Focus on Tourism

1. Focus on Tourism An Analysis of Tourism in the New Bedford Area Tom Gordon, Dan Horner, Kevin McCarthy, Lynnette Nolan, RicRheaume

2. Executive Summary • The New Bedford Chamber of Commerce has requested a comprehensive tourism analysis. • This report details the region's current tourism standing and, • As a result of the assessment and findings, provides recommendations to improve local tourism. • Understanding the geographic, cultural, historical, and demographic profile of the New Bedford area is vital to developing a successful plan moving forward.

3. Research Summary Two Key Components: Research & Analysis

4. Research • Included synthesizing information form literature, previous studies, organization websites • Refer to Wiki page for sources and documentation

5. Analysis • Extracted relevant data from MOTT study on the economic impact of tourism in the state of Massachusetts, CY 2010.

6. Scope Summary • The key findings category is broken up into two parts. • Tourism Paradigm: Whaling City Identity • Calculating Impact • Because such an analysis requires substantial funding, the scope of this project is limited to defining successful starting points for such economic modeling. Recommendations focus on developing a future means to computing the economic impact of tourism in the New Bedford area.

7. Key Findings Tourism Paradigm: Whaling City Identity

8. Backgrounder • Historically and today, fishing and manufacturing are two of the largest industries in the area. • But currently, the three largest single employers based in New Bedford are Southcoast Hospitals Group, Titleist, and Joseph Abboud. • New Bedford is rich in history, but has seemed to have fallen short in the current competitive marketplace. • Despite it’s modernity, the city has the stigma of an “old mill” town. • Bringing in new investment has been difficult due to negative perceptions of the city.

9. Problem Statement • New Bedford must reinvent itself through progressive initiatives that will rejuvenate and motivate investment in the city. • Investments in reputation can positively correlate to increased tourism rates.

10. Analysis Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats

11. Strengths • Popular area attractions: Buttonwood Zoo, Whaling Museum, Ocean Museum, festivals, theater performances, harbor tours. • Fishing Industry • National Park area • Arts Centers and Private Art Studios • Higher Education connections

12. Weaknesses • Declining Business Investments • Segregated Districts • High Crime rate • Impact of the reality and perception of crime rate on tourism

13. Opportunities • Transportation • Commuter Rail potential • Airport access • Ferries and water taxis • Lodging: • Increasing visitor stays increases the amount of time tourists are in the area

14. Threats • Tightening of fishing regulations could be detrimental to area industry • Statewide budget deficit

15. Next Steps Recommendation and Follow-up Plan

16. Recommendations • New Bedford has the ability to select from a variety of alternatives in its effort to maximize on potential tourism dollars. • Recommendations such as the connection of districts within the city, and modifications will improve the lifestyle of the area. • New Bedford should consider ways to improve the city's reputation. • Establish initiatives that will decrease crime and extenuate their positive influences.

17. Recommendations • Make New Bedford a destination, not a pass-through. • Capitalize on visitors passing through by making State Pier Terminal and Fisherman’s wharf accommodating. • Promote ferry travel and harbor tours. • Utilize advertising space and lighted signage along I-195 and Route 18. • Capitalize on airport traffic. Highlight appealing characteristics of New Bedford and South Coast municipalities. • Promote overnight and multi-day stays with better hotel options; tourism dollars most impact the community when they stay in the community. Coordinate between airport and other travel options with lodging • During festivals or celebrations have similarly themed activities at locations such as the buttonwood zoo or museums. • Compile monthly events fliers that can be distributed to the ferries, airport, and other transit options. These periodicals can be posted online or in other media

18. Recommendations • Better parking options in the city, including improved safety. • Pitch tourism generating programs to local officials. • Use MOTT study, and potential for future analyses as evidence and data that tourism is worth investing in.

19. Follow-up Plan • Survey invested stakeholders (Chamber of Commerce Members) to get a holistic perspective of how local business owners define their city in relation to tourism opportunities and benefits. • Enlist business owners to survey customers during peak travel season (summer) • Utilize stakeholder feedback to redefine the vision of the city. • Maintain current - and cultivate more - connections between the city and its environs, making New Bedford a focal point for business, education, and culture in Southeastern Massachusetts. • Analyze relevant and current data to determine the economic impact of tourism in New Bedford and surrounding municipalities (as determined by the client).

20. Key Findings Calculating Impact

21. Calculating Impact • To calculate the impact of tourism dollars in the community, direct spending must be tracked. In order to track spending, The New Bedford Chamber of Commerce must define what constitutes as tourism. • Do you consider festivals and events tourism events even if they are mostly attended by locals?

22. Steps Categorize spending as direct, indirect, or induced • Direct includes:lodging, portions of retail (as calculated by Chamber's definition of what constitutes tourism), attractions, cultural and festival events, ferry and port services • Direct revenue can be tracked through surveying local business owners • Indirect include: the purchases and expenditures that tourism-related businesses (i.e. the establishments included in the direct spending category) spend on operations. • Induced includes: additional sales resulting from the induced spending (i.e. hotel employees spending money within the city). • Apply a tourism multiplier to the spending tally. • The MOTT study uses a multiplier calculated for the entire state, while the RIMS II model, if purchased, can create a multiplier down to the county level.

23. Recommendations for Follow-up • Work with the Urban Initiative to "hire" a service-learning group next semester to continue the analysis. • Collecting revenue data from the businesses and industries suggested about could be a semester's project in itself. • Although costly, consider the option of consulting with REMI to analyze economic impact of tourism dollars (REMI Company Website) • The U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis has an input-output model which shows effects of demand on variables within a region. (RIMS II).

24. Conclusion • With it's vibrant seaport and rich history, New Bedford is a South Coast Tourist Destination. However, improvements can be made to enable New Bedford to further develop its role as a tourist destination. • In order to improve tourism - thus increasing economic activity in the Bristol and Plymouth communities served by the New Bedford Chamber of Commerce - specific goals and next steps should be targeted:

25. Goals & Targets • Strive to improve area reputation. • Likewise, continue to focus on the areas that make the South Coast unique and attractive (waterfront location, small town/big city juxtaposition, etc...) • Increase awareness of area amenities and travel options. • Appeal to local officials to invest in tourism (thus investing in the local economy) using MOTT study as evidence of the impact of tourism dollars within a community. • Involve stakeholders in efforts to promote tourism and maximize the impact of tourism dollars - direct, indirect, and induced - spent in the area. • Maintain a relationship with the Urban Initiative to employ service-learning students who are able to offer fresh perspective and pick up where this project has left off.