difficulties are about to come in for example 2005. Therefore, these policy documents require absolute flexibility so that, according to the mission statement, the local authorities may satisfy the inhabitants of Temse as much as possible.

1.2.5. Policy Statement 2007-20128

The policy statement is accepted during the local council meeting of March 2007. The function of this statement is to define the thread and the main ideas of the policy during the term 2007-2012.

In the introduction, reference is made to the above mentioned mission statement: ‘Above all, the passed legislature was characterised by an enormous dynamism which is more specifically to be found in an incredible list of realisations. We are convinced that these realisations each have attributed to the positive image of our town and that our population may really benefit from them. (…) Furthermore, we live in a society which is continuously on the run and which creates new invitations and, especially, new challenges. It is the policy responsibles’ duty to anticipate them and to go along with them.’

There is a wide variety of issues dealt with in the policy statement. One of the main concerns is the safety of the inhabitants. Next to that, some major projects are being worked on. The most important and visual ones are the De Zaat project and the building of the second bridge over the Scheldt. They will be discussed in 1.3. Furthermore, public works and buildings also get a special treatment. The old historic town hall for example is being restored at the very moment. (See 1.3.2.) In addition, attention is being made to traffic and mobility, environment and nature, the revaluation of the town centre, welfare and residential facilities.

7 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 8 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Beleidsverklaring 2007-2012. 12 | P a g e

When it comes to communication towards and with the inhabitants, the local authorities will govern with full openness. The local policy must be one of complete transparancy and clarity. Public hearings will be held when necessary and every decision will be clearly communicated.

1.2.6. Local Services9

Temse has a wide range of products and services to offer to its residents. The direction and coordination of all these services is attributed to the mayor’s right-hand man, the town clerk Luc Verhulst. In order to provide a well-structured overview of all services, I followed the classification used in the information guide of June 2007.

This classification sets the local authority services apart. Next to that, it also mentions the local police (which is not mentioned as a local authority service because the police of Temse and Kruibeke work together as one), the social welfare centre (OCMW) and its services, public utilities, the parishes of Temse, social housing companies and other public services.

The undermentioned services are only the local authority ones. I’ve chosen not to elaborate on all of them as it is not relevant in connection with the subject of this dissertation. However, I will pick out the information and tourist services as I worked for these during my internship.

 Assurances (window office 8)  Coordination of the musea - Town Hall Museum - Museum of Heraldry Benelux - Birthplace Museum of Priest Poppe  Cultural service (window offices 16-17) Incl. a cultural centre and a cultural policy coordinator  Environmental service (window office 9)  Extracurricular day care centre  Finances (window offices 23-24)  Fire brigade  Green service (window offices 10-12)  Integration (window office 19)  Library  Mobility  Municipal archives  Personnel (window offices 13-15)  Prevention and protection service  Registry office (window offices 1-4)

9 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Infogids 2007. 15 May 2007. 13 | P a g e

- Registration of births, deaths, marriages, divorces, … - Acquisition of ID-cards, driving licences, parking tickets, …  Secretary (window offices 21-22)  Social affairs and seniors (window office 20)  Sports (window office 5)  Technical department  Town and country planning and housing (window offices 6-7)  Window office for agriculture (window office 9)  Window office for small and medium-sized businesses (window office 22)  Youth (window office 18) Incl. the youth centre De Nartist

Most of these services are to be found in the AC De Zaat, except for the extracurricular day care centre, the fire brigade and prevention and protection service, the library, the technical department and youth centre De Nartist.

 Information service The information service is situated on the fourth floor of AC De Zaat. The responsible for this service is Dominique Oste, public information official. She is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades: where bigger cities like Sint-Niklaas and Beveren are equipped with separate information, communication and promotion departments, she – on a smaller scale to be sure – unites all these tasks in one person. She gets help from the mayor and from Rebecca Hulleghems, half- time a culture official and half-time an information official. Dirk Buytaert is responsible for the information desk on the ground floor of AC De Zaat. In short, what Temse’s public information offical mainly does, is to take care of the necessary information for and communication with the local residents. The information policy for this term (2007-2012) is approved of by the mayor on 22 January 2007. It describes the tasks of the information service: writing press releases, doing press conferences, editing and publishing Info Temse and the information guide, taking care of the local authority messages in De Nieuwe Omroeper, making updates of the activities calendar, organising public hearings, keeping the website up-to-date, and so on. Shortly, Temse has decided to introduce a new company style with a new logo and baseline which are to appear on every outgoing document of the local authorities. This responsibility is also given to the public information official.

 Tourist department Temse’s tourist policy is a cooperation of the local government and Toerisme Temse. The latter was founded in 1933 by its first chairman Frans Boel, in those days Temse’s newly appointed mayor. Until 1983, Toerisme Temse operated as the heart of the local tourist policy. But in that same year, the organisation passed on the torch to the local government and became the latter’s worthy ally. Nowadays, Toerisme Temse is completely based on voluntary work.10 Most people

10 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Toeristische gids Ik hou van Temse. November 2002. (See Appendix 2) 14 | P a g e

recognise this organisation thanks to its famous hostesses. These charming ladies represent Temse on several tourist events. In this regard, they are really unique as no other town or city in Belgium has come up with this idea. The current tourist information centre De Watermolen is completely in hands of the local government. For the moment, it is still situated on the Wilfordkaai. But, when the restoration works of the old town hall are finished (presumably in the spring of 2008), the information centre will move to its ground floor. The tourist official responsible of the centre is Beatrix Mys. Every year a booklet is printed with a summary of the main tourist events and activities that are about to come, it is used as a kind of guide to the upcoming tourist season. The tourist information centre offers lots of services and products. Its main activity is to inform visitors on any information they want: tourist attractions, historic buildings, musea, activities, events, gastronomy, sports, nature, walking and cycling routes, boat trips, and so on. The information centre also rents bicycles and sells Temse’s detailed tourist brochure Ik hou van Temse. Visitors can also buy some interesting souvenirs. Among these souvenirs are key rings, postcards, stained-glass windows, necklaces, and so on. On all of them, Temse’s coat of arms is displayed. The tourist industry in Temse is highly active. It is completely oriented towards daytrippers and it’s especially known for its boat tourism. Every year the number of boat tourists increases. In 2005, Temse knew an absolute record: no less than 33.656 people embarked at the famous jetty on the Wilfordkaai. 11 The official figures of the numbers of visitors of Temse’s tourist attractions last year are mentioned in the table below.12

Visitors tourist information office 2.022 The water mill 2.274 Visitors of the Kaaifeesten* 20.000 Visitors of Temse in de Wolken* 25.000 Museum of Heraldry Benelux 2.051 Town Hall Museum 5.066 Birthplace Museum of Priest Poppe 274 Church of Our Lady 2.212 Accompanied walk in the town centre 670 Accompanied walk towards Temse’s statues 354 Administrative Centre De Zaat 239 Fortress of Steendorp 251 American tourists 535 Boat tourists 24.720 *2006 was the last year in which the Kaaifeesten were celebrated. The local government decided this year to abolish them and to concentrate fully on Temse’s other celebrated event on the Wilfordkaai: Temse in de Wolken.

11 Aantal bezoekers toeristische bezienswaardigheden 2005 Temse. (statistics from the tourist information centre) 12 Aantal bezoekers toeristische bezienswaardigheden 2006 Temse. (statistics from the tourist information centre) 15 | P a g e

1.2.7. Means of Communication with the Inhabitants13

The communication policy of Temse shows an integrated approach. Although the local government shows a wide variety of communication methods, all different media are needed as they strengthen each other: each medium stands on its own and thus contains its own identity.

Temse’s communication means can be divided into three groups.

Firstly, the local authorities introduced some pull channels. That is to say, communication channels for which the population needs to make an effort in order to get the right information.

 Information desk Since January 1998 an information desk is at the population’s service. It is meant for every kind of information. The desk is situated on the ground floor of the Administrative Centre De Zaat.

 Town crier and his postcard Temse is one of the few towns in Belgium that still has its own town crier: Gerard Vercauteren. He announces important happenings and activities at the weekly market. Next to that, he is also present on special occasions as figurehead of Temse. Every year, a postcard is printed with a picture of the town crier and a famous comic-strip hero of Belgium. See Temse Stripgemeente. At the back, the most important tourist, cultural and sports events of the year are mentioned. A more detailed description of these events is to be found in the activities calendar on the internet (www.temse.be). The postcard is available at the information desk and the tourist information centre on the Wilfordkaai.

 Reporting card The reporting card offers the solution for residents of Temse who would like to share new ideas with the local authorities, to complain about something that sticks in their throats, to express their feelings on a certain project, to ask questions, and so on. The card is however not anonymous as the resident needs to fill in his name and address, otherwise the information will not be taken into account. The card is available at the information desk, in the library and in the former town halls of the formerly independent municipalities Elversele, Steendorp and Tielrode. The inhabitants can also consult a digital version on www.temse.be/contact.asp.

 Public hearings In case of great projects or changes that might affect the population of Temse thoroughly, public hearings are held to provide the inhabitants with the necessary information. During these hearings, people are allowed to ask questions and to share their opinion with the local authorities.

13 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Informatiebeleid gemeentebestuur Temse. 22 January 2007. http://www.temse.be/info.html 16 | P a g e

Secondly, Temse also uses push channels. These form the most important way of communicating with the inhabitants of Temse because they are free and brought to the people by post.

 De Nieuwe Omroeper De Nieuwe Omroeper is a weekly local newspaper which every inhabitant of Temse gets for free. The newspaper is not only distributed in Temse, but also for example in Kruibeke. It belongs to the Passe-Partout group. The local authorities of Temse make full use of De Nieuwe Omroeper to publish messages to the population, to announce the tourist, cultural and sports events (from the activities calendar) and to mention opening hours, holidays, and so on. The column ‘Direct connection with the mayor’ is a very popular section that many inhabitants of Temse seem to preserve. According to the mayor, De Nieuwe Omroeper is the most important communication medium. It is ‘attainable for everyone, preservable as long as you want and you can consult it anytime’14.

 Info Temse Since 1977 (the fusion of communities), this local authority information magazine appears every three months. Since 2003, the inhabitants can also consult the digital version of the magazine on www.temse.be/info.html. Info Temse distinguishes from Temse’s other information tools in the sense that the magazine does not only mention the usual local authority messages, but that it also tries to paint a picture of Temse’s fortunes. Among them are reports of activities, the celebration of centenarians or jubilees, announcements, and so on. This way, lots of aspects of life in Temse are represented in this magazine. Therefore, Info Temse is often preserved.

 Information guide The information guide of Temse deals with some general information about the local government and services and it offers a list of the self-employed entrepreneurs. The guide appears every year in June and is distributed freely among the inhabitants. If distribution problems occur, the residents can also come and get it at the information desk.

Thirdly, some of the channels do not belong to either the pull or the push channels. Therefore, a third list of communication tools is set apart.

 Website Although a website does not reach every inhabitant of a town, it is the only medium that can constantly be up-to-date. Shortly, www.temse.be is renewed and a webmaster continuously takes care of the updates. The inhabitants can find all kinds of information on the website, from the history of Temse and its tourist attractions to the composition of the local council. There is also a digital office on which you can download several documents, like for instance an application form, forms for the request of licenses, and so on.

 Announcement or notice boards alongside the traffic routes

14 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 17 | P a g e

Temse also communicates via the old tried and tested method of announcement and notice boards alongside the traffic routes. These boards especially keep the inhabitants informed about upcoming activities.

Next to all these fixed tools, the local authorities also make use of special occasion communication. This means that sometimes thorough changes or giant new projects are to be announced which require an extra effort to inform the inhabitants. In these cases, press conferences and public hearings are usually held. But sometimes special brochures or folders are designed in order to explain the whys and the wherefores to Temse’s population. ‘Van Boelwerf naar De Zaat’ is for example the title of the inauguration brochure which was designed in the light of the opening of the Administrative Centre De Zaat and the construction of the entire De Zaat project.

1.3. Projects led by the Local Government

In the policy statement of 2007-2012, some major projects are defined. Some of them have had a huge impact on Temse’s public image, others will be of great importance to the town’s future. In the light of the subject of this dissertation, I’ve chosen to describe those projects and/or events that, according to my observations, were/are/will be of a great significance to Temse: those projects that are most visible and most talked about.

When it comes to these projects, the mayor likes to stress the future without laying the past behind.

On the one hand, he really wants Temse to be a dynamic town, one that looks forward instead of dwelling in the past. This became clear during the interview15. When asked for three core words that characterise Temse, he mentions dynamism, versatility and attractiveness. To his opinion ‘Temse unites the charms of a town with the wide range of activities of a city. This curious mixture offers an extra surplus and attractiveness.’ This dynamism and vision is indeed visible throughout different projects that were / are / will be realised.

On the other hand, this idea does not mean that the past should be buried. De Ryck sees it as an absolute priority not to lose sight of Temse’s rich and emotionally important history. It has been a conscient choice of the local authorities to unite future and past whenever a huge project is set up. The mayor remarks: ‘When you want to know where to go to, you have to know where you come from. Moreover, history can be a useful teacher and source of inspiration for the future… and it may arouse people’s interest. A classic example: the first bridge over the Scheldt (built in 1870) was designed by Eiffel. That is rather important to know, isn’t it?’16

15 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 16 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 18 | P a g e

1.3.1. De Zaat Project17

The De Zaat project is the biggest and most talked about project in Temse. It is a huge residential and industrial area under construction, set up on the former Boelwerf grounds.

The Boelwerf was Temse’s internationally known shipbuilding company. It closed its doors on 30 November 1994. This date meant, after 165 years, an all-time low for every inhabitant of Temse and a black day in the town’s history. The upcoming years were full of troubles and doubts and did not result in a clear vision for the future. What was to become of this giant site?

A first breakthrough was born thanks to a so-called masterplan: a plan which created clarity about the future perspectives. It inspired people to buy grounds. Years followed, grounds were sold, meetings between the owners were held and in 2001, the De Zaat project came into being. The former Boelwerf would become a huge complex, creating jobs and residential facilities in combination with the Scheldt’s nature and recreational possibilities.

Still, the Boelwerf is a subject too sensitive to be forgotten. Lots of people lost their jobs, the economy of Temse dropped, Temse’s international fame was knocked down. Therefore, it was the local authorities’ job to keep the memory alive. The local council decided to give the site the name ‘Zaat’. This word is derived from the local dialect and means ‘shipyard’. Furthermore, all the names of the streets in De Zaat refer to leading persons, professions and activities of the Boelwerf. Moreover, a very old crane is erected at the right bank of the Scheldt. This crane is a leftover from the Boelwerf and became a protected monument in June 2004. A last reference to the former shipbuilding activities is the sculpture ‘De Zaatman’. It is designed by an ex-employee of the Boelwerf.

1.3.2. AC De Zaat & Restoration of the Old Town Hall18

In 1906, the first town hall of Temse was constructed. The building next to the market housed the local government until 2006, the year in which a new administrative centre was built in De Zaat.

The former town hall could not any longer serve as such as it was not capable of meeting the requirements of a modern government. Still, it is a historic building that characterises Temse, in 2000 it even became a protected monument. Therefore the local authorities have decided to make the former town hall revive without losing its official touch. Today, the building is being restored in order to fulfill a ceremonial and cultural-tourist function in the future. For instance, after the restoration works, the tourist information centre will move to the former town hall. However, the past will not be put aside: the name ‘town hall’ will be kept.

17 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Van Boelwerf naar De Zaat. Spring 2006. 18 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Van Boelwerf naar De Zaat. Spring 2006. 19 | P a g e

The new building in which the local authorities are housed, is called ‘administrative centre’ and is located on the new De Zaat complex. It is the former restored and renovated administrative heart of the Boelwerf. The local ‘town hall’ is now situated alongside the river Scheldt and forms next to its administrative and governmental functions also a tourist attraction.

1.3.3. Second Bridge over the Scheldt19

By the end of 2009, a new bridge will rise above the Scheldt, next to the already existing and famous bridge. The bridge will contain two traffic lanes and one two-way bicycle track. The current bridge, designed by Eiffel, will lead the traffic to Temse, whereas the future bridge will take care of the people travelling to Bornem.

This project is started up in order to solve the traffic jams between Temse and Bornem. The current bridge is spanned over the N16 and connects East-Flanders and Antwerp. As the bridge only has one lane for each direction, the two lanes of the N16 come together before the bridge, and split up again after it.

This modern project will change the panoramic view on Temse, seen from the current bridge. Not only will this second bridge be constructed, the entire waterfront will get an exclusive tourist function and new yacht-basins will be built.

But, as is typical of Temse, here too the past should be kept in remembrance. The first bridge was of an extremely high importance to Temse: it was the only bridge linking the two provinces. Moreover, this bridge realised the first railway connection between Temse and Terneuzen. Therefore, the local authorities decided to dedicate an exposition to this very first bridge designed by Eiffel. This exposition is to be seen from 23 June till 12 August 2007 in the Town Hall Museum.

1.4. T-Day

T-Day or the coming of American tourists to Temse was my main occupation during my internship. Therefore, I wanted to include here what it exactly is and what it means to Temse. It actually belongs to the projects led by the government, but it is set apart for this reason and because it has no more future perspective (after 2007, no more T-days will be held).

Since 2005, the Dutch cruise ship Princesse Royal has brought along American tourists to Temse. Grand Circle Travel, a famous international travel agency for seniors, organises cruises all over the world. One of these cruises goes from Amsterdam to Bruges and includes stops in Gouda, Antwerp, Ghent and yes, in Temse too.

19 http://www.temse.be/nieuws_scheldebrug.html 20 | P a g e

Grand Circle Travel: Cruise through the Low Countries (http://www.oattravel.com/gcc/general/default.aspx?oid=129026

It sounds strange as Temse cannot offer what big cities can: Art, Culture and History, all with capital letters. Therefore, Temse decided to approach the American tourists from another point of view. The town’s local authorities organised a straightforward confrontation with the everyday life of its inhabitants: Flemish to the core. First, the Americans are welcomed at the jetty by Temse’s town crier. Then, they are appointed to host families who show them their houses, prepare a typical Flemish meal and exchange Flemish experiences with their American visitors. Afterwards, the latter can visit the town centre or take a walk along the Wilfordkaai. The Princesse Royal stays at Temse’s jetty during the night.

Evaluations filled in by the Americans after the cruise showed that this formula was a success: Temse got the highest scores of the entire trip. No less than 90% pointed out Temse as the highlight of their cruise. The fact that Temse was included in a cruise that stops in big cities like Antwerp, Bruges and Ghent, plus the fact that Temse got the highest score from the Americans, only prove the mayor’s statement saying that Temse unites the charms of a town with the wide range of activities of a city.

The first American guests arrived on 11 May 2005. In that year more than 1000 American visitors were expected. The mayor of Temse cannot be but proud of this happening: not every medium-sized town in Belgium receives American guests. As a result, he refers to this event as the absolute highlight of his tourist policy, ‘T(emse)-Day’. In 2005, 1.138 Americans embarked in Temse.20 In 2006 and 2007 this number seriously shrunk. As a result, from 2008 onwards, the Princesse Royal will be used for other cruises. The high prices of a trip to Europe and the competition in the field of cruises are probably the causes.

20 Aantal bezoekers toeristische bezienswaardigheden 2005 Temse. (statistics from the tourist information centre) 21 | P a g e

1.5. Satisfaction of Temse’s residents: Inquiry by Het Nieuwsblad21

As a result of the upcoming local elections in October 2006, the national newspaper ‘Het Nieuwsblad’ decided to take a closer look at the satisfaction of the inhabitants of every Flemish city and town, including Temse. 440 inhabitants of Temse were questioned about the local government and its policy.

In general, Temse can be called an average town. The mayor scores 6.7/10, a bit above the average of East-Flanders (6.46) and Flanders (6.38). The local government gets 6.66 points, which is the same as the average of East-Flanders and 0.01 point more than the average of Flanders. Out of the 308 questioned cities and towns, Temse comes on the 98th place for the best mayor and on the 168th place for the best local government, which is not bad.

However, on the list of most satisfied inhabitants, Temse scores rather low. The town scores 1.86 on a scale that goes from 1.45 (most satisfied) to 2.19 (unsatisfied). That means 0.03 points under the average. Compared to other towns and cities in the Waasland, these results are not bad: Sint-Niklaas and Kruibeke for example are faced with worse results.

It is not my intention to go deeper into detail about every questioned subject. But, in order to end with a good SWOT-analysis, it sure is important to take a look at the items most efficiently dealt with and those which are highly problematic.

Items most efficiently dealt with:

 The supply of culture and sports According to Temse’s local residents, the way culture and sports are present in their town is absolutely satisfying. 57,20% of the inhabitants have pointed out the supply of culture and sports as the most appreciated matter in Temse.  Security cameras Temse belongs to the top 10 of towns and cities that attach lots of significance to their safety policy. Although it is not the greatest concern of the inhabitants (on the 13th place of the most important issues), they are extremely satisfied about the way these security cameras are applied. As a result, Temse takes the 7th place in the top 10 of most satisfied towns.  30 km/h zones These zones come in as the second most satisfying issue with 56%. The inhabitants of Temse do not however find this subject matter really important. 13 other issues appear to be more urgent. In Flanders though, this score is slightly under the average.

Most problematic items:

 Maintenance of traffic routes and footpaths This subject is one of which 97, 10% of the inhabitants of Temse think it is important. But, only 40,10% is happy with the way this item is dealt with. This score is under the Flemish average.

21 http://www.nieuwsblad.be/GT/Index.aspx?genericId=154&postcode=9140 22 | P a g e

 Life quality The issue of life quality is next to the maintenance of traffic routes and footpaths badly in need for improvement: more than 91% of the population thinks it is quite important whereas only 34% is satisfied.  Integration of migrants This issue is very problematic in Temse: the town belongs to the top 10 of most unsatisfied towns and cities when it comes to the integration of migrants. It is strange though that the inhabitants of Temse prefer other issues to be dealt with than this one: the integration of migrants comes last on the list of most important issues for the next term.

1.6. Temse’s image as observed by outsiders

During the months May and June I did a small research on how the three projects and T-day are welcomed by the inhabitants of Temse, but also – and especially – how these projects are seen by outsiders. What image do these people have of Temse?

I put a small inquiry online on www.thesistools.com. 78 people filled in the online questionnaire. Only 9 people are inhabitants of Temse, 26 of other towns in the Waasland and 39 people live anywhere else in Flanders.

I asked two kinds of questions. In the first question, people had to assign adjectives to Temse by saying that they agree completely, agree, have no idea, disagree or disagree completely.

 Poor. People do not think that Temse is a poor town. Only 3 people tend to agree, whereas 45 people disagree. The 3 people agreeing to this statement are from Temse, Hamme and Sint- Niklaas. 5 persons did not answer this question.  Enjoyable / pleasant. Temse is a rather enjoyable place to be. To this assertion, 45 out of 73 people agree. 17 have a neutral opinion and only 11 do not find this town pleasant at all. It is important to say that none of the 9 residents of Temse belongs to this last group.  Energetic. Opinions differ greatly on this matter. Most of the respondants (35/73) are neutral, 17 tend to agree, but 21 of them disagree. 5 out of 9 inhabitants disagree with the statement that Temse is an energetic town, 2 of them are neutral and the other 2 tend to agree.  Young. The situation is quite the same as with the adjective ‘energetic’: opinions differ greatly. 38 people are rather neutral, 14 agree and 21 disagree. The inhabitants of Temse seem to be rather neutral.  Modern. This adjective can join the club of ‘energetic’ and ‘young’: 40 people take in a neutral position, 12 agree and 21 disagree. The 9 inhabitants are again very neutral about this matter.  Old-fashioned. This adjective was introduced as the opposite of ‘modern’, to check whether the respondants truthfully filled in the questionnaire. And indeed, they did: 28 of them were neutral, 28 people disagreed and 17 agreed. The conclusion of these two adjectives together is that most of the respondents don’t think that Temse is old-fashioned. But when it comes to the

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idea of Temse as a modern town, 40 out of 78 people take a neutral position. Temse is not old- fashioned, but not really modern either.  Picturesque. People absolutely see Temse as a picturesque town: 39 respondents agree with this statement. 24 react neutral and only 10 people disagree. The inhabitants of Temse either agree or have a neutral opinion, but they do not belong to the 10 people who decided to disagree.  Clean. 39 people agree that Temse is a clean town. Only 6 persons disagree with this statement, 2 of them live in Temse. The other 7 inhabitants agree with the adjective ‘clean’.  Rich. This adjective seemed to be a tough one. 42 respondents expressed a neutral opinion, 17 people agreed, 14 disagreed. However, only 3 people think that Temse is a poor town. As a conclusion of the adjectives ‘poor’ and ‘rich’, people obviously do not think of Temse as being really poor, but they do not really seem willing to say that Temse is rich either.  Boring. According to 33 respondents, Temse is not boring. 15 people however do think it is a dull place to be. The opinions of the 9 inhabitants differ: 5 people disagree that Temse is boring whereas 3 persons tend to agree.  Safe / secure. Here too, people do not seem to be convinced of the safety and security Temse offers. 40 people share a neutral opinion, 18 others agree and 15 disagree. The attitudes of the 9 local residents towards this adjective vary.  Renewing. Again, the situation is the same: most people (39) are neutral, 15 agree with the adjective and 19 disagree. These results are in line with the idea that most people do not think that Temse is old-fashioned, but they are not really convinced of Temse as a modern, renewing town either.  Conceited. Temse is not at all conceited: only 1 person (someone who lives in Sint-Denijs- Westrem and works in Ghent) claims the opposite, 36 people are neutral and 36 others disagree.

In short, Temse has an enjoyable, picturesque and clean town. It is not conceited, not boring, not old- fashioned and not poor. But, people are not convinced of the idea that Temse is energetic, young, modern, rich, safe or renewing.

The second type of questions are related to the projects I mentioned above. To be sure that people who have not heard about these projects yet, I clearly explained every one of them so that they could still fill in the questionnaire. For every project, I mentioned a few statements. The respondents again had to agree or disagree.

The first project was the construction of the second bridge over the Scheldt. People really feel that this second bridge will efficiently help to solve the numerous traffic jams: 51 respondents agree to this. But, 48 respondents also think that during the construction, lots of traffic problems will arrive. 31 people also react positively on the statement claiming that this project deserves to get media attention. 33 respondents however, react neutral. 44 persons disagree with the claim that Temse uses this bridge only to attract tourists and to get media attention. As a conclusion, the building of a second bridge over the Scheldt is for most people a more than welcome project.

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Secondly, T-day is being discussed. 51 people agree with the statement that the coming of these American tourists means that Temse must have quite a lot to offer. 41 respondents do not think that the event itself is exagerated, nor do 39 persons think that Temse only welcomes these American tourists to be the centre of interest. But they do not really seem convinced of the idea that T-day should get media attention: only 28 people think that T-day deserves this, 30 persons have a neutral opinion and 15 disagree.

The third and final project on the questionnaire was the construction of the residential and industrial area De Zaat. The respondents are in general quite satisfied about this project: 61 of them do think that there will be more employment and residential facilities. Moreover, 61 people are convinced of the idea that this projects shows that Temse wants to move on instead of dwelling in the past. When reference is made to the memory to the former Boelwerf, the opinions differ. 20 people think it is a pity that this way a great deal of Temse’s glorious past will be forgotten. 15 persons are rather neutral about it and 38 tend to disagree with this idea. 5 people see this project as megalomania, 49 people do not and 20 respondents have a neutral opinion about this.

As a conclusion, it can be said that the questioned Flemings react rather positively to these three projects. Of course, when talked about inhabitants of Temse, I can only mention 9. I realise that this is not a number I can rely on. But, the intention was to reach as much outsiders as possible. This dissertation deals with citymarketing. In this regard, it is rather important to not only know what inhabitants think of their town, but also how other people look at it.

1.7. SWOT-analysis

As a conclusion of this entire chapter, I would like to summarize some positive and negative points, threats and opportunities which Temse contains.

1.7.1. Strengths

 Mayor The inhabitants of Temse believe in their mayor, Luc De Ryck. He received 3567 write-in votes and the inquiry done by Het Nieuwsblad locates Temse in the top 100 of best Flemish mayors. I have worked for and with him and must say that he really is an inspired and passionate person, in love with his own town and capable of making sacrafices for Temse.

 The Scheldt and Temse’s tourist policy Temse is known for its tourism. Thanks to the location of this town alongside the river Scheldt, many visitors pass by. Temse really has to offer everything: walking and cycling alongside the

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Scheldt, gastronomy (stewed eel in chervil sauce), culture, history, events, and so on. The tourist information centre is located on the Wilfordkaai and always willing to help.

 Information policy The information and communication policy of Temse shows an integrated approach. The inhabitants of Temse get all the information they need. The most important media are De Nieuwe Omroeper and Info Temse. Furthermore, there are lots of press releases sent out to the national press (Temse has a really long list of press relations!). In addition, public hearings are held when necessary and the renewed website is always up-to-date thanks to its webmaster.

 Security cameras The security cameras in Temse are much welcomed by the population. As could be derived from the inquiry of Het Nieuwsblad, Temse belongs to the top 10 of Flemish towns that attach in the most efficient way importance to this issue.

 Culture & sports The residents of Temse are, above all, most satisfied with the supply of culture and sports. 57,20% of the respondents of the inquiry of Het Nieuwsblad claim that this issue has been dealt with in a very effective way.

 30 km/h zones Temse has lots of 30 km/h zones. According to Het Nieuwsblad, 56% of the respondents to its inquiry think this is a good thing for Temse.

1.7.2. Weaknesses

 Education The education policy of Temse has not been dealt with yet, because it is a subject little relevant to this dissertation. Still, it is an absolute weakness of Temse. The town has lots of schools, but especially primary schools. Only 2 schools go a few steps further: one can follow secondary school at the Koninklijk Atheneum of Temse or at the Sint-Amelberga Institute. But, the first one is a public school and the second does not go any further than the 4th year. Moreover, both their reputations are rather bad. As a result, most people go to school in for example Sint-Niklaas. This weakness is however not a threat. This situation has been like that for years and nobody really seems to care.

 Maintenance of traffic routes and footpaths The inquiry of Het Nieuwsblad shows that this really needs to become a point on the agenda of the local authorities of Temse. In an interview with the mayor, published in Het Nieuwsblad on 4

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January 2007, the mayor admitted that some streets needed improvement. ‘That is why the revaluation of the commercial heart of the town is an agenda point in this policy.’22

 Integration of migrants While Temse seems to be doing well when it comes to security cameras, the integration of migrants meets opposite opinions. Het Nieuwsblad shows that the residents are not at all satisfied when it comes to this issue.

 Life quality This too appears to be a rather negative point. Het Nieuwsblad proves that lots of people think this is an important issue, but that only 34% is happy with the way the local government deals with it.

 No citymarketing plan Temse has a very good and effective tourist policy. Moreover, the town is busy attracting new inhabitants and companies, especially to De Zaat. In fact, it would come in handy if Temse had some kind of citymarketing plan which would help the town to ameliorate its public image and to facilitate even more its communication towards the inhabitants.

1.7.3. Opportunities

 Projects As can be derived from my inquiry, most people seem to have a positive opinion on the De Zaat project, the construction of a second bridge over the Scheldt and T-day. And indeed, these projects are effective and are, to my opinion, needed to make Temse known in the surrounding area. Furthermore, these projects will increase the number of inhabitants, will be good for the economy after the bankruptcy of the Boelwerf and will attract more tourists.

 Temse: a medium-sized town with the capacities of a city Thanks to these projects and the dynamic view the local government of Temse keeps in mind, it is indeed right to say that Temse is a medium-sized town with the capacities and activities of a city. Temse is visibly changing and growing: projects like De Zaat attract residents and companies to move to Temse.

 Start of a new policy term As the new policy term starts this year, the local government faces 6 new years to improve the weaknesses and get rid of the threats. In other words, Temse’s local authorities can see this as an opportunity: there is still plenty of time to carry out what they promised to the population.

22 Dehandschutter, W. Luc De Ryck, burgemeester van Temse. Lunchen op een bankje boven de schelde. In: Het Nieuwsblad Regio Waasland. Donderdag 4 januari 2007. 27 | P a g e

1.7.4. Threats

 The negative side effects of the projects As good and efficient these projects may be, they always might provoke protest. For example, some people believe that it would have been better that the former Boelwerf grounds became a beautiful piece of nature, instead of this giant building project. Moreover, lots of inhabitants of Temse fear that the remembrance to the Boelwerf will be gone forever. Another example is the building of the second bridge: people fear that lots of traffic problems will arise during the construction.

 Temse: a dynamic town? The mayor likes to characterize Temse as a dynamic town with high future perspectives, but this idea still needs to grow among the people. According to my inquiry, the respondents do not really see Temse as being young, modern and renewing. They do, however, believe that the De Zaat project shows Temse’s will to move forward.

 The omnipresence of the mayor23 The mayor of Temse is a very inspired and passionate man, which is an absolute strength. But, he is sometimes thàt omnipresent that it is tough for the aldermen for example to create a distinct profile for themselves. On the one hand, it may be a threat as he sometimes takes decisions on his own. On the other hand, the people seem to like this about him, because he is reelected in October with 3567 write-in votes.

 No citymarketing plan Last but not least, Temse has no citymarketing policy. As citymarketing is the case of this dissertation, dealt with in the next chapter, I think it is important to mention that there is no integrated citymarketing policy. The idea starts to grow though. But, the danger lies in the fact that Temse has started with some citymarketing aspects, but not because of good reasons. They do it ‘because it is a modern trend on which they cannot stay behind’. They do not really see it as important to and good for Temse and its inhabitants.

23 Dehandschutter, W. Luc De Ryck, burgemeester van Temse. Lunchen op een bankje boven de schelde. In: Het Nieuwsblad Regio Waasland. Donderdag 4 januari 2007.

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2. CASE: CITYMARKETING

2.1. Introduction

Citymarketing is really ‘hot’ these days. ‘Almost every big city tries to market itself as a brand to attract trendy companies, smart students and voguish horeca. Some of them – like Amsterdam – position themselves as cultural motor, while others – like Eindhoven – call themselves the European centre of knowledge.’24

The Dutch magazine Binnenlands Bestuur25 sums up several possible causes of this growing tendency. According to them, this development is mainly due to the joining together of countries into one unified Europe. More and more people indeed see Europe as one, which makes it more difficult for cities and towns to differentiate from each other. Secondly, more cities tend to act like a company. The five biggest cities of the Netherlands spend lots of money for their citymarketing. Rotterdam for example foresaw 6.1 million euros for its campaign ‘Rotterdam Dares’.

But, whatever reason it may have, fact is that the idea to distinguish oneselve from each other is a hot issue among countries, regions, cities and towns. ‘In this globalising world, cities regions have to position themselves stronger than ever. In order to do this, more and more aspects of the city join the battle.’26 Cities seek a certain profile which they can carry out to the outside world. With this aim at the back of their minds, the governments of these cities try to adjust their cultural, tourist, economic and industrial policies to this profile. In case these efforts have success, more companies, inhabitants and tourists will be attracted by the city’s offer. And this is the absolute goal of citymarketing.

A growing number of citymarketing cases is to be found on the internet. When you surf to www.google.be and type ‘citymarketing’ as subject, the search engine will come up with numerous examples of cities, countries and regions. Especially the Netherlands seem to be into the topic: Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam, Tilburg, they all got a city brand and an integrated citymarketing approach. In Belgium, the citymarketing issue is not yet as popular as in the Netherlands. Antwerp, however, counts as thé example on the Belgian market. The city has a huge citymarketing plan and its slogan ‘‘t Stad is van iedereen’ (lit. the city belongs to everyone) is to be seen on every document published by Antwerp’s local authorities.

Slowly, the idea of promoting a city has penetrated smaller cities and towns. Sint-Niklaas, only 10 km from Temse, for example has introduced a logo and plans to start its own city promotion plan. Bornem, a town 8 km away from Temse, is with its logo and slogan ‘Hier leef je’ (lit. here you live) another example of a local town trying to launch the concept of citymarketing. Why should Temse stay behind? Temse has

24 http://managing21.skynetblogs.be/post/740286/europa-zet-steden-aan-tot-citymarketing (My translation) 25 http://managing21.skynetblogs.be/post/740286/europa-zet-steden-aan-tot-citymarketing (My translation) 26 http://managing21.skynetblogs.be/post/740286/europa-zet-steden-aan-tot-citymarketing (My translation)

29 | P a g e lots of elements to offer to companies, tourists and the town’s inhabitants. Moreover, the town already unconsciously does some citymarketing: Temse’s local government likes to profile its town as a typical town alongside the Scheldt and as a town of comic books. Its approach is however not really integrated nor is it seen as being citymarketing.

During my internship, I worked especially for the tourism and information services. As already mentioned above, Temse has no real city or, better, town promotion department. As a result, all assignments having something to do with city marketing fall in hands of the tourism and information service. At the moment I was working there, a turning point in Temse’s information policy was taking place. The local government was about to adopt a new ‘company style’. The authorities have observed that more and more cities and towns communicate with their own logo and baseline. Of course, Temse does not want to stay behind and created its own brand and brand blueprint.

This chapter will deal with the theoretical background of citymarketing. First, I will try to define citymarketing. Secondly, I will discuss why city marketing might be important. Thirdly, a summary is given of its main elements and activities as defined by Kotler. Next, the objectives of city marketing are described. In the last part of this chapter, I will go into deeper detail on the subject of citybranding. Chapter three will focus on how citymarketing is implemented in Temse.

2.2. City Marketing defined

Citymarketing literally means ‘the marketing of a city’. Kotler (boek marketing) marketing scale – comparison made to marketing a product.

A straightforward ‘one and only’ definition of citymarketing does not exist. Every town, city, region, country defines the concept in many different ways, according to what is possible and what not. Every citymarketing expert, every theory has another vision on what citymarketing actually is. Antwerp for example describes its citymarketing as ‘de stad door de ogen van de klant’27 (lit. ‘the city through the eyes of the customer’). Hallier defines the concept as a ‘market-oriented city-development-policy, which aims at integrating living, working, location of trade and industry, traffic, culture, leasure and shopping in an extensive manner of the urban city-experience into an integral marketing concept.’28 Drs. Erik Braun29 from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam sums up some newspaper quotes: ‘Selling the city’, ‘Putting your city on the map’, ‘Positioning your city’, ‘A weapon in city competition’ and ‘Consider the demands of the city’s customers’.

27 http://www.ha.be/attachments/caroline/20060120%20citymarketing%20economica_SB.pdf 28 http://iir-hp.wu-wien.ac.at/seminar/gruppe1a.html 29 http://www.crii-online.net/uploads/media/Erasmus_building_legible_cities_Oct05.pdf 30 | P a g e

All these definitions and quotes reveal different aspects of marketing a city but none of them is complete. Drs. Erik Braun decided not to come up with a new, personalised, definition. Instead he explains in her PowerPoint presentation the basic fundamentals of citymarketing. Firstly, he mentions the idea that citymarketing always faces public objectives. Secondly, citymarketing has to serve the intrests of the city in all aspects. Citymarketing aims at attracting companies, inhabitants and tourists. Therefore, it is necessary to get to know what they want and to satisfy their expectations and wishes. Thirdly, citymarketing should not be seen as an objective but as an instrumental to urban management. It is a tool to attract different target groups and thus to enhance the city’s image, prosperity and welfare. For instance, when more companies come to a particular city, this city’s economy will increase. Fourthly, city marketing is part of the democratic process: if your own inhabitants are not convinced of the image the city tries to promote, they will turn against the government which is absolutely bad for the city’s image. Therefore it is important to know how inhabitants think of the city they live in. In that way they get the feeling the local government listens to them and they will positively advertise the image wished for. As a last fundamental, Braun sees citymarketing as a part of place marketing.

On this last topic, Janneke van den Oever30 mentions a real chaos when it comes to naming the concept. Names like place marketing, place selling, city branding, region marketing, tourism marketing and so on show up everywhere. When it comes to Temse, I decided to keep the most commonly used name ‘citymarketing’. Temse is a town instead of a city, but town marketing is a concept that is not really used in subject related literature. Moreover, a town has the same principles than a city. The differences ly in its size and the smaller range of supplies a town has to offer.

As a conclusion, I too decided not to come up with thé definition of citymarketing as it does not exist. The fundamentals Braun sums up are basic and to be found in a packaged form in every definition concerning this subject:

 City marketing has public objectives  City marketing serves the intrest of the city in all aspects  City marketing is not an objective but an instrumental to urban management  City marketing is part of the democratic process  City marketing is part of the place marketing family

2.3. Why City Marketing?31

Citymarketing is born out of several trends. Braun sums up the most important ones.

First of all, cities and towns are pushed by regional, national and international competition. The feeling grows that the city or town in question needs to differentiate from other cities and towns in order to survive this competition. In this respect, citymarketing can come in handy.

30 http://www.ru.nl/socgeo/html/files/ba-thesis/scripties/2004-2005/Oever,%20Janneke%20van%20den.pdf 31 http://www.crii-online.net/uploads/media/Erasmus_building_legible_cities_Oct05.pdf 31 | P a g e

Secondly, cities tend to copy the efforts of successful cities just like companies adjust their strategies to those of successful companies. As a result, competition and this copycat behaviour both form the basis of the incredible boom of citymarketing. Cities tend to see each other more and more as competitors of which they need to distence themselves by emphasizing their own particular identity.

Thirdly, lots of cities and towns suffer from dissatisfaction with traditional planning procedures. Here, citymarketing may help to accomplish a consistent and uniform communication and information policy, for example by adopting a new company style with a logo and baseline.

Fourthly, cities or towns can be faced with specific problems which force them to think about city marketing. For example, Temse suffered from a severe economic crisis after the bankruptcy of the Boelwerf. This meant a real drama for Temse’s image. City marketing then might have helped to highlight more positive aspects of Temse to its inhabitants, companies and tourists.

Finally, cities tend to experience problems when it comes to their perception. They of course want people to think of them in a positive way, but it is pretty tough to find a method to influence your own perception. City marketing might offer a solution. When it is established in an effective way, with among others a written marketing plan and some thoroughgoing research, an efficient system is set up to be able to control the city’s image better.

As a conclusion, it can be said that city marketing might offer a solution when it comes to getting hold of the city’s image and perception. When cities suffer from specific problems, dissatisfaction from their inhabitants and heavy competition, it comes down to determining which elements distinguish the city from others, to put them forward as strong and attractive aspects of the city and to make sure that the inhabitants are able to identify themselves with these aspects.

2.4. Main elements of City Marketing32

In his book ‘Marketing places: Attracting investment, industry and tourism to cities, states and nations’, Kotler proposes three main elements of city marketing wich a city has to take in account when city marketing is to be introduced: the parties concerned with the city marketing process, the marketing factors and the target markets. In order to obtain effective and efficient city marketing, these three elements need to constantly interact.

2.4.1. Parties concerned

This first element deals with all parties affected by ‘the city-development and therefore to be integrated into the planning period of citymarketing’. These parties are the city government, the citizens and the

32 http://iir-hp.wu-wien.ac.at/seminar/gruppe1a.html 32 | P a g e community of entrepreneurs. If none of these parties are convinced of their own city, nobody will advertise the city in a positive way. As a result, the city’s image will shrink dramatically. Therefore, it is an absolute priority that people believe in the city they live in or work for.

In order to reach this strength in the city and its government, two conditions need to be met. Firstly, the relationships between these parties need to be established. This is a vital condition if, afterwards, a common strategy for the long term creation of a good city image is to be obtained. As a result, every one of these parties will believe in this city image and carry it out to the outside world. A second condition to achieve an effective and plausible city image is that every city should know its own qualities and defects. These are only obtainable by a thorough analysis of the city’s present situation.

As a conclusion: all these parties together have to unite their vision on the city they live in or work for. Like this, people have participated in building the city’s image and thus support it completely. They will even, consciously or unconsciously, carry it out to the external world. As a consequence, the city in question comes across as being strong and self-assured.

2.4.2. Marketing factors

Of course, the image of a city is not only built by the way people think about it. It has to be proven too. Therefore, the city has to come up with physical elements and realizations supporting the proposed image. The four main elements are the city’s infrastructure, its attractions, its already existing images, the quality of life and its citizens. These are the factors that have to be marketed, i.e. launched as unique products typical of that city.

In other words, the city has to market his unique and distinguishing factors to support the image that it plans to put forward. These factors are the city’s infrastructure, attractions, images, life quality and citizens.

2.4.3. Target markets

The above-mentioned marketing factors and parties concerned with city marketing need to interact in order to reach the target markets. The latter are markets the city wants to attract by marketing because they carry profitable advantages with them.

It would be for example interesting to catch the attention of exporters as they may export typical products of your city or town. Investors are also important people to pull towards the city as they might invest in for instance big governmental projects. Next to these exporters and investors, the city might also be interested in attracting more manufacturers and firms: they will increase the economy. Furthermore, tourists form a profitable target group: they buy souvenirs, want to taste the local

33 | P a g e gastronomy and share their experiences with other people – possibly new clients. The last target market is maybe the most important one: potential inhabitants. Without inhabitants, there is no city. So it is quite important to attract new inhabitants and to let them participate in the construction of the city image. That way, they will fully support it and advise other people to move too.

To conclude, it should be noted that whenever a city decides to introduce some kind of citymarketing, it has to define its target markets clearly. They are undoubtedly extremely important to the city, because all these target groups have in common that ‘they are important financial upholders. Since the growth and the status of a city depend on its financial resources, a target-oriented advertising is necessary.’

2.5. City Marketing Objectives33

As already told, city marketing is not a goal on itself. Instead, it is an important and effective tool to realise the following objectives, which Kotler described in his ‘Marketing places’.

2.5.1. Increasing the attractivity of a city as a place to work

Companies are only willing to move to a city which offers lots of locational advantages. In other words, the economic well-being of a city depends on its location and accessibility. ‘Infrastructure extension- projects, financial incentives, and a clear labour market administration foster the attractivity of a city as business location and as place of work.’

But, these activities do not catch the attention of companies if they are not communicated properly. Therefore it is important that the city’s information policy is prepared to accompany and support the city’s activities. After all, if a company is not informed about these activities, it will not choose to settle its headquarters in that city, no matter how much work and money the city invested in this objective.

2.5.2. Increasing the attractivity of a city as a place to live

Cities want to attract residents because they wish for the settling of persons with special knowledge and characteristiscs like doctors, lawyers, pensionists, and so on. These persons would improve the demographic features and the financial potential of the city.

The question is how to catch the attention of new, potential inhabitants? Measures like the extension of public means of transport and infrastructure for private car traffic, the offer of residences and the

33 http://iir-hp.wu-wien.ac.at/seminar/gruppe1a.html 34 | P a g e support of trade are among others effective ways to improve the local quality of life. Here too, a good communication policy is needed: potential residents need to know clearly why they move best to the city in question. The article here puts forward electronic information transfer as this medium simplifies the spreading of information about the activities, projects and their execution.

2.5.3. Increasing the attractivity of a city as recreation and leisure area

When a particular city has a wide range of sports, culture, art, history, parks and culinary varieties to offer, it scores high on the scale of acctractiveness as recreation and leisure area. When people have a day off, the city in question offers a huge variety of things to do and thus invites people to visit the city and its recreational offers. Moreover, an extended recreation and leisure industry means extra financial resources for the city.

Again, nobody knows about these activities if nobody is informed about them. According to the article, electronic data transfer is the best and fastest way to let the people know.

2.5.4. Increasing the attractivity of a city as place of economy

As mentioned in 2.5.1., locational characteristics determine to a large extent the city’s economy. Several measures have to be taken ‘to support the original locational factors or even build up new ones’. On top of that, cities have to try to distinguish unique and thus competitive locational factors. In addition, the production of export products has to be promoted to enable the import of goods which are not available in the region.

2.5.5. Support of tourism

The use of city marketing may support the city’s tourism. Tourists belong to the target markets which Kotler defined as one of the main elements in city marketing. By targetting the marketing of a city towards these tourists, the latter will feel more attracted to visit the city in question. This of course is good for the city government as these tourists mean extra financial help.

2.5.6. Acquisition of capital

35 | P a g e

All above-mentioned efforts aim two linking objectives. First of all, they make the city an attracting place to be. Secondly, they seek to acquire capital. Of course, it is logical that when a city is not attractive at all, people will not decide to live, to spend their free time or to work there. As a consequence, nobody spends their money in this city which results in the lack of financial incomes.

2.5.7. Improvement of the city’s image

Lots of cities have successfully built up their present image in the course of the years, thanks to historical events and locational factors. But, other cities are urgently in need for a polishment of their image: economic recessions, increased immigration or the emergence of slums have damaged the image people had of the city. The emphasis of positive tendencies and developments can lead to such an improvement. Here too, the communication policy plays its part: it serves to spread and stress the city’s good characteristics.

2.5.8. Social welfare

When social welfare improves, a city’s attractiveness as a place of residence is increase on the one hand. On the other hand, good social security lowers criminality which causes the quality of life in the city to increase. If a better social welfare is achieved, the city has laid a healthy and stable foundation to be able to deal more effectively with all above-mentioned objectives.

2.6. The four main City Marketing Activities34

City marketing is actually an umbrella term grouping several activities of a city ‘which are directed towards initiating, stimulating, facilitating, accelerating and executing transactions. Attention has to be paid to the condition that these activities need to fit into the policy of the local authorities who are in charge of their coordination’.

According to Kriekaard, these activities serve to attract people from the inside and/or outside of the city, to urge them to be present and to participate. Kotler names 4 kinds of main activities within the field of city marketing: the development of a strong city image, the efficient and open supply of city products and services, the city’s promotion and communication and the convincing of its inhabitants of the effectivity of city marketing.

34 http://essay.utwente.nl/57573/1/scriptie_Over_de_Vest.pdf. p. 13-14 36 | P a g e

2.6.1. Developing a strong city image

First of all, the city has to develop a strong positioning and an attractive, positive image. In order to be able to decide on and choose this image, the city’s unique and distinguishing characteristics and key values need to be determined.

2.6.2. Efficiently and openly supplying the city products and services

Secondly, it is extremely important that city products and services are easy to purchase. This means that the city has to provide high quality facilities, decent infrastructure and new attractions and events in order to maintain public support and to attract new investors. If the inhabitants of a particular city are not satisfied with the products and services the city government for example has to offer, they will think badly about the city and make negative publicity.

2.6.3. Promotion and communication

Thirdly, cities need to invest in promotion and communication: the world needs to know what your city represents and what it has to offer. Otherwise, it makes no sense to spend lots of money to city marketing. If companies, tourists or potential inhabitants do not know who the city is and what it stands for, they are not likely to settle or to visit the place.

The question is of course what needs to be promoted. As is pointed out in 2.6.1., the city’s unique and distinguishing characteristics and key values needs to be determined in order to decide on the city’s image. In other words, these features and values are there to support the city’s image and thus, these are the ones that should be promoted.

2.6.4. Convincing the inhabitants of the effectivity of city marketing

Finally, Kotler refers to the highly significant role inhabitants play during the entire city marketing process. The residents are part of the city. Without residents, there even is no city. It is thus logical that they are contributory to the city’s identity and image. As mouth-of-word advertising is still considered to be the most effective marketing strategy, it is important that the inhabitants are friendly, hospitable and willing to communicate a positive ‘city feeling’ towards new target groups.

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2.7. City branding

2.7.1. Definition35

City branding is a useful marketing means to build up a clear and transparant city identity based on clearly defined key values. Its aim is to bring about relationships between the city and its target groups. Literally, it means selling the city as a brand. In order to be able to realise this, a city has to define its identities and values, attach them to the brand and promote the entire package.

2.7.2. Difference between city marketing and city branding36

Firstly, it is to be noticed that city branding is a city marketing means. In other words, city marketing is a more general term which refers to all activities a city undertakes to market itself. Whereas city branding is an example of such an activity, it is a city marketing means, a city marketing use.

Secondly, both depart from another point of view. City marketing on the one hand stresses an outside-in approach: it starts by seeing what the target groups want and try to adjust their policies to them. City branding on the other hand focusses on an inside-out approach: branding starts at the level of the city’s existing identities and values.

2.7.3. Identity and perception37

‘Branding means starting at the level of identities and values’. In this regard, a city should do research on its existing identity, or differently said, a city should find out what its strengths and weaknesses are and how to stress the former and turn the latter into positive points.

According to Van Houtum and Lagendijk, one can distinguish three main categories of identity determining elements and characteristics. The first category is the physical one and deals among others with the city’s infrastructure, location and construction. The second category concerns economic themes like welfare and employment opportunities. The last category regards the social aspect, thus representing the citizens. Social welfare, culture and the opposition rich-poor are the elements describing the city’s social identity. In the following table, a list of characteristics defining a city’s identity is given.

35 http://essay.utwente.nl/57573/1/scriptie_Over_de_Vest.pdf. p. 15-16 36 http://essay.utwente.nl/57573/1/scriptie_Over_de_Vest.pdf. p. 15-16. 37 http://essay.utwente.nl/57573/1/scriptie_Over_de_Vest.pdf. p. 22-23. 38 | P a g e

Physical Location in function of the surrounding Strategic European landscape location integration Historical centre Modern architecture Accessibility The city’s aura Postwar City’s structure reconstruction Economic Economic growth Services sector Industry Shops Tourism/recreation Social Poor or rich city Education Young or old city Closed or open Energetic Pride Culture

Based on these characteristics, a city can try to identify its unique and distinguishing elements and play their trump cards. It seems easy: the city has defined its identity, all it has to do now is to promote it and everyone will perceive the city in the way it wished for.

Unfortunately, it is not as straightforward as it appears to be. It is not because the city has put forward a certain identity that others automatically have the same idea about that city in mind. Perception is a strange thing: people do not observe everything in exactly the same way. This fact may have several causes. People’s opinions might be based on wrong, subjective or incomplete information. It might also be that people do not really know what they are talking about or maybe that they do not even know the exact location of the city that is being discussed. Therefore, it is utterly important to make sure that the identity the city proposes, strokes with reality. If that is the case, less perception problems and misunderstandings will occur.

2.7.4. How to implement city branding?38

City branding is a process including 4 steps.

First, the city has to take in account the assessment of third parties. The government has to know what visitors think of them, how companies perceive the city, whether the inhabitants are satisfied with the current policy, and so on. Thorough research on this topic is needed in order to prevent the above- mentioned perception problems. Moreover, it is not the city government’s task to impose an identity on its inhabitants, companies, and so on. They all have to agree with the way the city identifies itself, otherwise these people do not stand behind the place they live in or work for. As a consequence, they will advertise badly about the city. And negative publicity is absolutely not what a city means by city marketing.

Secondly, the city has to define the brand promise and make sure that this promise strokes with reality. The brand should be the essence of the benefits which current and potential visitors can expect to receive from the city experience. In other words, the brand itself should reflect the heart, soul and spirit

38 http://www.chicagonorthwest.com/mayors05/branding_ppt.pdf 39 | P a g e of the city and the city should be able to prove and support the promise and characteristics that are carried out by the brand.

Thirdly, the brand needs to be given a blueprint. Usually this is done by promoting the city’s name and introducing a logo and baseline. Sometimes an extra tag line, i.e. an expressive phrase used to dramatise the brands benefits, is added. Often, the story behind the logo and basline is often promoted too because it brings the brand to life.

Finally, now that the brand identity, promise and blueprint are finished, the city needs to fulfill one last task: the culturalisation of the brand. This mainly means writing an efficient action plan. In this plan the vehicles to communicate the brand to the different parties should be clearly described. In addition, the plan should seek means to create a strong brand attachment.

When these steps are conscientiously followed, the city gets to profit from its branding benefits. A first benefit is the clear positioning of the city in competition with other cities: the city has now defined the unique elements it possesses. With this strong image, it is ready to enter the competitive market. A second benefit comes with the brand promise. The promise makes it the visitor easier to choose its destination as it frames the experience. Of course, it is clear that the promise absolutely needs to stroke with reality, otherwise the visitor will be unsatisfied and carry out bad advertising. And finally, good city branding results in more people visiting the city, moving to the city and working in the city. This means increased revenues for the city government.

2.8. Keep in mind that…

 not everything can be changed by marketing;  the effects of city marketing not only affect the city itself, but also the surrounding areas;  it is sometimes difficult to create a common marketing concept of all parties, as individual interests often dominate societal interests;  the framework cannot be changed by citymarketing: it is not possible to impose an artificial image that contradicts reality;  city marketing campaigns can be risky if politicians have image problems of their own.

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3. City marketing in Temse

3.1. City marketing: an unknown concept in Temse… or not?

City marketing is a new upcoming trend. Nowadays every big city or town sees its advantages and decides to apply this new concept: they construct a huge city marketing plan, build up a brand and promote and communicate it widely. In other words, large sums of money are invested in order to be able to ‘sell the city as a brand’. Antwerp’s city marketing and promotion policy counts as an absolute example. The entire city is penetrated by the orange A. Moreover, every message, every poster coming from the city authorities carries the baseline ‘’t Stad is van iedereen’. As a result, Antwerp’s image is recovering from the absolute low of 2005-2006 (a.o. because of the murder on the babysitter and baby by Van Themsche).

Temse is absolutely not so far yet. During my internship, I noticed that the term ‘city marketing’ is practically unknown among the members of the local authorities. I even had to explain the mayor what I exactly meant by it. This proves that Temse does not possess an integrated approach when it comes to this upcoming trend. But, that does not mean that no efforts are done to market the town.

3.2. The positioning of Temse

The theoretical chapter on city marketing more than once pointed out that the identity the city proposes should match the perception of its parties concerned. And, to find out how these parties actually perceive the city, research needs to be done. The local authorities decided to identify Temse as a typical town alongside the Scheldt and as a town of comic books. No research on the perception of the inhabitants, the companies, the tourists, and so on, has ever been conducted.

But, Temse does not really seem to need it. The two positionings the local authorities choose for their town come across as plausible enough. No research is required to prove that Temse is a town located alongside the Scheldt. Furthermore, everything about the town is related to this river: its history, its economy, its nature, its gastronomy and its tourism. A classic example is the internationally known Boelwerf: this shipbuilding company made the economy of Temse boost and at the same time fall when it closed its doors. I would like to refer here to the interview with the mayor, in which he explains the importance of the river to the town.39 Likewise, no studies are needed to see whether Temse really has the right to call itself ‘city of comic books’. Its long history of celebrations of comic heroes and comic book writers brought forth this town image. The website of Temse’s CD&V launched a news flash in May

39 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (see Appendix 1) 41 | P a g e to attract people’s attention to the unique list of achievements obtained in the field of comic books.40 This year, Kiekeboe is celebrated in Temse. A statue will be built by a sculpturer of Temse who in the meantime became known as sculpterer of comic heroes, Valeer Peirsman.

Next to these two identities of Temse, the local authorities seem to aim to give the town a refreshing and dynamic boost during the upcoming term (2007-2012). At least, this is the impression I get when reading the policy statement and the impression the mayor gives away during the interview. The stated projects in the first chapter only confirm this thought. But, as proven by the small online inquiry I have conducted, people do not seem to be quite sure of this image. Most respondants react rather neutral towards the adjectives ‘young’, ‘modern’, ‘renewing’ and ‘energetic’ while the mayor states: ‘Mostly, Temse is associated with a picturesque town possessing a certain identity, personality and dynamism.’41 He’s absolutely right when it comes to the picturesque characteristic, but doubts arise about the dynamism. Of course, as only 75 people have revealed their opinion, the inquiry is not fully reliable. Still, it is a remarkable result as these adjectives kind of belong together and get more or less the same scores.

As a conclusion, Temse can be said to be best known for its reputation as town alongside the Scheldt and as town of comic books. When one surfs to www.google.be and types the words ‘Scheldegemeente’ and ‘Stripgemeente’, most hits will lead you to Temse. I think this makes that I can state that these images of Temse are believed by the Flemish population, even though no research has ever been conducted. They stroke with reality, and in the end this seems to be all that matters. When it comes to Temse’s dynamism, energy and willingness to move forward, the perception does not really seem to match the idea of the local authorities. Of course, we are only at the beginning of the current governmental term (2007-2012), the town still has all opportunities to achieve the right dynamic perception with its inhabitants, companies, tourists, … .

3.3. City branding in Temse

When it comes to city branding, I am obliged to talk about the past and the future. In the past, Temse has always communicated by means of its coat of arms. Anno 2007, the town still uses this escutcheon, but in an updated, more modern version. In accordance with other cities and towns (like Sint-Niklaas and Bornem), Temse created a logo but decided to hold on to its coat of arms to keep the new logo recognisable to everyone. Although again, the local authorities of Temse do not seem to have a clue of what the concept ‘city branding’ means.

It is remarkable how Temse has done a great job in using its coat of arms as the town’s brand blueprint, even before the concept of city branding ever came into being. The coat of arms was assigned to Temse

40http://www.temse.cdenv.be/Nieuwsbericht.291.0.html?&no_cache=1&tx_ttnews[swords]=stripgemeente&tx_tt news[tt_news]=6857&tx_ttnews[backPid]=304 41 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 42 | P a g e by Royal Decree on 13 October 1819 and displays an upright golden key on an azure background. The azure field refers to the Scheldt and its fertility. The key is related to Ghent’s St Peter’s Abbey, which owned Temse from 864 till 1491. The key also comes back in its own coat of arms. Its golden colour symbolises prosperity.42 Although this coat of arms does not symbolise Temse’s unique and distinguishing elements in a straightforward way, it has been an effective way of marketing and communication. Everyone recognises the escutcheon and is used to see this as a fixed element belonging to Temse.

Therefore, the coat of arms is also to be found in Temse’s new logo and baseline. The logo keeps the escutcheon as it is a point of recognition, especially for the inhabitants but also for tourists. (See next chapter for an example) However, not everyone knows the exact meaning of what is being displayed on the coat of arms. Temse’s main concern is to be seen as a typical town alongside the Scheldt. The escutcheon does make reference to the Scheldt, but I can imagine that not every inhabitant, company or tourist is acquainted with this allusion. Therefore, the local government decided to add two waves to its escutcheon and the baseline ‘Stroomopwaarts’ (lit. ‘upstream’). This byline refers to the dynamic orientation the local government is planning to follow. At the same time, upstream also means not going along with the main stream. It thus stresses the town’s uniqueness and self-will. The entire package of name of the town, logo and baseline is coloured blue, again to refer to the river Scheldt.

PAST versus PRESENT

Temse’s coat of arms Temse’s new logo and baseline

In the meantime, this logo and baseline are launched in June. Temse decided to first share it with its inhabitants: the local authorities published the brand blueprint for the first time in Info Temse. The second time the residents get to see it is in Temse’s yearly information guide. From July onwards, the logo and baseline are also to be spotted on the website www.temse.be.

When reading this, one should however always have in mind that it is not the intention of Temse to go along with the concept of city branding. The introduction of this logo and baseline are merely seen as picking up a trend every city or town tends to do. The so-called ‘blueprint’ has its origins in the idea to design a new ‘company style’ for Temse, it is not born as a real brand blueprint set up to promote the town, to create an entire action plan and to result in a real city marketing product. Temse is not Antwerp and does not have the infrastructure nor the financial means to realise this.

42 Gemeentebestuur Temse, Toeristische gids Ik hou van Temse. November 2002. (My translation / see appendix 2) 43 | P a g e

3.1. Temse’s unique and distinguishing features in the field of tourism

When you reach Temse, following the N16 in the direction of Bornem, you will find alongside this important national route a welcome message on a huge board. Its slogan invities you to leave the N16 and visit Temse: ‘Stap eens uit in Temse’ (lit. ‘Step out in Temse once in a while’). Next to this slogan, a man is printed with the tower of the cathedral on his head and a camera in his hands. He serves to support the slogan. Under the word ‘Temse’ you will find the three main and general things Temse has to offer: tourism, industry and trade.

Welcome message alongside the N16

In this part, I would like to take a closer look to the tourist supply of Temse. During my internship, I did not really come in touch with what Temse has to offer to companies and traders. As a result, I can only say what the mayor had to say: ‘(…) people should come to live in Temse because everything is at their disposal. Companies should settle here because we have a large industrial zone (named TTS) which is centrally located and highly accessible. Moreover, the tax rates are much more advantageous than the Flemish average.’43

Therefore, I would like to concentrate on the question: why should tourists come and visit Temse? During the interview, the mayor referred to a former question asking for Temse’s unique and distinguishing features. He eagerly starts to sum up44:

 Temse’s accessibility: you can reach Temse by car, train, bus and – thanks to the Scheldt – by boat. This last way of travelling to Temse is highly popular: as already mentioned in chapter 1, Temse welcomes more than 20.000 boat tourists every year.

43 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 44 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 44 | P a g e

 The Scheldt and all the advantages it brings forth. Temse is able to offer boat tourism, has the longest bridge in Belgium (365 m!) and has its own waterfront.  The site De Zaat and its administrative centre are definitely worth a visit. They are both situated next to the Scheldt. A new walking and cycling path is laid out.  Temse’s historic buildings: the decanal Church of Our Lady, the former town hall, musea, …  Temse’s pleasant and enjoyable town centre with among others monuments, sculptures, charming houses, …  Temse has a remarkable skyline seen from the other side of the bridge over the Scheldt.  The town’s gastronomy with stewed eel in chervil sauce as its local specialty.  The numerous scenic areas which are ideal for walking and cycling tourism thanks to its many dykes and paths.  Events like ‘Temse in de Wolken’ which attracted last year about 25.000 tourists.  Temse has its own town crier, Gérard Vercauteren. He announces under the authority of the local government festivities, tourist and cultural manifestations, and so on. He is present on every tourism-oriented activity as a symbol of our town. He is really unique as only 14 town criers are left in Belgium.

The offer is huge and people seem to like it because Temse’s tourism is one of the town’s main sources of income. According to the mayor, this is due to the fact that Temse unites the charms of a village with the supply of a city. This curious mixture offers an absolute surplus and an extra attractivity.45

In the next chapter, I will try to show the reader how these unique and distinguishing features are communicated to Temse’s tourists. My main job at Temse’s local authorities was to help during T-day. As already discussed in chapter 1, T-day is the name given by the mayor to the days on which groups of American tourists arrive by the cruise ship Princesse Royal at the waterfront’s jetty.

45 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 45 | P a g e

4. My internship at the tourism and information services of Temse’s local government

4.1. Main activity: T-day

4.1.1. Description of the event

From 2005-2007, American tourists came to conquer Temse. They were making a cruise through the Low Countries and step out in cities like Antwerp, Bruges, Amsterdam, Ghent, and so on. At night, they sleep on the ship and during the day they visit the most famous cities of the Netherlands and Belgium. On their way, the Americans also halt in Temse.

A strange choise, one might think: Temse is a totally unknown and insignificant town compared to Antwerp, Amsterdam or Bruges. And yet, American tourists define their visit to Temse as the absolute highlight of their cruise through the Low Countries. According to the mayor, this is due to the completely different approach Temse applies to welcome the visitors. ‘Big cities offer Art and Culture with capital A and C, something which we indeed do not have. But, what we offer, is something they don’t have: an evening visit at a hostfamily, incl. the exploration of their house – from cellar to ceiling – and the consumation of a typical Flemish meal. That means a straightforward confrontation with the Flemish art of living. This unique formula explains the satisfaction of the Americans: this is an experience you won’t get anywhere else!’46

The exact course of the evening is as follows. The Americans arrive around 6 p.m. at the jetty on the Wilfordkaai. An official of the local authorities, Dominique Oste or Rebecca Hulleghems, awaits them together with Temse’s town crier. The official enters the cruise ship to welcome the American tourists with an opening speech and distributes folders with some documentation on Temse. Afterwards, the Americans are asked to leave the ship and to join the town crier who has prepared a small English welcome message. When he finished his little speach, the visitors are allowed to take pictures next to him. In the meantime, the host families arrive by car. And finally, the Americans join their host families who take the former home.

4.1.2. My job

During my internship (from 23 April – 1 June) I took over the job of the official who welcomes the American tourists. This job includes different assignments:

 Make an appeal to the town’s inhabitants to become a host family for some American tourists

46 Interview with the Mayor. Thursday 5 July 2007. (My translation / see Appendix 1) 46 | P a g e

 Subscribe the families who are willing to welcome the American tourists  Draw up a table with which Americans are to go to which host families  Send these host families a reminder a week before their T-day  Gather the folders with the documents, brochures and incentives for the Americans  Correct the English text about Temse, written by the mayor (included in the folder)47  Preparation of a welcome speech

As the first three assignments were already finished by the time I started my internship, I was allowed to help Temse’s public information official from the third job onwards.

With regard to the preparation of a welcome speech, I got some clear instructions. First of all, everything that is being said, is said in the name of the mayor. He is honoured to have American people as visitors, and that needs to be highlighted. Secondly, the content of the folder needed to be explained. Thirdly, some basic information on Temse’s size and population had to be revealed. Finally, the further course of the evening had to be explained. With these instructions at the back of my mind, I wrote down all points and subjects that I was planning to say.48 Dominique Oste read it and approved of it.

4.1.3. How Temse is communicated to the Americans

In order to be able to compete with big cities like Antwerp, Ghent, Amsterdam and so on, Temse had to think of a different approach to welcome these Americans. Temse is but a small town and cannot live up to the cultural and historical supply of big cities. Therefore, the local government decided to distantiate from these cities even more by offering something completely different. Temse chose to make the Americans meet typical local life in Flanders, Temse chose to focus not on size, but on the picturesque and local life of the Flemings. As everything is so big and huge in the States, the Americans welcomed this idea with open arms. They found the welcome speech – and I quote – ‘cute, nice and charming’. And is this not exactly what the local government had in mind?

How did Temse succeed to achieve this satisfaction?

Firstly, during the speech, attention is drawn to the fact that they form the absolute highlight of the mayor’s tourist policy. The Americans think it is cute to hear that Temse is proud to welcome them as it is rare that a medium-sized town like Temse has visitors from the United States of America. Next to that, reference is also made to some typical constructions and tourist characteristics of Temse. I for example referred to Temse’s specialty, stewed eel in chervil sauce. I also mentioned that the bridge over the Scheldt is the longest bridge in Belgium. Of course, this is extremely cute, as the bridge is only 365 m long. I can imagine that in America there are much longer and impressive bridges than ours. I.

47 See Appendix 3 48 See Appendix 4 47 | P a g e

Secondly, they get a folder with information on Temse. The folder includes some postcards of Temse, incl. the postcard of the town crier. On the back of this postcard, the email address of Dominique Oste is printed in case they want to receive extra information on Temse. In addition, a brochure with Temse’s most important places of intrest is comprised. Unfortunately, there is no Dutch translation of this brochure. Therefore, the mayor especially composed an English text with some general information on the town. The Americans liked very much the idea that it is especially written for them, the ‘cutes’, ‘nices’ and ‘charmings’ were again not far away. There is also a placemat included with the highlights of the tourist season on it. This placemat is normally given to Temse’s restaurants. Furthermore, the American tourists get a key ring with Temse’s coat of arms on one side and the slogan ‘I love Temse’ on the other side. These are also printed on the front of the folder. Finally, a card with a personal welcome of the mayor together with his signature completes the entire folder. On the front, a caricature of the mayor is printed. Again, some Americans welcomed it by ‘cute’ and ‘nice’ remarks.

Thirdly, the Americans meet the most important representative of Temse’s folklore: the town crier. He has been to America in 2003 for the world championship of town criers. Of course he lost, but that is not what is being said when the town crier is introduced to the Americans. Instead, the joke is told that he beat all his fellow town criers … in drinking beer. Again, the American tourists find this nice and charming to hear.

4.1.4. Evaluation

As a result of the entire formula and especially of these three components, the American tourists feel heartly welcomed and appreciated in Temse. What is more, the different approach makes a welcome change in the daily visits of the Americans to big cities. Margarat Thoren of Grand Circle Travel praised Temse’s hospitality, quality and organisation. She announced that in the inquiries on the satisfaction of the cruise, more than 90% of the American visitors of 2006 indicated Temse as thé highlight of their cruise.49

Temse has successfully competed with these cities as it reflected deeply on the way they were going to approach these T-days. Thanks to this success, Temse got lots of media attention: all media, local as well as national, written as well as audiovisual, were attracted by Temse’s realization. In 2005, Telefacts, a television programma of VTM, has even broadcasted the arrival of the first group of American tourists.

4.2. Other activities

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My other activities can be divided into assignments carried out for the information service and assignments carried out for the tourism department. Under the heading ‘other’, I summarised the activities that belong to other services of the local government.

4.2.1. Activities related to the information service

 Keyword index for the information guide of 2007 (Dutch) The information guide has an existing keyword index of the local services arranged in alphabetical order. But, to provide the information on the local services in a more efficient way, the public information official wanted to change the system. She proposed to make an alphabetical list of all the services and products the different local services provide. For example, I need new rubbish bags of the local authorities, where can I buy these? The person in question seeks under ‘R’ and will be referred to the information desk on the ground floor. After all, this new approach did not seem practical. As a result, the same system as last year is employed.

 Communication plan for Temse’s logo and baseline50 (Dutch) The public information official followed an extra training on city marketing. Therefore, she wanted to try to create a communication plan. As the new logo and baseline were not implemented yet, we decided to write this plan on the communication of Temse’s brand ‘blueprint’. The mayor did however not agree with this decision and asked me to compose a new tourist brochure. As these two jobs both occurred in the last week, I could only finish the tourist brochure.

 Correction of the detailed brochure of cultural centre’s activities (Dutch)

4.2.2. Activities related to the tourism service

 Translation of Temse’s tourist guide into English (English) Temse has a small tourist brochure and a detailed tourist guide. None of these documents is published into another language than Dutch. Therefore, one of my main activities was to translate the most important part of the information guide. As the mayor himself studied English and was very much interested on how I translated certain points, he wanted to correct my translated version himself. But, he did not have the time to finish it. Therefore, some discussion points were left over. For example: how to translate the nick names of the residents of Temse (i.e. ‘azijnzekers’ and ‘tuysschers’)?

 Translation of Temse’s museum brochure into English51 (English)

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None of the tourist documents of Temse has ever been translated. Therefore, I had to translate the brochure including the museums to be found in Temse in English too.

 Correction of the French, German and English translation of the brochure of the Museum of Heraldry Benelux (French, German, English) This brochure, actually more a double-folded paper, is the only exception to the above- mentioned statement. Public information official Dominique Oste translated them herself. I read it through and corrected some mistakes.

 The composition of an entirely new tourist brochure52 (Dutch) This assignment was imposed on me by the mayor. I cannot say much about it as the mayor has given me complete carte blanche. When it was finished, he had given me some general feedback, especially on the lay-out. I liked this assignment very much as I really had the feeling that the mayor listened to my ideas. He told me to explain the content and layout of the brochure I had in mind to the public information official. Hopefully, they decided to do something with it.

4.2.3. Other activities

 Reading through and correcting the texts that are to be included in a new book on the history of the former town hall (Dutch) As the local government moved last year to the new administrative centre De Zaat, the former town hall is left alone. But, Temse wants to stress the fact that this town hall is a very precious and historical building which should not be forgotten. Therefore, it is now being restored so that it can still serve for official events and celebrations. In addition, the tourist information centre will move to the town hall when the renovation works are finished. Next to these activities, the local government has also decided to publish a book on the history of this town hall. The book will be a compilation of texts old inhabitants of Temse have written. The final editing of the book was in the hands of Digna Coppieters, head of the registry office and archives. Every text that had to be included in this book first passed my office. I had to correct language mistakes, especially spelling and grammatical mistakes. At the same time, I had to preserve the typical personal style of the person who wrote the text.



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APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1: INTERVIEW WITH THE MAYOR, LUC DE RYCK Thursday, 5 July 2007

Uniekheid Temse

 Beschrijf Temse in drie woorden / 3 adjectieven.

Dynamisch: altijd in beweging, gezond ambitieus, steeds meer en beter willend. Veelzijdig qua aanbod en voorzieningen. Aantrekkelijk.

 Welke unieke troeven bezit Temse? En hoe worden deze uitgespeeld?

Hier is veel over te vertellen, maar in het bestek van dit interview synthetiseer ik.

Eerst en vooral is er de centrale ligging in Vlaanderen en onze bereikbaarheid (via autowegen, trein, bus, water). Voorts zijn er de Schelde, het boottoerisme, de brug, de kaai, de site en het gelijknamige Administratief Centrum De Zaat, de dekenale kerk, musea, een gezellige dorpskern (met onder andere monumenten, standbeelden, riante woningen, curiosa…) en onze skyline gezien vanuit de Antwerpse provincie. Bovendien biedt Temse een uitgebreid gastronomisch aanbod met als streekspecialiteit paling in’t groen. Er is echt àlles: van de onontbeerlijke frituur tot het klasserestaurant. Daarnaast is Temse ook rijk aan natuur- en groenrijke gebieden (zoals onder andere Schauselbroek, Gelaagpark, Kijkverdriet, potpolder, Roomackerdomein, Scheldepark…) die ideaal zijn voor wandel- en fietstoerisme dankzij de vele dijken, jaagpaden en andere landelijke wegen. Ten slotte vinden er ook unieke evenementen plaats en is Temse ook gehecht aan zijn typische folklore.

Essentieel: Temse verenigt de charme van een dorp met het aanbod van een stad. Die curieuze mengeling biedt een extra meerwaarde en aantrekkingskracht!

 Wat is volgens u het belangrijkste marketingproduct van Temse en waarom?

De Schelde, een eeuwenoud visitekaartje. De rivier vormt een tijdloze verbindingsweg en heeft een veelzijdige sociaal-economisch-ecologische betekenis. Water spreekt altijd tot de verbeelding. De Schelde heeft ook wezenlijk de omgeving bepaald en doet dat tot op de dag van vandaag: kaai, terrassen, polders, vruchtbare gronden, flora, fauna, dijken, jaagpaden, toerisme…

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 Temse laat zich graag kennen als een typische Scheldegemeente. Welke gemeentes / steden / dorpen zijn volgens u Temse’s grootste concurrenten en waarom?

‘Concurrenten’ is hier een misplaatst woord. Alle gemeenten hebben een eigen charme en vullen elkaar aan, versterken elkaar. Men kiest niet exclusief voor één gemeente, men wisselt af. Maar indien ik toch enkele dorpen dien op te noemen, zijn in onze nabijheid Rupelmonde en Bazel het meest vergelijkbaar met Temse.

 Hoe profileert Temse zich volgens u in Vlaanderen? Of, hoe zien de Vlamingen Temse? Welk beeld hebben de Vlamingen volgens u van onze gemeente?

Traditioneel worden wij geïdentificeerd met scheepsbouw, Schelde, brug, kaai, enzovoort. Meestal wordt Temse geassocieerd met een schilderachtige gemeente die een eigen persoonlijkheid, identiteit en dynamiek bezit; geen kuddegemeente die iedereen achterna holt, maar een gemeente die een eigen zinnige en eigenzinnige invulling geeft aan zijn ‘bestaan’, gebruik makend van zijn eigenheid, opportuniteiten die zich aanmelden, enz.

Dynamisch. Bezield. Initiatiefrijk. Dat zijn de drie kernadjectieven die bij Temse thuis horen. De site en AC De Zaat zijn daarvan de treffendste voorbeelden. Een ander voorbeeld wordt het verder inspelen op het project Tweede Scheldebrug dat een ingrijpend (positief!) ‘staartje’ zal krijgen.

 Temse, stripgemeente. In welke zin maakt dit onze gemeente uniek?

Temse is sinds 1986 in een ‘gat in de markt’ gedoken, een bewuste keuze om in the picture te komen. De strip is een bijzonder populair medium: het bereikt iederéén, ongeacht leeftijd, status of functie. Deze keuze kaderde in de verrijzenis van Temse als ‘typische Scheldegemeente gericht op ééndagstoerisme’.

Geen enkele gemeente heeft een strippalmares als zoals dat van Temse. Nagenoeg alle grootmeesters van de Vlaamse strip zijn hier gevierd, wat in de regel gepaard ging met een waaier aan activiteiten. Daarnaast zijn er ook nog vele andere initiatieven. Bovendien komt Temse aan bod in maar liefst 5 stripverhalen, wat zeer uitzonderlijk is. Ons palmares maakt ons uniek. Het staat te lezen in het onlangs verschenen boek ‘Berten Rodenbach’ van Jef Nys.

Onze reputatie is intussen genoegzaam bekend. De viering van ’50 jaar Jommeke’ vond plaats in Temse. Voor de viering van ’30 jaar Kiekeboe’ deed de Standaard Uitgeverij dit jaar een beroep op Temse. Bovendien kent ze vele (positieve!) neveneffecten. Zo heeft beeldhouwer Valeer Peirsman (Temse), die de Jommekesstandbeelden maakte in Middelkerke en Temse, ook de opdrachten gekregen voor de buste van Willy Vandersteen in Kalmthout en het standbeeld van Kiekeboe in Zoersel!

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 Waarom moeten toeristen Temse bezoeken, bedrijven zich in Temse vestigen en mensen in Temse komen wonen?

Zie vraag 2. De belangrijkste troeven zijn Temse’s centrale ligging, bereikbaarheid, eigen identiteit, eigen persoonlijkheid, eigen charme, de Schelde, enzovoort.

Als we meer specifiek kijken, zouden mensen in Temse moeten komen wonen omdat hier nagenoeg alles voorhanden is. Bedrijven zouden zich hier moeten vestigen omdat wij een groot industrieterrein bezitten (TTS) dat een centrale ligging kent en een hoge bereikbaarheid. Bovendien zijn de belastingen voor iedereen gunstiger dan het Vlaamse gemiddelde.

Amerikaanse toeristen

 In een artikel uit Het Volk (Amerikanen enthousiast over Scheldegemeente – 12/01/2007) lees ik dat ‘meer dan negentig procent van de Amerikaanse bezoekers Temse als de highlight, het hoogtepunt, van hun cruise’ beoordelen. Hoe verklaart u dit succes? Waarom duiden ze bijvoorbeeld Antwerpen niet aan?

Het aanbod van Temse is uniek. De grootsteden bieden kunst en cultuur met de grootste K en C, wat wij inderdaad niét hebben. Maar wat wíj bieden, hebben zíj niet: een avondvullend bezoek bij een gastgezin, inclusief het verkennen van de woning – van kelder tot zolder – met daarbovenop een typisch Vlaamse maaltijd. Dat is met de neus gedrukt worden op de woon- en leefcultuur van de Vlaming. Deze unieke formule verklaart het succes: dat beleef je nergens anders!

Schelde

 Wat is het belang van de Schelde voor Temse?

De Schelde is van een enorm groot belang van Temse en dit op verschillende niveaus.

Ten eerste is de Schelde van historisch belang. Temse is namelijk ontstaan dankzij zijn ligging aan het kruispunt van de Durme en de Schelde. Ongeveer 2000 jaar voor Christus kwamen de zogenaamde bekerlieden van het Iberische schiereiland zich hier vestigen. Ze waren via de kust de Schelde opgevaren. In die tijden was water het allerbelangrijkste transportmiddel. Ook in de middeleeuwen groeide Temse hierdoor uit tot een belangrijk dorp in het Land van Waas.

Ten tweede kent Temse vele zeldzame natuurgebieden dankzij de vele overstromingen die de Schelde gekend heeft. Ook de gronden werden hierdoor heel vruchtbaar wat dan weer belangrijk was voor de landbouw.

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Ten derde is Temse vooral bekend omwille van zijn heuse havenactiviteiten die zonder de Schelde natuurlijk niet mogelijk waren. Reeds voor de 17e eeuw bestond een bloeiende schippersgilde met eigen statuten. Ook de scheepsbouw kende een enorme bloei, denken we aan de alom gekende Boelwerf die meer dan 100 jaar lang van onschatbare economische waarde is geweest voor Temse.

Ten vierde dankt Temse zijn toeristische karakter aan de Schelde en de nabijgelegen kaai. Dit al sinds de 19e eeuw met het ontstaan van de Wilfordboten. In 1987 is er een nieuwe aanlegsteiger aangelegd en sindsdien ontvangen we meer dan 20.000 boottoeristen per jaar. In 2006 waren het er zelfs 33.656!

Ten slotte is de visvangst in de Schelde van groot belang voor de plaatselijke restaurants. Paling in’t groen vind je nergens beter dan in Temse!

De Schelde is enorm belangrijk voor Temse. Temse zonder deze rivier zou zijn als een café zonder bier.

Toekomst Temse

 Hoe ziet u Temse binnen pakweg 10 jaar? Wat is het toekomstperspectief voor de gemeente? Welke doelen wilt u in deze legislatuur bereiken in Temse?

Daarvoor verwijs ik naar de Beleidsnota voor 2007-2012.

 Ik heb de indruk dat elke keer een nieuw project wordt gestart, de geschiedenis niet uit het oog verloren wordt. Zo komt het woon- en industriecomplex De Zaat op de plaats van de vroegere Boelwerf. Tegelijk worden de straatnamen naar belangrijke namen en beroepen van de Boelwerf genoemd. Ook loopt er een tentoonstelling over de allereerste spoorwegverbinding Mechelen- Terneuzen, terwijl er volop gebouwd wordt aan een nieuwe Scheldebrug, enzovoort. Is dat bewust gedaan en zoja, met welke reden?

Dat is inderdaad een bewuste keuze. Wij hebben een rijk verleden en pakken daar ook graag mee uit. Het biedt promotioneel bovendien een meerwaarde. Actuele initiatieven worden daarom bij voorkeur gecombineerd met het rijke verleden.

Wil je weten waar je naartoe gaat, moet je weten waar je vandaan komt. Daarenboven kan de geschiedenis een leermeester zijn en inspiratie opleveren… en de belangstelling kriebelen. Een typisch schoolvoorbeeldje: Temses eerste brug (1870) is ontworpen door Eiffel. Dat is toch belangrijk om te weten, niet?

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Communicatie Temse

 Temse heeft heel wat communicatiemiddelen naar zijn inwoners en bezoekers toe. Bijvoorbeeld, het welkomstbord langs de N16, de belleman, het wapenschild, de Infogids, het informatieblad, de website, de nieuwe omroeper, … . Behoren deze tot een geïntegreerde communicatieaanpak? Welk communicatie- en informatiemiddel is volgens u het belangrijkste?

Temses communicatiebeleid geldt als een voorbeeld. Er is inderdaad een geïntegreerde aanpak. De verschillende media vullen elkaar aan en versterken elkaar.

Wij publiceren onze actuele berichten wekelijks op een vaste pagina in een plaatselijk blad (De Nieuwe Omroeper) dat gratis huis-aan-huis wordt bedeeld, geïdentificeerd wordt met onze gemeente en geknipt is op haar maat. Dat is het belangrijkste medium: bereikbaar voor iedereen, bewaarbaar zo lang men wil en raadpleegbaar op elk ogenblik (een website bv. bereikt niét iedereen). Het infoblad is door zijn driemaandelijkse verschijning anders georiënteerd: het is minder direct actualiteitsgebonden maar kan dan wel weer verder vooruitblikken, het biedt verslaggeving allerhande, achtergronden, programmatie, en zoveel meer. Ons infoblad is uniek, omdat het niet alleen de zakelijke informatie weergeeft (gemeenteraadsbeslissingen, politie, brandweer, afval…), maar ook een spiegel biedt van het hele gemeentelijk leven. Dit vind je nergens anders (in die mate)! Van bij de start in 1977 was dit dan ook een bewuste keuze: de fusie, toen de buren van voorheen ineens broeders en zusters werden. Die lijn wordt tot op vandaag doorgetrokken.

 Het wapenschild van Temse blijkt alom op te duiken. Het komt zelfs voor in het nieuwe logo van Temse en op uw nieuwe sjerp. Waarom kiest u voor het wapenschild als herkenningspunt van Temse?

Het wapenschild vormt al eeuwenlang het herkenningsteken bij uitstek. Het wapenschild is zo Temses als de Schelde. Zo’n traditioneel visitekaartje negeren ware een zware vergissing.

 Op welke manier doet Temse volgens u aan de moderne trend ‘citymarketing’?

Het antwoord zit verpakt in en heeft raakpunten met meerdere andere antwoorden die ik al gegeven heb. Maar om kort te zijn, zal ik de belangrijkste methodes even opsommen.

Er is een gerichte publiciteit in een aantal media zoals dit jaar onder andere in de toeristische brochures van de regio Scheldeland, De Zondag, Knack, algemene toeristische brochure Toerisme Vlaanderen e.a.

We hebben onze eigen informatie- en communicatiekanalen zoals de website, het infoblad en de infogids. Daarnaast zijn er nog enkele uiteenlopende soorten eigen publicaties o.a. van

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kunstenaars van eigen bodem, onze bellemankaart en de activiteitenkalender. Bovendien werken we momenteel aan een hele nieuwe huisstijl met een logo en baseline om zo meer uniformiteit aan te wenden in onze publicaties.

Ook zijn er allerhande initiatieven en projecten die eigen zijn aan Temse: site en AC De Zaat, project Tweede Scheldebrug, Temse stripgemeente, Amerikaanse toeristen in Temse, enzovoort. Dit alles heeft tot nationaal zowel de geschreven als de audio(visuele) media gehaald.

En ten slotte is ook wel doordachte public relations van groot belang. Dat kan soms wonderen doen. Een klein schoolvoorbeeldje: Temse komt aan bod in 5 stripverhalen, in één ervan kom ikzelf met naam en toenaam aan bod, namelijk in ‘Tazuur en Tazijn’, zeg maar: Suske & Wiske in Temse.

 Wat is de precieze bedoeling van het nieuwe logo en de slogan ‘Temse stroomopwaarts’?

Het nieuwe logo omvat drie elementen. Ten eerste is er het wapenschild, het traditionele kleurrijke herkenningsteken dat tot dusver als logo werd gebruikt. Het is zo ingeburgerd dat het een blunder zou zijn het niet te handhaven. De andere twee elementen zijn toegevoegd om het logo hedendaags te maken: een watergolf die verwijst naar de Schelde en de slogan stroomopwaarts die de dynamiek, de ambitie en het streven naar vooruitgang van de gemeente illustreert.

Het logo wordt een wezenlijk onderdeel van de nieuwe huisstijl van het gemeentebestuur, die momenteel wordt uitgewerkt.

Bestuur Temse

 Heeft de gemeente Temse iets van een visie, een ‘mission statement’ dat in het achterhoofd gehouden wordt bij elke beslissing die het gemeentebestuur neemt?

Onze ‘mission statement’ is dat wij ‘altijd meer en beter’ willen voor onze mensen. Daarmee vat ik alle beleidsplannen samen. Dat ‘meer en beter’ betekent op de eerste plaats het verder bouwen, op- en uitbouwen, van wat is. Tegelijkertijd betekent het ook inspelen op opportuniteiten en eruit halen wat erin zit.

Wat bijvoorbeeld in Temses Beleidsnota 2001-2006 vermeld stond over de site De Zaat, strookt helemaal niet met de huidige toestand: de evoluties waren begin 2001 ook niet te voorspellen. Wij spelen dan in op de nieuwe ontwikkelingen en proberen er het maximum uit te halen.

Een nog straffer voorbeeld is het Gelaagpark in Steendorp. In de Beleidsnota 2001-2006 ging het over het gevecht tegen de inplanting van een slibstort, anno 2007 is er helemaal geen sprake meer van een stort. Het Vlaams Gewest is intussen eigenaar geworden van de hele site en er groeit een groen- en natuurpark.

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Met andere woorden, je kan veel filosoferen en wauwelen, maar uiteindelijk stuurt de praktijk je vaak een heel andere richting uit.

 Naar aanleiding van de gemeenteraadsverkiezingen in 2006 hield het Nieuwsblad een heus buurtonderzoek, ook in Temse. Een aantal punten komen er heel positief uit (zoals het rapport van de burgemeester, het rapport van het gemeentebestuur, betaalbaarheid woningen, bewakingscamera’s, …). Toch blijken een heel aantal punten voor verbetering vatbaar en ligt de algemene tevredenheid van de Temsenaar onder het gemiddelde (232ste op 307 gemeenten). Is daar een verklaring voor? Werd daar bij de beleidsverklaring 2007-2012 rekening mee gehouden?

U gaat ervan uit dat die enquête een absoluut karakter heeft of althans juist is. Enquêtes hebben, om het zacht uit te drukken, geen absolute waarde. Enquêtes en statistieken zijn trendy blikvangers waarmee de aandacht wordt gekriebeld. Iedereen pakt ermee uit als het hem of haar past, dus ook de kranten, want het is dankbaar leesvoer. Mijn ervaring terzake doet mij altijd denken aan de schitterende uitspraak van Sir Winston Churchill: “De enige statistieken waarin ik geloof, zijn diegenen die ikzelf heb vervalst”. Schitterend! Men moet zich steeds vragen stellen bij een enquête. Hoe is ze gevoerd? Wat waren de vragen? Hoe waren ze geformuleerd? Hoe representatief waren de ondervraagden? Hoeveel waren er? En zoveel meer. Een ander relativerend element: als men 232ste op 307de is/zou zijn, maar men haalt 870 op 1000 stelt dat dat eerste cijfer al in een heel ander daglicht.

Kortom: je moet elke enquête kritisch analyseren en de praktijk wijst uit dat vele enquêtes van weinig waarde zijn. Met de voormelde enquête hebben wij geen rekening gehouden. Wat daar eventueel juist in is, weten wij ook zonder die enquête.

De enige enquête die écht is en écht telt, is de uitslag van de verkiezingen. Daar geeft iedereen zijn mening terwijl hij of zij alleen is, daar zijn de vragen duidelijk en kunnen er geen misverstanden zijn. Wij wonnen 3 zetels en ik haalde een nooit eerder in Temse bereikte hoogte (3.567 stemmen). Dat is de enige objectieve enquête.

Toen de journalist van Het Nieuwsblad mij achteraf kwam interviewen, vroeg hij o.m. wat ik van die enquête vond. Ik heb hem geantwoord wat ik zo-even heb gezegd. Maar dat antwoord is niet gepubliceerd… En zo kan ik nog andere voorbeelden geven.

 Indien u zelf een balans zou opmaken van Temse, wat zijn dan de sterktes, zwaktes, kansen en bedreigingen van onze gemeente?

Ik zal het eerst hebben over de sterktes en kansen.

Wat de beleidsverantwoordelijken betreft: kennis van onze eigen gemeente. We kennen veel prehistories en histories, we kennen veel mensen, verenigingen, achtergronden, ondergronden,

57 | P a g e situaties, het grondgebied, enzovoort. Je eigen gemeente kennen is essentieel bij de uittekening van een beleid. Bovendien heerst er een enorme inzet: meerdere leden van het college zijn uitsluitend en meer dan voltijds plaatselijk politicus. Daarnaast wordt Temse gedreven door visie, bezieling en geest-drift. We zijn dynamisch, intiatiefrijk en ondernemend. Met andere woorden, we hebben lef: Temse speelt efficiënt in op opportuniteiten, maar ook op niet te voorziene ontwikkelingen. Voorts bezitten we belangrijke relaties en contacten op alle administratieve en beleidsniveaus.

Een andere sterkte van Temse is de groep der troeven die ik in vraag 2 reeds heb opgesomd: de ligging en bereikbaarheid, de Schelde, enzovoort.

Ten slotte zijn we momenteel bezig met een aantal projecten die de sterktes van de toekomst kunnen genoemd worden: de uitbouw van het Gelaagpark, de hertekening en opwaardering van een belangrijk deel van het centrum van Temse (bv. De Zaat, de kaai en omgeving, station en omgeving,…).

Natuurlijk zijn er ook enkele zwaktes en bedreigingen.

Er is zoveel in je gemeente waarover je zelf niet (meer) beslist, maar wel andere politieke en administratieve overheden. Nochtans identificeren de mensen in de regel alles wat op het grondgebied gebeurt met het gemeentebestuur.

Heel wat maatregelen van hogere hand hebben bovendien een grote financiële weerslag op de gemeenten. Heel wat rekeningen worden op de gemeentebesturen afgewenteld.

De steeds stringenter en gedetailleerder wordende wetgeving en regelgeving (Vlaams, Belgisch, Europees) kan ook verstikkend werken. Het vlees en bloed beslist al lang niet meer over vele dossiers, maar de lettertjes en de cijfertjes op papier beslissen voor jou. De complexiteit, zowel in de breedte als de diepte, hebben ook een enorme weerslag op de prijskaartjes en de procedures. Deze worden dikwijls langdurig, ingewikkeld, enzovoort.

Wat men de steeds verdere ‘democratisering’ noemt, komt in de praktijk vaak neer op het scheppen van conflictgevoelige toestanden die niet altijd bevorderlijk zijn voor het bestuur.

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