As British Columbia experiences some of its strongest tourism growth in years, Golden is receiving $689,171 from the Province’s Resort Municipality Initiative (RMI) to support its tourism industry.

Through the Province’s RMI, Golden has received a total of $6,560,261 since 2007 in funding toward projects including (but not limited to): enhancements to the community square and green spaces, snowmobile path improvements, highway corridor enhancement/beautification, signage, and visitor information kiosks.

The RMI provides $10.5 million each year to help eligible resort-oriented municipalities to develop and enhance their tourism infrastructure and amenities. RMI communities include Whistler, Fernie, Kimberley, Golden, Harrison Hot Springs, Invermere, Osoyoos, Radium Hot Springs, Revelstoke, Rossland, Sun Peaks, Tofino, Ucluelet and Valemount.

Since the RMI’s inception in 2006, more than $108.6 million has been invested in tourism infrastructure and programs to support local and regional tourism economies in the 14 participating communities.

Quotes:

Shirley Bond, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Minister Responsible for Labour –

“B.C.’s tourism industry is experiencing incredible growth. It’s helping to create jobs and is one of the reasons why our province has the leading economy in Canada. Resort Municipality Initiative funding ensures qualifying resort communities have the resources they need to provide a world-class traveller experience. It’s an important step toward making sure visitors return to our province for years to come, supporting businesses and keeping our economy diverse, strong and growing.”

Ron Oszust, mayor of Golden –

“Funding from the Resort Municipality Initiative continues to be a critical keystone in Golden’s efforts to beautify and diversify its tourism based amenities. Without the program, there is little doubt we would ever meet the expectations of a growing visitor market and in turn our tourism economy goals for greater sustainability. We continue to thank and commend the Province for this ever valuable program that continues to deliver clear results.”

Quick Facts:

• In 2015, 4.9 million international visitors came to British Columbia – about an 8% increase compared to 2014.
• The number of total overnight international visitors to B.C. in 2016 so far (January to July) surpassed the three million mark (3,200,503) for an increase of 12.5% over the same period last year.
• Tourism provides a job for roughly one out of every 15 people employed in British Columbia.
• RMI supports the province’s tourism strategy, Gaining the Edge, and the BC Jobs Plan.

Learn More:

To learn more about the RMI, please visit: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/topic.page?id=30A40BDA6D8346798E15C6050063F719

BC Jobs Plan: http://www.bcjobsplan.ca/