1. It helps us to market tourism in Revelstoke as effectively as possible
Data concerning where people are coming from and how long they are staying in the community will help with our tourism marketing efforts and will allow us to make more informed decisions around funding and planning an array of initiatives and projects. It will also help us to identify missed opportunities for attracting visitors from other areas of the province, country and world.
2. Reliable data lets us make smarter decisions
Reliable data on the number of visitors allows us to better understand:
- current and future needs for accommodation,
- transportation infrastructure and services,
- cultural events and programming,
- parking, and
- other important aspects of visitor experience.
3. It helps us to better understand the seasonal impacts on our community and plan accordingly
The data also enables us to measure the impacts of visitor traffic and increased tourism on Revelstoke and the local hospitality sector, including future workforce and staff housing needs, policing and emergency services, sanitation infrastructure, parks and recreational amenities, and business development.
A key issue that this project addresses is inaccurate and unreliable population data for the City of Revelstoke at different times during the year. Although we use Statistics Canada data, which is collected during the month of May every four years, the success of tourism in our community throughout different seasons makes it is extremely difficult to identify how many people are living or staying in the community at any given time. This lack of accurate resident data makes it challenging to plan for housing needs, business development, infrastructure upgrades, health care needs, and emergency preparedness.