THUNDER BAY – The COVID-19 pandemic has cost northwestern Ontario’s tourism sector hundreds of millions of dollars, new estimates from the City of Thunder Bay’s tourism marketing agency indicate.
The sector likely won t bounce back fully until 2024 or 2025, Tourism Thunder Bay manager Paul Pepe reported to city council on Monday, as part of an annual tourism review and forecast.
2020 had begun promisingly before spiralling into “the largest crisis in the history of the global tourism sector,” he said.
The city was awarded the 2021 Scotties curling championship, hosted the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games, confirmed the return of cruise ship activity in 2022, and saw strong hotel activity in the first quarter of 2020.
Thunder Bay letter sign shelved
City council cancels funding for controversial waterfront sign, day after city s tourism head said it wasn t the right time for the project
Feb 2, 2021 9:32 PM By: Ian Kaufman
Toronto s letter sign has proven a popular attraction.
THUNDER BAY – Plans to put a large Thunder Bay letter sign at the waterfront have been nixed, a day after the city’s tourism manager told city councillors the idea had little support from businesses in the sector.
Several councillors said there was also clear public opposition to the project, before voting 7-6 to remove $100,000 earmarked for the sign at a final 2021 budget review meeting Tuesday.
Letter sign not a priority for industry, says tourism head
Tourism funds from MAT tax should focus on short-term relief and recovery, says city s tourism manager
Feb 1, 2021 10:03 PM By: Ian Kaufman
Letter signs have proven popular in other cities including Toronto.
THUNDER BAY – The controversial letter sign proposed for Thunder Bay’s waterfront took a blow Monday as the city’s tourism manager came out against it, citing industry feedback.
Paul Pepe, the manager of Tourism Thunder Bay, made the comments while presenting the agency’s annual review to city council on Monday, after Coun. Peng You asked for his opinion as a tourism professional.
The Thunder Bay waterfront word sign clears a hurdle. Council voted Wednesday in favour of the next step for the 50th anniversary project, which will .
The city estimated the Municipal Accommodation Tax will be down by 30 per cent compared to 2019, which means $1.15 million less will get transferred to the Indoor Turf Facility Reserve Fund.
One of the largest external budgets that council is not directly responsible for is the city s police service, which has a $47 million budget. For 2021, an increase of $1.2 million is requested, mainly because of $803,000 in wage increases.
Two major projects are also slated for Thunder Bay Transit, including a transit hub, and two new Lift Plus accessible buses. Costs associated with the project will address outdated infrastructure and hub configuration that is not consistent with current transit stop/station standards, operational and community needs, the budget noted. Discussions on a new transit hub have been ongoing for eight years.