![Tourism Kamloops gets a quarter-million-dollar boost from B.C. government](https://media-cdn.socastsrm.com/wordpress/wp-content/blogs.dir/1605/files/2020/05/tourism-kamloops-visitor-centre.jpg)
The province is giving about $250,000 to Tourism Kamloops to use this year.
CEO Beverley Desantis says that money will help the non-profit keep its marketing team in place, and prepare to welcome tourists back to Kamloops when it’s safe to do.
“This is intended to take us to when we begin to see (Municipal and Regional District Tax) funds flowing again, a percentage of that. And it should take us to about the end of November… This program has really been a welcome response from the Ministry to tourism and destination marketing organizations across British Columbia.”
Desantis says Tourism Kamloops has been responsible financially and prepared for a rainy day, but she admits without this provincial funding it would’ve had to lay off staff this summer.
“This will actually assist us in keeping staff and marketing programs to the end of the year, and then we’ll just have to continue to reevaluate,” she says.
She says revenues have dropped nearly 90 per cent this year so far because of the pandemic.
The money for Tourism Kamloops is part of $10 million announced today by the B.C. government for non-profit tourism marketing organizations.
Earlier this month, NL News asked B.C. Finance Minister Carole James if the province was planning any sort of economic stimulus fund for tourist-dependent businesses because of the pandemic; James indicated the idea of finding ways to support the industry were being discussed.