5% of BC’s co-op marketing funds goes to Kootenay Rockies region

Tourism players in the Kootenay Rockies region have received their annual co-op marketing funds from Destination BC.

by Keith Powell — September 06, 2018

Residences at Fairmont Ridge is one of the participants in the co-op funding program called Travel Columbia Valley. — Photo courtesy Residences at Fairmont Ridge

Tourism players in the Kootenay Rockies region have received their annual co-op marketing funds from Destination BC. The total received in the region is $195,978 or .049% of the total $4 million awarded throughout the province.

Destination BC recently announced it was providing $4.0 million in fiscal 2018/19 to support 62 marketing initiatives around the province through the Co-Op Marketing Partnerships Program. Destination BC's funds will be matched by the programs participants on a one-to-one basis, at minimum.

Destination BC states, “Designed around collaboration, the Co-Op Marketing Partnerships Program encourages partnerships between groups, sectors and communities that share common marketing goals to leverage funding in order to maximise their marketing efforts. Participants span all six regions of the province with support for community-based tourism projects as well as sectors such as golf, mountain biking, wine touring and fishing.”

Here is list of the tourism co-op funding throughout the Kootenay Rockies region:

Travel Columbia Valley — $51,000

Invermere Panorama DMO, Fairmont Business Association, Tourism Radium Hot Springs, Fairmont Hot Springs Resort, Columbia Valley Golf Association, Copper Point Resort, Fairmont Creek Property Rentals, Bighorn Meadows Resort, The Residences at Fairmont Ridge.

Nelson Kootenay Lake — $42,600

Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism (Nelson, Balfour, Ainsworth, Kaslo, Meadow Creek, Lardeau)

Lower Columbia Valley — $32,100

Tourism Rossland, Red Mountain Resort, City of Rossland, RDKB Area A, RDKB Area B, City of Trail, Village of Fruitvale, Village of Warfield, Village of Montrose.

Creston Valley — $28,500

Town of Creston, Regional District of Central Kootenay Areas A, B & C.

MyKootenays — $22,702

Tourism Fernie, City of Cranbrook/Cranbrook Tourism, Tourism Kimberley, Invermere Panorama DMO, Tourism Radium, Fernie Museum/History Society, St. Eugene Resort, Fairmont Hot Springs Resort, Fernie & District Arts Council, Fernie Heritage Library, Fernie Chamber of Commerce, Sparwood Museum, Sparwood Chamber of Commerce, Elkford Arts Council.

Explore Rockies — $19,076

Cranbrook Tourism Society, St Eugene Resort, Tourism Kimberley, Tourism Fernie, Canadian Rockies Airport, Pacific Coastal.

In addition to the above funding in the Kootenay Rockies region, the Boundary Country/Big White region in the Thompson Okanagan received funding as well.

Boundary Country/Big White — $84,627

Regional District Kootenay Boundary Area C, D, E, Big White Tourism Society and Big White Ski Resort, City of Grand Forks, Village of Midway, City of Greenwood.

The largest amount of co-op funding went to a variety of specific tourism sectors including: Golf ($250,000 – BC Golf Marketing Alliance); Wine $250,000 (BC Wine Institute); Fishing $250,000 (saltwater and freshwater fishing); Mountain Bike $161,000 (Mountain Bike Tourism) and BC Ale Trail $202,615 (Ale Trail tourism consortium).