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Progress Made On Ripley Gateway Study

Plans for a grander scale gateway into New York state and Chautauqua County is making headway.

A study is being done to determining the feasibility of establishing a gateway and commerce center. The center will also result in the development of a conceptual plan that reveals the size, scope and configuration of the facility along with cost estimates.

Last year, county officials hired Clark Patterson Lee for $45,000 to create the feasibility study. Since then, RKG has been hired as sub-consultants for the project of promoting, developing, and protecting the area’s tourism industry. Because millions of travelers annually traverse the New York thruway, it has been recognized that this would be a prime location for such a facility as travelers enter and leave the state.

In February, George Borrello, county executive, said he wants to redevelop the gateway from an area that currently contains an Adult Super Store sign, a broken billboard and roadside debris.

His vision for the gateway is similar to Tamarac, a welcome/commerce center facility located in West Virginia and a model for this project, which attracts hundreds of thousands of people annually. Tamarack highlights products and produce made in West Virginia. If the proposal comes to fruition, the Ripley Gateway would highlight state made products like cheese, wine, yogurt and craft beer.

It was also decided that the initiative needs to be undertaken in order to convince stakeholders that such a gateway facility is needed and feasible. This effort could lead to significantly more tourists spending money in the county, visitors being educated about what we have to offer and more travelers spending time here.

Another initiative recently completed by the county is the development of a recruitment and visitors brochure. The Chautauqua County Division of Economic Development and the Chautauqua County IDA jointly financed the development and production of a new marketing tool, a published recruitment/visitors brochure, which tells the story of the county’s world class attractions and four-season entertainment. The brochure includes information about Chautauqua County’s year-round destinations, naturally diverse assets and its historically significant attributes; the dominate business sectors and premier examples of key companies, including tourism, manufacturing and the agribusiness sectors; its low-cost housing; the educational opportunities that abound throughout the county; and its strategic location advantages.

The creation of the professionally produced brochure is part of a broader marketing and recruiting initiative that is a direct result of Borrello’s visits with more than 100 businesses in his first 100 days in office.

A significant number of businesses communicated the need for a marketing tool that would assist them in their employee recruiting efforts by telling the story of the quality work/life balance that’s achievable here in Chautauqua County. At the same time, it was deemed important to broaden the brochure’s content to also serve as a tool for existing and potential visitors by telling the story of Chautauqua County’s natural and man-made assets, historical resources, educational and tourism opportunities, and other amenities that are key attributes for increasing tourism. The brochures are currently being distributed to businesses, organizations, not-for-profits, and service providers throughout the community.

Mark Geise, IDA CEO, said 15,000 copies were made and are being given to the hospitality industry, realtors and local businesses who can use it to provide information about Chautauqua County. The development of the brochure also came with the creating of a new “one-stop” website — chqpartnership.org – that will correlate with the new marketing brochure.

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