"Harnessing the Power of Our Watershed for Economic Development" 2.18.21

This is the recording of the February 18, 2021 presentation, "Harnessing the Power of Our Watershed for Economic Development." In this meeting, a coalition of economic and community development groups, organized through North Woods and Waters of the St. Croix Heritage Area (NWW), came together to explore how to work together across the watershed to promote the natural, cultural, and historic resources for economic development..

Nineteen organizations sponsored the event, representing economic and community development, tourism, arts and culture, recreation and conservation. More than 110 people registered for the event, with 88 attending.
• Julie Fox and Lori Peterson, from Wisconsin and Minnesota Departments of tourism talked about the economic impact of heritage tourism and how their agencies can support organizations in the watershed
• Marty Harding, Chair of NWW, described how designation as a National Heritage Area enhances our region’s visibility and potential for wide-reaching promotion and shared exciting new developments regarding designation
• Siddharth Chandramouli, Ph.D., presented the Carlson Consulting Enterprise (a program of the U of M's Carlson School of Management) economic impact study for the watershed
• In small groups, people discussed the possibilities for joint marketing of recreational opportunities, cultural and historical sites, businesses, and the arts
• Heather Rutledge, Art Reach St. Croix, and Carol LeBreck, NWW Board of Directors, described two new services being offered by North Woods and Waters: LYNX, a free, on-line events calendar that unites all communities in the watershed and Clio, an app and website that brings natural, cultural and historic sites to a national audience
• Israel Haas, who moderated the event, explained next steps for bringing economic development entities, municipalities, chambers of commerce, visitor bureaus, and tourism groups together to further explore these ideas

To become involved with this coalition or for more information, contact [email protected]