Thu, Nov 26 2009
|
DOES IT HELP OR HARM? Facility marks its fifth year in business By CARL E. FEATHER - Staff Writer - cfeather@starbeacon.comStar Beacon Intangible benefits
Spreadsheets give only one picture of the lodge, however. When lodge supporters talk about the benefits of the 109-room facility, they focus instead on the intangible benefits that ripple through the county’s economy, particularly to those who service the tourism trade. “I believe (the lodge) has significant economic development benefits for the county that are sometimes difficult to quantify for the general public,” says Janet Discher, county administrator. Mark Winchell, who heads up the county’s convention and visitors bureau, quantifies those benefits as marketing and a boost to ancillary businesses. Winchell says whenever the lodge places advertisements in media, it promotes the entire county as a destination, not just the lodge. “It leverages marketing dollars,” Winchell said. He says the lodge’s presence has been a boon to other businesses that rely upon tourism for their existence: wineries, specialty retailers, restaurants, entertainment, recreational activities and equipment rental shops, among them. His mother, Donniella Winchell, who serves on CFA and heads up the Ohio Wine Producers Association, said Ashtabula County suffered through difficult recessions in the 1970s and ’80s but this time it is faring much better compared to the rest of the nation (Ashtabula County’s unemployment rate was 13.7 percent in April). “Something is different this time,” said Winchell. “We have diversified from a tourism and agribusiness perspective. We have wineries, we have artisan cheese business in south county, and we get tens of thousands of tourists coming in every month. The lodge has provided an opportunity for us to attract a clientele that has a whole different level of income.” A study conducted by the Ohio State University Extension Sea Grant Program in 2006 suggested the lodge pumps between $5 and $10 million into the local economy annually. Donniella Winchell says the lodge’s presence has created a synergy that has buoyed both business and revenues for other businesses on The Strip. “It’s provided tremendous value,” says Kevin Grippi, administrator for Geneva-on-the-Lake. “Merchants comment all the time that since the lodge was built, they’ve seen a different kind of clientele and people from outside the area whom they’d not seen before. It’s been good for business.” Don Woodward, GOTL business owner, said the biggest challenge at The Strip prior to building the lodge was to meet the requests of tourists who wanted an upscale lodging option. The other unfilled niche was to provide lodging for large groups, like reunions. “It fills two major niches,” he said. In addition, the lodge helped GOTL transition from being a summer mecca for blue-collar workers to a viticultural romping ground for more-affluent travelers. Woodward said that’s important because the blue-collar trade has dried up as mills and factories in the Mahoning Valley and Pittsburgh region have gone cold. “I think it basically saved Geneva-on-the-Lake,” Woodward said. “I believe the lodge is a tourism engine that is helping drive much of what is going on in this corner of the state,” Donniella Winchell said. 
More from the Currents section
Kingsville Elementary raises $2,096 for student From small claims to probate, mediation services take load off docket |
Print this story
Post to del.icio.us
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
|
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
© 2009, Ashtabula Star Beacon
P.O. Box 2100, Ashtabula OH 44005-2100 (440) 998-2323, Send news tips and feedback 
|
Popular Business directory links - Ashtabula Apartments | Ashtabula Attorneys | Ashtabula Auto Dealers | Ashtabula Auto Parts | Ashtabula Auto Repair | Ashtabula Beauty Salons | Ashtabula Car Rental | Ashtabula Dentists | Ashtabula Doctors | Ashtabula Flowers | Ashtabula Hotels | Ashtabula Insurance | Ashtabula Loans | Ashtabula Mortgages | Ashtabula Movers | Ashtabula Pizza | Ashtabula Realtors | Ashtabula Restaurants | Ashtabula Storage | Ashtabula Tax Preparation | Ashtabula Travel | Ashtabula Featured | More...
|
|
Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. • CNHI Classified Advertising Network • CNHI News Service |
