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Tourism
Matters
Serving the Tourism Industry of Michigan
Spring
2001 |
Sally J.
Carpenter - editor |
Land Use Planning, Tourism, and Communities Benefit From the Michigan Department of Transportation Federal Transportation Enhancement Funds
Michigan Department of Transportation recently received
Federal Transportation Enhancement funds to prepare Scenic Corridor Management
Plans for US 131 and I-69 in Southwest Michigan. The purpose of the plan is to
develop long-and short-term strategies to protect or improve the views from
these two important corridors.
Goals of the six meetings being held between January and August 2001 for both groups are:
* A vision for the corridor with both short
and long range supporting goals and objectives.
* Identified community, environmental and transportation concerns/issues within
an approximate two-mile wide corridor on US-131 from U Avenue south of Kalamazoo
to the Kent County line. On I-69 from the Michigan border north to the Eaton
County line.
* Review and selection of management strategies to address these issues and
improve and/or maintain existing view sheds identified by the team members as
critical to support the vision.
Committed members of townships and communities along the corridors include elected officials, local planners, abutting property owners of large or scenic land parcels, regional and metropolitan planning groups, county planning and transportation organizations, extension educators, environmental and tourisms groups.
“Enhancement programs have been around since 1992, doing things like streetscapes, non-motorized pathways, train stations. What makes these two programs different is that they are looking further outside the highway right-of-way. “
“The program is also involving several units of government,
and landowners forming a partnership. The current programs involve more
extensive community involvement, than in the past,” says Connie Morrison of
the MDOT S.W. Region Office. This is a great opportunity for community members
to help define a plan for the front doors of their communities, open space farm
and woodland.
Enhancement of a corridor seems obvious to people in tourism. Creating a corridor management plan identifies what is important, evaluates the potential of improvement, and identifies what resources are needed. A plan can preclude a management strategy for actions, costs, funding and responsibilities.
Connie Morrison says that there are two other enhancement projects going on in Southwest Michigan, the US 31 corridor in Berrien and the I-94 corridor, and several others throughout the state.
Should you have an interest in S.W Michigan projects call Connie at 337-3900. If you have an interest in projects throughout the state call Brian Armstrong at 517-335-2636.
This activity is not without challenges given overlapping jurisdictions of local government. The benefits to this can be shared resources, partnerships, sense of security about the future and access to funding to support the plan. Some of the outcomes to people working together around this project are:
* Intergovernmental management agreements
* Possible Michigan Heritage Route
* Identification of a specific project to fund
Land use management strategies implemented such as roadway design, signage guides, vegetation management, transfer of development rights (TDR), rural village development, landowner involvement in decisions, expansion of wetlands and wildlife habitat. Finally, and this is the big one, local units of government will look at local planning and where it is moving in 5-10 years, then address zoning and master plans changes to support the plan.
This type of planning forces the people involved to look as what their area will really look like in the future if development is allowed to happen according to current zoning regulations, if the folks don’t like what could be in the future, they can change their master plans and zoning to reflect what they really want to preserve.
Food Service Food Safety Training
Are you in food service, do you need
food safety training for your employees to bring them up to speed of food safety
issues? Have you heard about ServSafe® the National Restaurant Association
Educational Foundation training provided by Michigan State University Extension
Educators? Trainings are scheduled in the near future for Cass, Washtenaw, St.
Clair, Hillsdale and Wexford counties. Check the Food Safety Homepage at http://foodsafe.fshn.msu.edu/ServSafe/index.html
for a location near you. Or contact Tourism Matters at 616-467-5522 for a list.
Calling All Innkeepers
Successful Innkeeping seminar April
9-10 at the National House Inn in Marshall is taught by Norman and Kathryn
Kinney well known for two lodging facilities, the National House Inn and the
Montague Inn, and their affiliation with the Independent Innkeepers Association
and as quality assurance consultants.
Seminar Fee is $40.00, $30 for second person/same business, includes lunch at Schuler’s, a famous Michigan Restaurant. Contact information is located in our calendar on page three of this newsletter.
Michigan Tourism Outlook Conference
is coming up March 7. A great place to
network, and find out what works and how we are doing as a state. See Tourism
Connections article and Calendar. I look forward to seeing you.
The Michigan Festivals &
Events Association (MFEA) annual Spring
Seminar is set for March 30 and 31 this year. Join us in Michigan’s Little
Bavaria...Frankenmuth, MI.
Featuring the following educational workshops.
* Break Attendance Records
* Developing an Art Courtyard for Youth… For Your Non-Profit Organization on a
Shoestring Budget.
* Four Major Issues That Make Events Come Alive
* Latest Trends on Celebrating Responsibility
The registration fee for the MFEA Spring Seminar is $50 which includes Friday night hospitality at the Frankenmuth Fischer Hall Museum, and the Saturday educational workshops and luncheon scheduled at the Bavarian Inn Restaurant. Spouse registration is $35 and includes all of the same offerings. Special lodging available in Frankenmuth. Those interested in more information can contact the MFEA office at 517/845-2080.
Michigan Tourism Outlook Conference:
"Tourism Connections"
Wednesday, March 7, 2001
8:30 a.m.—4:30 p.m.
Red Cedar Room, Kellogg Center
East Lansing, Michigan
Tourism is widely recognized to be a large industry in Michigan, yet the depth and breadth of its contributions and linkages to other economic sectors (e.g., agriculture, forestry, retail) community development and quality of life are not generally understood nor its importance appreciated. Businesses, communities and regions that understand and enhance these linkages and connections are better positioned to develop and market themselves as tourism attractions. That is why Tourism Connections will be a focal theme of the 2001 Michigan Tourism Outlook Conference. Participants in this program will explore relationships and linkages between tourism and other economic sectors, historic preservation, and community enhancement.
Keeping with the long tradition of the Michigan Outlook Conference, early morning sessions will also include a review of the Michigan tourism industry’s performance in the year 2000 and projections for the year 2001.
Registration:
The early registration fee for the Michigan
Outlook Conference is still $45.00 and includes refreshments, lunch and
handouts. Seating is limited so advanced registration is required. The early
registration must be received in the Center by Friday, February 16, 2001, so
please allow a few days for the mail to reach the office. After this date, a
late registration fee of $55.00 will apply.
Please check with your local MSU Extension office for a brochure with the registration form or visit MSU’s Tourism Center’s web site: www.tourismcenter.msu.edu
Southeast
Michigan: Transportation Industry’s Silicon Valley?
Bob Parsons, Michigan Department of Transportation
Speaking before a group of high-tech savvy members of
ITS Michigan last spring, MEDC President Doug Rothwell suggested that the Great
Lakes State is in the perfect position to gain world class status with
Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).
From inside MDOT’s Michigan Intelligent Transportation Systems Center (MITSC) control room, operators monitor traffic conditions and pass along important route information to motorists. Also located in the control center is the Michigan State Police Second District Regional 911 Dispatch Center, one of only a few such partnerships in the country. The center’s video wall enables operators and state police dispatchers to pinpoint accidents, roadway debris, disabled vehicles and other incidents. Using 33 television monitors, the dispatchers can immediately verify 911 calls, correct errors, determine the severity and dispatch the appropriate personnel and equipment.
For further information on ITS Michigan call
248-334-2060 or visit their website at http://www.itsmi.org.
Information from Michigan Business Report
April 9-10, 2001 Successful Innkeeping Seminar at
National House Inn, Marshall Michigan. For more information or registration call
them at 616/781-7374 or visit their web site at www.nationalhouseinn.com
September 26-29, 2001 TrailLink
2001—The 3rd International Trails and Greenways Conference. It will be held at
the Hyatt Regency Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri. Call 202/331-9696, Fax
202/331-9680 or visit their web site at www.railtrails.org
for more information.
Hi Sally, I just read thru Tourism Matters. Enjoyed your comments on the business card brochure. The timing was perfect, I am putting the final examples together for our new Community Tourism Development manual (it replaces the Rural Tourism Development manual) and thought it was a good one for marketing. Can you send me 2 of the business cards?
Many Thanks,
Cynthia C. Messer, Extension Educator and Assistant Professor,
Tourism Center, University of Minnesota Extension Service
Thanks Cynthia,
A number of people have requested the mini-business cards offered last issue.
They are still available.
Sally
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| Tourism Area of Expertise Team Michigan State University 172 Natural Resources Bldg. East Lansing, MI 48824-1222 Phone: 517-353-0793 Fax: 517-432-2296 |