A Springboard for Heritage Tourism
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Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism a venture sponsored by the Town of Breckenridge December 31, 2006 Funding for this effort was provided by the Breckenridge Town Council. Town Council approved funds in the 2006 budget for the purpose of developing a Heritage Tourism Strategic Plan. As envisioned by the Council, “[t]he primary intent of the plan is to provide focus for the heritage tourism efforts of the Town of Breckenridge, to identify an organizational structure for the heritage tourism program that can deliver a first-rate heritage tourism experience, and to identify sustainable business operations models for the sites. The plan will provide guidance related to product development, marketing, and site operation. The intent is to provide a seamless heritage product that is attractive to visitors and supports and diversifies the local economy.” ii 1859 – 2009: the first 150 years Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism Economic Stewardship, Inc. Heritage Directions, LLC iii Town of Breckenridge Mission Statement: The Town of Breckenridge protects, maintains, and enhances our sense of community, historical heritage, and alpine environment. We provide leadership and encourage citizen involvement. iv Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism Table of Contents 1. How to Use This Plan .............................................................................................. 2 2. Executive Summary ................................................................................................. 6 3. Distinctive Heritage: A Critical Economic Driver for Breckenridge ............................... 11 4. Breckenridge and the Heritage Tourism Market Today......................................... 17 Key Breckenridge Heritage Sites, Organizations, and Events........................................18 Market Considerations ............................................................................................24 5. The Breck 150 Proposition..................................................................................... 28 6. Getting Ready for Breck 150................................................................................. 34 Enhancing Existing Heritage Sites for Breck 150.........................................................34 Adding Breck 150 Flavor to Existing Events ...............................................................40 Breck 150 Board Composition, Budget, and Activity Schedule.....................................46 7. Marketing Breck’s Heritage ................................................................................ 52 8. Breck 150 and Beyond: Improving the Heritage Experience......................................... 56 Issues Shaping Sites’ Ability to Deliver Heritage Tourism Experiences............................56 Long Range Site-Specific Improvements ....................................................................60 Improving the Heritage Tourism Experience Delivery System........................................63 9. Onward to 2009 .................................................................................................. 65 Acknowledgements.................................................................................................... 66 Appendix A: Notes on Other Anniversary Celebrations.................................................. 66 1 Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism 1. How to Use This Plan Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism offers a flexible, dynamic, and strategic approach that fosters community-wide collaboration to advance sustained heritage tourism development. The approach to this plan recommends taking advantage of the upcoming 150th anniversary of the founding of Breckenridge as a means to launch a structure geared towards the ongoing management of assets for heritage tourism. Celebrating Breckenridge's sesquicentennial is an end to itself, but more importantly, it's a means to a broader goal: achieving economic development, enhancing community character, and strengthening organizations devoted to sharing local history and culture through heritage tourism. Consequently, this plan—like all plans—sets forth actions that advance multiple purposes within a hierarchy of deliberate and considered objectives: Grand Strategy: deliver a first-rate heritage tourism experience characterized by coordination and collaboration, continuous improvement of Breckenridge's menu of things to see and do, and sustainable sites and organizations. Strategy: produce a year-long celebration of Breckenridge's 150th anniversary as a means of jump-starting a sustainable coordinating organization and giving it special purpose, providing an incentive to improve existing sites, and develop new heritage products, while establishing a sustainable business operations model for the system. Tactics: a range of actions addressing marketing, audience development, metrics for measuring success, site improvements, and other matters that, collectively, advance both Breck 150 and heritage tourism in general. This plan seeks balance: specific enough to guide future actions, but flexible enough to meet the inevitable challenges of new circumstances. How will success be judged? If Breck 150 2 becomes remembered as both a year of fun and as the sustainable springboard for enriched heritage tourism, it will be deemed a success. Plan Structure Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism has been organized into nine chapters including an Executive Summary. The rest of the report is structured as follows: Chapter 3 describes how heritage tourism compliments other key Town of Breckenridge objectives; Chapter 4 provides an overview of the current state of Breckenridge’s heritage tourism assets and market; Chapter 5 introduces the Breck 150 proposition; Chapter 6 explains what it will take to get ready for Breck 150, including how existing sites and events can be upgraded and the duties to be undertaken by the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance, an umbrella organization; Chapter 7 sets forth some ideas about marketing the heritage tourism experience that Breckenridge offers, for both Breck 150 and beyond; Chapter 8 examines more systemic issues that need to be overcome to improve the heritage experience offered in the long run; Chapter 9 and the subsequent Acknowledgements section recognize the people who contributed to this strategy and who are committed to working hard to expand Breckenridge’s heritage tourism sector. For clarity, many of this plan's recommendations are presented in tables. Scattered throughout these pages, readers will also find sidebars that relate the Breckenridge strategy to other contexts, including pertinent policy and planning documents already in use by the Town of Breckenridge and the State of Colorado Tourism Office. Breckenridge's long and colorful history helped shape the Town's singular appeal and economy. This strategic plan seeks to celebrate, protect, and enhance the intrepid spirit and character that makes Breckenridge such an enjoyable place to live, work, and visit. 3 Breckenridge 150: A Springboard for Heritage Tourism Learning from The National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a not-for-profit organization 270,000 members strong devoted to saving historic places and revitalizing communities, dedicating its leadership, education and advocacy efforts to protecting America’s irreplaceable places. The Trust is a charter member of Partners in Tourism, a coalition of the national organizations and agencies with an interest in cultural/heritage tourism. In addition, the Trust’s Heritage Tourism program provides training, technical, and marketing services to communities to develop their heritage tourism opportunities, including the sensitive use of historic and cultural resources. Under the auspices of Partners in Tourism, the Trust has developed five guiding principles for communities launching new heritage tourism initiatives: “Follow these principles and [to] avoid many difficulties that could otherwise arise when culture, heritage and tourism become partners. 1. Collaborate – Much more can be accomplished by working together than by working alone. Successful cultural heritage tourism programs bring together partners who may not have worked together in the past. Building partnerships is essential, not just because they help develop local support, but also because tourism demands resources that no single organization can supply. Its success depends on the active participation of political leaders, business leaders, operators of tourist sites, artists and craftspeople, hotel/motel operators, and many other people and groups. Regional partnerships are also useful to cultural heritage tourism efforts. Cooperating in a regional arrangement lets you develop regional themes, pool resources, save money and expand your marketing potential. Those resources include not only money for marketing campaigns, for example, but also facilities (accommodations for travelers, say) or expertise in tourism, preservation, the arts or another area. 2. Find the Fit – Local priorities vary. So do local capabilities. In other words, local circumstances determine what your area needs to do and can do in cultural heritage tourism. Programs that succeed have widespread local acceptance and meet recognized local needs. They are also realistic, based on the talents of specific people as well as on specific attractions, accommodations, and sources of support and