Fuzzy Math in Tourism

To evaluate the success of the Heritage Tourism program here in Independence, you just have to “Do the Math.” In the last ten years, our head-counts at tourist sites have dropped from approximately 400,000 to 200,000 per year while we have increased our expenditures from $500,000 to $1,000,000, and doubled the number city employees dedicated to the tourism department. And to say that we had a thriving tourism industry here ten years ago would be an understatement. And head-counts are somewhat deceiving since tourists are counted several times as they go from site to site and even counted twice at individual sites (i.e. if one watches the film at the Ticket Center while waiting for a tour at the Truman Home). And, not to mention, that some folks visiting sites are not tourist at all but are actually locals or students. From simple arithmetic, City Hall is investing $5 per site visit (compared to $1.25 ten years ago). So if we spend $5 of tax money just to get you to the front door of the Vaile Mansion and you spend $5 for the tour, then was that a good investment? The million dollars might be better spent on historic site development / expansion / preservation, fixing sidewalks along walking tour trails, restoring / expanding interpretive signs, and investing in neighborhoods surrounding tourist sites. So why were the tourism numbers several times higher in the 1980’s and 1990’s when we were spending very little on marketing? And in 1998, we paid a consultant from Arizona to develop a “Tourism Plan” so we could do a better job promoting ourselves. Did that help? The numbers say that the more we spend, the less success we have. Even though the money comes from a lodging tax from travelers, many who do not go beyond the I-70 corridor, that does not mean it is not real money. We have to demand accountability, results, and, yes, basic math skills from City Hall. Our slogan should be “It costs us a Lincoln to get you to a Truman site.”