No Room at the Inn

It may come as a surprise to you that the motels are being filled in town, especially on many weekends. The tourism industry is more important than most people locally realize. It brings a sizeable amount of income into the community; a good source of income, for Missouri it is a $13 billion industry in Missouri.

Statewide, there are almost 290,000 residents employed in the tourism industry. Last year tourism was responsible for drawing approximately 37 million visitors to the state. It generated $383 million in state sales revenues. Without tourism in the United States, each household would pay an additional $965 in taxes in order to receive the same services. With tourism being a major industry in the state, it is our challenge to obtain our share of the industry. We may not be able to be a major player in the state like Branson, Bass Pro shops or the St. Louis Arch; still we can obtain a portion. It takes marketing and this is being done with IMPACT Nevada Tourism Board with motel taxes being paid to the city of Nevada for funding.

There are several weekends during the year that all of the motels are filled in Nevada; this is true during special events at Cottey College and on many weekends with people brought in by Champion Diamonds. According to Glenda Crowder, tourism coordinator for Nevada, motels are used in other towns, including Fort Scott, Butler, El Dorado Springs and Lamar -- motels are running full.

A tourist has been defined as anyone traveling 50 miles and stay in the community overnight. They are spending money at such places as sit-down restaurants, filling up with gas and snacks at conveniences stores; and attending other tourism sites, such as the aquatic center, the movies, the museum and other places. Folks, the tourism represent money that is being spent in our community affect the economy of the community. There are many who do not give consideration to the tourist industry locally, even though it does contribute significantly to the income of the community.

One of the needs in the community is for more motel rooms. Efforts are made to get people here; still other communities often are used to fully accommodate those coming to the community. It would be much better if there were enough rooms available locally. What most of us remember as the Rambler Motel is now in foreclosure, which increases the need.

It is important that everyone be an ambassador for the community, in hopes that these tourist will want to return to the area. This means being friendly with all of the people coming to the community including those here for Champion Diamonds, Cottey events, school events and what ever purpose they might be visiting our community.

One of the attractions includes the conservation areas which bring hunters, fishermen and others to observe wildlife. The visitors for these purposes number approximately 70,000 each year. This is larger than what might be expected; still it will most likely grow in future years.

We currently arein the time of year when travel in the area is most popular, from this month of June to August. A few of the local interests that pull in tourists include: Cottey College -- 2,000 to 5,000 each year; Bushwhacker Museum (one of the best museums you are going to find anywhere) -- 3,000 per year, including 1,500 from out of state; Champion Diamonds -- 25,000 to 30,000 per season; Nevada Raceway -- 28,000 to 30,000 per season; Frank E. Peters Golf Course -- 10,000 to 12,000 per year; Griffons 2,500 per year; and the schools host several competitions every year that bring in as many as 1,500 people a day. There are many other events, including the Neptunes swimming competition, that bring visitors into the area.

Bushwhacker Days, to be held next week, is a major event of the year for the community. With the good events being planed, the crowds will be coming to town; the schedule is packed full of great events and entertainment. With Miller's coming to town, once again a good carnival will be featured.

The concept for many is that Bushwhacker Days is a chamber of commerce event or a city of Nevada event. It is neither of these. It is a community event. At one time it was thought that the event should be operated outside of the chamber office and not be identified as a chamber event. There were some problems in operating it in this manner and it became apparent that it needs to be operated in conjunction with the chamber. There is a Bushwhacker Days committee, headed by Charlie Johnson, chairman, which plans and implement the annual event.

In the past the city of Nevada has supported Bushwhacker Days with traffic control and in other ways. Currently, the city is not in a financial position to help in this manner. It is appropriate that the community take over this responsibility rather than the city performing this task. Therefore a large number of volunteers are needed to volunteer two hours of their time to help with Bushwhacker Days.

You can volunteer to help by contacting the chamber at (417) 667-5300. It is only though good community support that the large annual event will be successful. Also your help is needed all year as an ambassador to the community, selling the community to others and encouraging them to come to our area.