NORWICH – While more than 150,000 people visit the area each year, contributing more than $30 million to the local economy, tourism may very well be the most under-rated industry in Chenango County.
“Tourism is a vital component of our county’s economy,” said Commerce Chenango President Maureen Carpenter, who reports that $33 million was spent in Chenango County last year as a result of direct sales from tourism.
Despite the large financial impact of tourism to the area, it remains an under-rated industry, according to Carpenter.
While there are numerous tourism properties, they are not always recognized for the role they play in attracting visitors. Citing the Northeast Classic Car Museum, Council of the Arts, Earlville Opera House, Chenango River Theater, Gallery 3-2-1 and Black Bear Farm and Winery, she said, “I think a lot of people take these places for granted and do not understand the local impact they have.”
Also underestimated, in Carpenter’s opinion, is the impact of the more than 150,000 visitors which attend Chenango County festivals and events each year.
According to Audrey Robinson, Commerce Chenango’s Communications and Tourism Coordinator, the largest of these events are the Chenango County Fair, the Sherburne Pageant of Bands and the Bainbridge Canoe Regatta. Other events, such as the annual Blues Festival, Colorscape, Gus Macker, Greene’s Labor Day picnic and the Bluegrass Festival, also draw significant numbers.
In addition to the established tourism properties mentioned by Carpenter, Robinson said there are several which are becoming more well know each year, such as the Chenango River Theatre in Greene, Wolf Mountain Nature Center in Sherburne and the Tsuga Links golf course in New Berlin.
Visitors are also drawn to the idyllic rolling hills of Chenango County, Robinson explained, particularly to see the Fall leaves. Hunting, camping, fishing and other outdoor activities also bring visitors to the area each year.
Robinson maintains an exhaustive list of more than 300 attractions, restaurants, hotels, golf courses, state parks, retail establishments, cultural centers and outdoor activities located throughout Chenango County.
“There are unique places in every town and village,” she said. Commerce Chenango is currently revamping their website, www.chenangony.org, to make access to all of this information easier and more user friendly.
To promote Chenango County and all it has to offer, Robinson receives an allocation from the Chenango County Board of Supervisors each year. This year, she was given $46,500 by the county to work with, a slight increase over the $44,000 allocated last year.
Additional funding for promoting tourism in Chenango County comes through the I Love New York Matching Funds program, allocated through the New York State Tourism Promotion Agency. This year, Robinson requested $81,530 from the state, but only received $32,586.
“Everyone was cut,” she said. The decrease in state funding will not just affect Robinson’s ability to promote the county as a whole, but also the festivals, events and tourism properties that she helps promote with these funds.
“They depend on the money,” she said. “Everyone only got a percentage of what they asked for.”
Despite the limited funding, Robinson is working hard to keep attracting people to the area. This year she has decided to use a Vacationland theme to promote travel and tourism in and around Chenango County. The theme pays homage to the promotional campaign used to promote the county in 1959. While attractions and events may have changed in the last 50 years, people are still drawn to Chenango County for the same reasons today as they were then, Robinson explained. They want rest, relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery, she said.