The Virginia Tourism Corporation, an affiliate of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, reports that tourism activities in Virginia generated revenues of $11.2 billion in 1997--a 43 percent increase in the past 10 years and over $1 billion annually in state and local taxes.

How important is tourism development to the economic development activities of the commonwealth? What level of tourism development support should be provided by the various government jurisdictions, including state and local governments, regional planning district commissions, and regional economic development agencies? What is the most effective means for promoting tourism development? These questions have frequently been asked by a number of the economic development study commissions that have been appointed over the past decade. The answer has frequently been that tourism, a major factor in the state's economy, is an integral part of regional economic development. Tourism development has the potential to significantly increase revenues of restaurants, motels, and retail stores; to enhance the number of people employed in tourism and service-related businesses; and to increase local tax bases. Effective promotion of tourism requires a coordinated regional approach that includes the participation of federal, state, and local jurisdictions and the private sector.

INITIATING TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA

In my previous job as dean of the John A. Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, I became involved in economic development activities in northwestern North Carolina. This involvement impressed upon me the impact that tourism can have on a region. As president of the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce in the late 1970s, I helped establish North Carolina's High Country Host, a regional tourism promotion organization that was financially supported by many of the major local tourist attractions. As a result of this effort, more people visited the area, and tourist expenditures in this region increased in excess of 10 percent annually for a number of years. Today, tourism provides the major source of employment in northwestern North Carolina.

Later, similar opportunities for promoting tourism as a force in economic development arose in Southwest Virginia. In 1985, after becoming dean of the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech, I was asked to serve as a commissioner on the Southwest Virginia Economic Development Commission (the Lacy Commission). The commission's charge was to examine ways to enhance the economy of Southwest Virginia, an area generally represented by the Ninth Congressional District, which includes most of Virginia west of Roanoke. The region historically has had a high unemployment rate of approximately one-and-a-half times the state average, a low wage rate of approximately two-thirds the state average, and a low high-school completion rate. For years there had been many concerns about the economic competitiveness of this region and the influence of its economy on the commonwealth.

As the commission began organizing its activities and focal points, I inquired about plans for including an examination of tourism development in the region. Unlike the healthy tourism industry in northwestern North Carolina, Southwest Virginia had only a relatively modest level of tourism activity. Yet, these two areas share the Blue Ridge Parkway and many of the same mountains, rivers, forests, and natural and scenic beauty. The immediate response was, "Well, we hadn't thought about that, but it might be a good idea. Why don't you chair that effort." And thus was born the commission's Tourism Task Force.

Since then, many other committees and commissions--Southwest Virginia Tourism Infrastructure Strategic Planning Study Commission, Blue Ridge Economic Development Commission, Congressman Rick Boucher's Commission on the Future of Southwest Virginia, the New Century Council, and the New River Valley Economic Development Alliance--have studied economic development in this region, and all have included at least some analysis of tourism development. All have recognized that tourism is an important part of the economy and that tourism development has great potential for further enhancing the economy. All have noted that additional efforts are needed to enhance the tourism potential of the region.

The Southwest Virginia Economic Development Commission Tourism Taskforce learned in 1985 that the Ninth Congressional District included 16 percent of the land, 11 percent of the population, and about 4 percent of the travel expenditures of the commonwealth. The area had a number of strengths for encouraging tourism development: the natural beauty of the area, mountains, streams, lakes, the Jefferson National Forest (now the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest), Mount Rogers Recreational Area, Blue Ridge Parkway, Breaks Interstate Park, Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, numerous state parks and historical sites, and a high-volume of traffic on Interstates 77 and 81. The area's weaknesses included the inability of state and federal facilities to promote themselves to the traveling public, a large proportion of absentee land ownership, limited private tourism development, few major attractions, and limited places for tourists to spend money. The area was a pass-through for traffic, not a destination. At that time, the Virginia Division of Tourism, the state's tourism marketing organization now known as the Virginia Tourism Corporation, provided limited promotional support for the unidentified tourism product in Southwest Virginia, and regional tourism promotion activities were splintered and ineffective.

Some commission members questioned the appropriateness of promoting tourism development because minimum wage and part-time employment characterize the tourism industry. However, the labor-force profile of the industry is quite compatible with that of Southwest Virginia. Additionally, the tourism industry provides employment opportunities that would not otherwise be available, and it does not require extensive public investment. Increased tourism brings additional income, a diversified economic base, increased tax revenue, and visibility to the area. Tourism makes minimal demands on local government services and is relatively non-polluting.

With adjoining states making extensive commitments to their own tourism industries, Virginia was--and is--faced with increasing competition for the tourist dollar. Tennessee and North Carolina are just two examples of areas where strong state support and/or strong local, private, public, and regional cooperative efforts increased tourism revenue. Unfortunately, by 1986 Southwest Virginia had not

yet experienced the same type of cooperative efforts from the commonwealth. Uncoordinated tourism promotion activities had little, if any, success in presenting the region as a tourist destination. Many towns and attractions produced brochures, which were only distributed locally on a haphazard basis. There was a need to develop tourism destinations in Southwest Virginia. There was a need for a more coordinated approach to tourism development through private, public, and regional cooperative efforts.

RECEIVING SUPPORT FROM THE COMMISSION

As a result of the work of the task force, the commission adopted eleven recommendations concerning tourism development, nine of which have been partially or fully implemented. These recommendations included

• The development of a private-public regional tourism development organization for Southwest Virginia;
• The establishment of a regional office of the Virginia Tourism Corporation that would act as a catalyst for tourism-related activities in Southwest Virginia;
• The enhancement of funding of state park facilities so that these parks can provide improved recreational facilities for the local population and the traveling public;
• The enhancement of funding of Breaks Interstate Park so that the park can provide improved recreational facilities for the local population and the traveling public;
• The development of community college credit courses and non-credit offerings in support of the travel and tourism industry;
• The redesign of welcome centers to better present the state by emphasizing the unique features of each region through, for example, décor and rotating exhibits;
• The expansion of the state-highway-service sign program that is designed to provide travelers with business identification and directional information for essential motorist services;
• The establishment of a Black Mountain Interstate Mine Park in cooperation with Kentucky;
• The development of Fisher's Peak as a facility on the Blue Ridge Parkway;
• The endorsement of efforts of other groups interested in developing tourist destinations that would enhance the tourism related activities in Southwest Virginia; and
• The endorsement of efforts of the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service to assist tourism development in Southwest Virginia.

Attempts were made to implement the recommendations concerning welcome center redesign and the Black Mountain Interstate Mine Park, but neither of these efforts was successful. (It should be noted that since the state welcome centers are owned by the Virginia Department of Transportation and funds are generally committed to road and highway repairs--it has been difficult for any entity or agency to facilitate a redesign of the centers.) However, the enactment of all or part of the other nine recommendations has led to significant accomplishments in tourism development, and travel expenditures in Southwest Virginia have increased more rapidly than in other areas of Virginia. Tourism expenditures have increased by 52 percent in the past 10 years--compared to

state tourism expenditure growth of 43 percent and represent approximately $431 million a year in tourism expenditures in the region. Unfortunately, these expenditures remain approximately 4 percent of the state's total, which is much too small considering the tourism potential of Southwest Virginia.

ESTABLISHING A REGIONAL TOURISM PROMOTION ORGANIZATION

The implementation of these nine recommendations led to the establishment in 1987 of Virginia's Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands (VSBRH), a regional umbrella tourism promotional organization that served as a catalyst for tourism development in Southwest Virginia. VSBRH helped identify the needs of the region and began developing innovative, regional solutions.

Voluntary membership dues initially supported VSBRH. In the tourism development efforts of western North Carolina, three firms had provided most of the start-up revenue, but in Southwest Virginia such support was inadequate because of the limited number of members and the limited ability of most firms to pay the amount of dues needed. Local government jurisdictions, economic development agencies, and planning district commissions were asked to participate. Tourism development, however, never appeared to be a high priority, and few of these groups participated for any length of time. Volunteers conducted many of the VSBRH activities.

GAINING ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

Over time, the U.S. Forest Service and other federal agencies became quite involved, and a number of cooperative programs with federal agencies were established:

• Project Cornerstone, a nationally recognized cooperative activity with the U.S. Forest Service that enhanced the priority of recreational and tourism use of federal forest lands;
• Increased use of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for training and workshops on tourism development for government agencies in Southwest Virginia;
• A tourism infrastructure revolving loan program established by Congressman Boucher, with loans available to support tourism-related businesses. When the loans are repaid, funds become available for future loans to the region;
• Fort Chiswell Factory Merchants Mall Regional Welcome Center, which was established through the U.S. Forest Service; and
• Extensive planning and funding for the Fishers Peak Regional Music Interpretive Center, located on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Galax, that will be operated by the U.S. Park Service.

State agencies also participated in the effort to enhance tourism development:

• The Virginia Tourism Corporation re-focused its promotional efforts to enhance the image of Southwest Virginia and redirected some of its advertising toward several areas where it would likely encourage travel to Southwest Virginia, such as residents of Ohio and Illinois. The corporation also focused advertising initiatives on outdoor recreation in 1997, a segment of the industry for which Southwest Virginia has numerous opportunities to provide activities for tourists.
• A regional office of the Virginia Division of Economic Development was staffed for tourism development, the first of its kind in the state.
• The Virginia Tourism Corporation developed a cooperative advertising program to help jointly fund tourism promotional activities for less affluent areas.
• The Division of Parks and Recreation and the Fish and Game Commission worked together to improve facilities in Southwest Virginia. Unfortunately, this effort was extremely limited because of inadequate state funding.
• Local legislators supported the federal Rails to Trails initiative with the establishment of the New River Park Trail, which utilized an abandoned Norfolk and Southern rail line for a new state park.
• Local legislators helped in establishing the Virginia Coalfields Tourism Development Authority.
• Virginia Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands and the Virginia Tourism Corporation helped in establishing a community college curriculum in tourism.

Currently, a state-funded matching grants program through the Virginia Tourism Corporation provides major funding.

In addition to federal and state agencies, Virginia Tech played an active role in tourism development activities. The university

• Created a position in Public Service Programs devoted to the support and development of the tourism industry;
• Helped develop an electronic "touch screen" information system for the Fort Chiswell Visitors Center and began utilizing computers for regional tourism information, a system that was used as a model for the Internet system developed by Virginia Tech and showcased at the White House Conference on Travel and Tourism; and
• Conducted a marketing study of travelers on the I-81/I-77 corridors that determined that many were traveling to South Carolina beaches for the purpose of playing golf. The university then successfully encouraged golf promotion efforts for Southwest Virginia.

Tourism development is not easily supported because many people have difficulty recognizing the economic benefit--and job creation--from funds spent on this segment of economic development. If 150 people work in a factory that was established with local assistance, the economic benefit is easily and immediately recognized. If tourism development draws visitors to the area, it is difficult to document the specific jobs created and the economic benefit to the region. Some would say, "If you can't count the jobs, then they are not there." Yet, 150 jobs could have been created as an offshoot of the new tourist activity.

Consequently, none of the cooperative efforts resulting from the work of the Lacy Commission and its Tourism Taskforce was accomplished easily. Some jurisdictions have responded more than others, and some have been more successful than others. Those who have valued tourism development as an integral part of economic development have been the most successful.

CONTINUING THE FOCUS

The Commission on the Future of Southwest Virginia, which was established in 1995 to re-examine issues dealing with economic development in the region, provided further analysis of many issues addressed by the Lacy Commission. I chaired this later commission's Tourism Subcommittee, working with 14 other citizens of the region who are interested in enhancing tourism development in Southwest Virginia.

Many of the commission's recommendations in the area of tourism, which were developed by the subcommittee, are further refinements of the Lacy Commission's earlier findings. The subcommittee believes, and it is obvious from these recommendations, that Southwest Virginia has not yet reached its full potential in tourist activity. To broach the gap, the commission recommends

• Holding a tourism summit to develop a regional tourism marketing plan,
• Further developing major tourism sites in Southwest Virginia,
• Including tourism as a priority in the management of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest plan,
• Recognizing tourism as an essential element of our region's economic development strategy,
• Winterizing our state parks,
• Establishing tourism web sites for each locality in Southwest Virginia,
• Improving access roads to federally owned recreation sites, and
• Considering the effect of road construction projects on tourism.

FACING THE CHALLENGES

It has been said that "the whole is the sum of its parts." That is true for Virginia, where a poor economic picture in one region can drain the commonwealth's resources. Implementing the commission's recommendations for Southwest Virginia will enhance regional economic growth, which, in turn, will enhance the economic stability of the entire state.

The challenges facing the economy of Southwest Virginia are similar to other rural and less developed areas of the commonwealth where the unemployment rate is higher, wage rate lower, and high-school graduation rate lower than in many of Virginia's urban areas. Many other regions of the state also have similar tourism development efforts underway. The problems encountered and progress made in promoting tourism and economic development in Southwest Virginia may offer useful lessons to other Virginia regions.

Richard Sorensen is dean of the R. B. Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech and former dean of the John A. Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University. He has been president of the Boone (North Carolina) Area Chamber of Commerce, a founder of North Carolina's High Country Host, commissioner on the Southwest Virginia Economic Development Commission, chair of the commission's Tourism Taskforce, and chair of the Commission on the Future of Southwest Virginia's Tourism Subcommittee. He also served as the founding president of Virginia Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands.

Travel and tourism professionals, community and local government leaders, and economic development professionals can now gather the skills, tools, and perspectives to manage their industry more effectively in today's global environment, as well as increase revenues for their businesses, via the new Virginia Travel and Tourism Institute (VTTI). The institute consists of a core program, independent workshops, seminars, and conferences. It explores management, marketing, planning, public policy, funding, and technological developments that affect travel and the tourism industry.

Program participants may enroll in the institute to achieve a certificate of completion, or they may independently attend any of the offerings for professional development. The certificate requires that enrollees complete two core programs and an additional 24 workshop, seminar, or conference hours approved by a committee of VTTI staff. Attaining a VTTI certificate indicates that participants have achieved an advanced level of management expertise for and knowledge about the Virginia travel and tourism industry. Students who attend Core I and Core II programs also receive continuing education credits.

The core programs, first offered in September and November of 1998, will be offered again in the spring and fall of 1999 at various locations throughout the commonwealth. VTTI credit-approved workshops, seminars, and conferences offered in 1998 through the Virginia Tourism Corporation or Virginia Tech's Public Service Programs include the Civil Trails Workshop (January), Internet Marketing for Artists and Arts Organizations (March and August), North American Group Tour Marketing Seminar (October), Local/Regional Visitor Information Center Manager's Seminar (November), and the Cultural Tourism Forum (November).

The institute was developed jointly in 1998 by the Virginia Tourism Corporation, which is an affiliate of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, and Virginia Tech's Public Service Programs, a unit in the university's Outreach Division.

Additional information about the institute is available from Charlotte A. Reed or John D. Watt III. To contact Reed, write Public Service Programs (0162), Virginia Tech, 1080 South Main Street, Blacksburg, VA 24061; send an e-mail message to creed@vt.edu, call 540/231-8386; or send a fax to 540/231-3896. Write Watt at Virginia Tourism Corporation, 901 East Byrd Street, Richmond, VA 23219; send an e-mail message to jwatt@vedp.state.va.us; call 804/371-8158; or send a fax to 804/786-1919.

Charlotte A. Reed is an economic development specialist in tourism and technology for Public Service Programs, a unit in Virginia Tech's Outreach Division.

In the last eight years, spending by travelers in the southwestern Blue Ridge Highlands of Virginia has risen almost 53 percent, a growth rate that is 25 percent higher than all of the commonwealth, but the region still has a long way to go.

Virginia Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands (VSBRH), now nearly 13 years old, is the all-volunteer organization whose primary mission is to market the variety of attractions in the region. The organization exists to help and to serve and to be a positive force for economic growth in southwestern Virginia.

VSBRH is governed by a 30-member board of directors, who come from throughout its 21-county region. The organization, which has had a full-time executive director for less than a year, relies almost entirely on volunteers to provide its services.

Two years ago, the Tourism Task Force agreed that Southwest Virginia has a wealth of attractions for tourists but that the region was an unknown product to the consumer. To overcome this deficiency, the task force recommended the development of a regional marketing plan.

In 1997-98, under a cooperative marketing grant of $250,000 from the Virginia Tourism Corporation and with the assistance of more than a dozen marketing partners throughout the region, the VSBRH developed a blueprint marketing plan, the first such program for the region. This first marketing plan focused on promoting the region by selecting target markets:

1. Outdoor recreation;
2. Heritage/cultural attractions;
3. AAA and travel agents; and
4. Groups, meetings, and conventions.

As part of the promotional effort, volunteers from VSBRH attended 43 trade shows and sales missions and made sales calls in cities that are known to be prime sources of visitors coming to Southwest Virginia. VSBRH placed advertisements in 33

magazines, carefully selecting those publications whose subscribers fit the marketing plan. VSBRH also hosted four groups of travel writers and two group-leader familiarization tours and distributed over 160,000 regional brochures. An essential part of the marketing plan is

to track the number of inquiries received from each advertisement, the number of people seen at trade shows, and the number of sales calls made to professional travel offices. From fall 1997 through June 1998, the first year after the plan was approved, the VSBRH made over 300,000 contacts to potential consumers. VSBRH also evaluates the return on

investment of the blueprint plan. The organization's partner attractions provided records on the number of phone calls, letters, inquiries, and visitations they received throughout the year. More importantly, the attractions reported on their increase in sales for the year. The VSBRH partners realized a return on investment in all categories of 13.33 percent for 1997-98:

• Outdoor recreation attractions
• saw an increase of 14.83 percent in business.
• Other attractions experienced a 19.34 percent increase.
• Food and lodging sales increased by 31.30 percent.
• Visitation to welcome and visitors' centers rose by 7 percent.

In 1996 about $412 million was spent by visitors to the southwestern Virginia region, while tourist expenditures throughout Virginia totaled $10.5 billion. In 1997 more than $430 million was spent in the region, while the total throughout Virginia was $11.2 billion. With the growth the region is experiencing now that the blueprint marketing plan is gaining momentum, the day is not far distant when

the region will reach $1 billion in annual tourism income. It is a goal that can be achieved in seven to ten years, depending on how well the different entities of the region--economic developers, local governments, the tourism industry, and citizens--work together. What would the achievement of this goal mean to the region?

• A billion dollars would mean a travel payroll of $260 million a year--compared to $110 million last year.
• A billion dollars would mean almost 8,000 new jobs serving the traveling public.
• A billion dollars would mean tax reimbursements to the localities of $27 million to be used for public schools, compared to about $9 million last year.

A billion dollars would be money that would go directly into the bank accounts of thousands of Southwest Virginians who welcome and serve visitors in hotels and motels, restaurants, bed and breakfasts, campgrounds, attractions, parks, shops, festivals, and events. It would also be a billion dollars that could be tapped locally by occupancy and meals taxes.

It could also be a billion dollars that could go somewhere else, to another destination, if the region does not take advantage of the initiative now under way. So VSBRH is moving ahead. The tourism development organization has received a cooperative marketing grant of $226,000 for this year's blueprint marketing plan, and its major promotional thrusts will again be 1) outdoor recreation and 2) heritage and culture. The organization will continue to advertise in targeted magazines, will send representatives to many trade shows, and will carry out a number of sales missions.

But the greater part of this year's campaign will be the use of cable television commercials to increase the visibility of the Blue Ridge Highlands. A series of short television commercials will feature outdoor recreation and the culture and heritage of the region. The commercials will be a first for tourism development in Southwest Virginia.

The region's blueprint for success takes the long view toward attracting tourism dollars and creating jobs. When it comes, that success not only will enhance the economy of Southwest Virginia, but it will also contribute to the economic growth of the entire commonwealth.

KITTY GRADY is the executive director of Virginia Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands.