Representatives of the Lutsen- Tofte Tourism Association (LTTA) visited West End township meetings in October, introducing the idea of a possible merger of Cook County tourism associations—the Grand Marais Area Tourism Association (GMATA), the Gunflint Trail Association (GTA) and the Cook County Events and Visitor’s Bureau (CCEVB). According to officials from the different tourism entities, talks about the potential merger are ongoing.
LTTA Treasurer Scott Harrison, owner of Lutsen Resort, said a possible merger was discussed in depth at the October 21 LTTA meeting. He said, “We gave the green light on the concept, but there are significant practical details to be worked out.”
Other tourism entities need to decide how they want to take part. Bruce Kerfoot, owner of Gunflint Lodge, a member of GTA, and one of the originators of the idea for the CCEVB, said merging the separate tourism groups to one entity would benefit the entire county’s economy. “Joining forces is the only practical solution,” he said.
Diane Brostrom, director of GMATA, said her board has yet to make a decision. She said it may be more difficult for GMATA than the other tourism groups, since GMATA does not have a membership, but is made up of “a number of wonderful, very individual, very independent business owners.”
Brostrom said GMATA would be meeting on Thursday, November 5 for its annual meeting, from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. at East Bay’s Stone’s Throw room. At that meeting, Grand Marais businesses will hear an explanation of the potential merger. “We don’t have all the answers,” said Brostrom. “But we hope after the meeting our board will have a strong consensus in one direction or another.”
Kerfoot said some hesitancy on moving ahead with one countywide organization is to be expected. “Yes, there may be some angst as we try to do something like this in our small community. But we’ve got to get over our parochialism. If we do, we’ll all be better for it,” he said.
Dennis Rysdahl, owner of Bluefin Bay on Lake Superior and Surfside Resort and a member of the CCEVB, said, “I think one positive benefit of the economic downturn is that people are seeing that we have more in common than we think. LTTA used to be applauded for working together—for the three townships marketing themselves together. That isn’t enough. We need to represent a larger geographical area to have a meaningful place in marketing and to be able to attract visitors.”
Kerfoot added that the CCEVB has proven to be successful in the past year. CCEVB promoted the Gunflint Green-Up, Grand Marais Jazz Festival, Volks Ski Fest, North Shore Holiday Shopping, and weekly musical entertainment at Lutsen and Tofte venues. “I think we’ve shown the ability to work together and we’ve gained respect,” said Kerfoot.
GTA next meets November 4 at 1:00 p.m. at the Gunflint Conference Center.
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