Nature tourism could revitalize small towns
New approach to rural economic development
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
In a meeting Thursday at Tampa, more than 50 participants heard how one small town in the panhandle of Texas was revitalized in five short years due to agri-tourism.
Remelle Farrar of Canadian, Texas, held her audience spellbound as she shared how her community did it.
She said most economic development money is spent trying to get people to move from another town to yours.
Taking a new track, five rural counties joined together to form a not-for-profit coalition to draw urban dwellers to their area to enjoy unique rural experiences.
"There are millions of urban Americans who want to get away. They are looking for Mayberry, and you and I live in Mayberry every day," she said.
She noted city dwellers outnumber rural folks by far, so they decide what is going to happen to us through their votes and their money.
"We need to educate urban people on our way of life so they will help us save our lifestyle," she said.
With the support of city, county, and state, the Canadian community targeted people over 40 with incomes of $60,000 or more.
They developed contracts with surrounding ranchers to provide one-on-one experiences for city people, activities such as bird watching, sightseeing, visiting the ranch house, hiking, or accompanying the rancher as he feeds his cattle.
As people learned of the opportunities, they willingly paid hundreds of dollars to spend three days in the area, creating the need for places to stay and eat and other things to do.
Canadian, a town with a population of 2,100, formerly had many boarded businesses on Main Street and was in gradual decline.
The influx of tourists resulted in many commercial establishments springing up to meet the needs of the visitors.
The town now has 10 restaurants and 14 bed-and-breakfasts. Businesses have reinvented themselves and new shops have been established. Historical and scenic sites in the area also have become popular tourist attractions.
There are 150 beds to accommodate visitors, and no plans are being made to increase capacity.
The idea was not to make the town bigger but to help it flourish while keeping its rural atmosphere, Farrar said.
"About 98 percent of every dollar of profit has been from growing our own businesses," she noted.
Every house in town is occupied and young people are coming back to their home community to live and work.
No chain stores exist, and the town has agreements with surrounding landowners to prevent the land from being bought up by large corporations.
Farrar acknowledged the town got a big boost when the nearby Arrington Ranch was chosen by Hollywood for a movie. There was a rush to provide accommodations for those involved in the production.
The original goal of community leaders was to help five ranchers earn $10,000 more per year and help five businesses grow.
"We far exceeded our goal," Farrar said, "Tourists changed our image of ourselves. They value what we have more than we do."
The people attending the meeting at Tampa came from every town in Marion County, as well as surrounding counties.
Tampa Mayor Jim Clemmer introduced Peggy Blackman of Marion. Blackman is a member of the not-for-profit Flint Hills Resource Conservation Development Council and chairman of the Marion County Advisory Committee.
The advisory committee and Tampa Community Association sponsored the meeting.
Blackman said Marion and Dickinson are among nine counties the state has designated as a pilot project for promoting agri-tourism in Kansas.
She said Thursday's meeting was planned to bring together people in the area who are interested in rural economic development.
"We wanted to set up a network of people so we are ready to go forward," she said. "This is a whole new way of looking at it."
Farrar has agreed to return to Marion County for a two-day workshop. No date has been set.
