The municipality is continuing public consultation regarding the new Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) with a public information meeting on Monday, April 4, 7-9pm at the Wellington and District Community Centre (111 Belleville Street).
The public information meeting is intended to provide a progress update to residents, businesses and organizations who do not operate directly within the tourism sector.
This is a hybrid meeting where participants can attend in-person or through Zoom. To register to participate, email rlamb@pecounty.on.ca or call 613.476.2148 extension 2506.
The municipality is supporting the creation of a new tourism industry-led DMO. The objective of the new DMO is to provide effective, accountable, ethical, inclusive, sustainable and transparent governance of Municipal Accommodation Tax investments related to tourism marketing and management in Prince Edward County.
In this phase of the project, the municipality is seeking input on the make-up of the inaugural board of directors for the DMO including the size, shape, skills, experience and representation of various sectors and communities. Decisions related to the new DMO’s by-laws, policies, budget, strategy, marketing plans, staffing and partnerships will be made in a later phase of consultation once the inaugural board is in place.
Tourism industry stakeholders were consulted in this phase through a series of sessions facilitated by Ridge Road Training and Consulting. A follow-up survey is available online at Have Your Say and physical copies are available at PEC library branches. The survey is open to all, including industry stakeholders who could not attend a consultation session. The survey summarizes the information shared at the sessions and allows stakeholders to answer the same questions posed in the sessions. While tourism industry stakeholders are welcome to attend the public information meeting on April 4, this meeting is designed as an update for residents and non-tourism businesses and will not take the same shape as the consultation sessions.
Results from this phase of consultation will be summarized and used to inform a report to Council at a special meeting on Thursday, April 14. This report will include a by-law to allow the DMO to legally incorporate, a summary of stakeholder consultations to date, and a request to begin recruitment for the inaugural board directors.
The Have Your Say project page provides detailed information about the DMO project, its objectives and timeline. For more information contact Rebecca Lamb, Destination Development and Marketing Coordinator, at rlamb@pecounty.on.ca or 613.476.2148 extension 2506.
A note about returning to in-person meetings:
In line with provincial and local public health measures, masks and vaccination proof are no longer mandatory to enter County of Prince Edward facilities. Though face masks are not mandatory, some people may choose to keep wearing their masks. The County encourages the public to be kind and respectful to others, regardless of whether they are wearing a mask or not.
The County encourages people visiting any County facility to conduct a self-health assessment for COVID-19 symptoms prior to entering. The County asks that anyone with symptoms not visit until symptoms have cleared.