Communities across the country are looking for ways to incentivize development, including tourism development. They have to be innovative and just a little outrageous to capture the imagination of the American public and the international traveler.
Maximizing the Obvious
The communities that are the most successful are those in which there’s authenticity involved. It‟s hard to replicate something in one place that was done somewhere else. It must be authentic to the space – of place and subject matter.
It has to be something that resonates and something that is different from anywhere else. If something is developing naturally on its own, it is by definition authentic.
Union Pacific Bailey Yard is authentic – it is, in real life, the world’s largest railroad yard. Bailey Yard is real. It is also a symbol of something in-finitely greater than any one thing. It is a symbol of the transcontinental railroad; and the stories that lie behind that are the stories of America and how America was forged.
We can use history as a stepping stone, as the basis of the story we’re trying to tell. However whatever we do, must look toward the future. Rich in history, the railroad industry is constantly evolving and expanding.
The history of transportation in this country is also the history of America. Tourists are not so interested in the history of the railroad company or the technology, but the people who built the railroad and those who rode the trains. Tourists are interested in the back-story.
A current example is the television series “Hell on Wheels”. It’s not about trains or the railroad. It’s about the company men, surveyors, laborers, prostitutes, mercenaries and others who lived in the mobile encampment that accompanied the construction of the first transcontinental railroad. The place was called “Hell on Wheels”; but it‟s the stories of the characters that viewers find interesting.
Of course, for children there’s the long standing love affair with model trains and the likes of Thomas and Friends.
North Platte’s greatest tourism asset is the railroad. There is a powerful railroad influence. Families go back generations. That history gives North Platte its authenticity. It is the story of its people. Every great tourism project has benefited from bringing people to a place where you can convey the importance of what is authentic in your community.
The technology exists today to optimize these ideas. Characters can be brought to life so modern day visitors can experience a visit from these characters.
That’s Entertainment!
The entertainment, cultural attraction and retail segments of the tourism industry are becoming increasingly blended. New entertainment features are rapidly being established in areas where they never existed before – such as shopping centers, restaurants, and downtown areas.
Themed entertainment and well designed cultural attractions have mastered the art of translating history into storytelling, creating and revitalizing experiences, with the result being stronger consumer connections and a more compelling brand development.
The Golden Spike Tower and the Train Display and UP Museum in Cody Park are interesting; but they are not compelling enough to become destinations. There isn’t enough at this point to make those experiences as immersive, engaging and vital as they could be.
A visitor to North Platte could spend an entire day in downtown and never know that the site of the World Famous North Platte Canteen was only a block away.
For a community of approximately 25,000 people, to attract 100,000 to 150,000 visitors over the course of a year would have a tremendous impact on revenues – restaurants, retailers, lodging and taxes. But can it be done, and how?
Our approach is to superimpose a matrix of new and existing cultural attraction and themed entertainment opportunities on the city plan of North Platte in a manner that will cross market North Platte’s “heritage” message locally and with the interstate travelers bringing both closer together intellectually and emotionally.
From architecture, graphics and historic recreation, to all forms of interactive and immersive media, long term planning strategies must incorporate concept planning, market and feasibility studies, and of course financial planning.
Engaging The Experts
With those parameters in mind, we began integrating the recommendations suggested in a number of previous studies regarding the revitalization of the downtown and Original Town areas of North Platte, as well as a previous marketing assessment of North Platte.
We then had numerous conversations with members of the cultural attraction and entertainment development industries.
The result is that the Original Town Association has engaged the professional organizations of Barry Howard Designs Limited and JB Research Company to conduct a feasibility study and business case assessment for developing an integrated approach to optimizing new attractions with North Platte’s existing assets including conceptual design services and business plan assistance for the entire project.
Both firms will be in North Platte during the week of January 16th, 2012. We encourage you to help us and welcome your participation in this exciting process.
A kick-off meeting will be held at noon on Tuesday January 17th at the Golden Spike Tower and Visitor Center.
Please contact David Harrold at (308) 534-3648 or email at railfest@nque.com. We very much value you input and suggestions.
