Mayor Paul Coogan, Viva Fall River and UMass Dartmouth last week released the initial findings of a report on tourism in Fall River.
The 44-page, $50,000 report was prepared by UMass Dartmouth’s Charlton College of Business and was part of the city’s over $600,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds given to Viva Fall River to research strategies to increase tourism in Fall River.
The basis of the report was the collection of visitor data from three anchor institutions, Battleship Cove, The Narrows Center for the Arts and the Lizzie Borden House.
Viva Fall River Executive Director Patti Rego says the data collected supported assumptions that visitors spend money in local restaurants and retail stores. It also provided insight into how the city can expand opportunities during non-traditional tourism seasons and events.
Dr. John Williams, Dean of the Charlton College of Business at UMass Dartmouth, says the city is ripe for tourism growth and it should begin looking at recruiting more hotels and restaurants.
To no one’s surprise, most of the visitors to the city drive an hour or less to Fall River. Dr. Williams says what is impressive is that the city does also have an international base.
Ms. Rego says the city is currently advertising Fall River tourism in Boston and as far away as the mid-Atlantic states.
Mayor Coogan says the report is just the foundation for what will become a long-term tourism strategy. The parties will continue to gather visitor data and will release more from its study in the coming weeks.
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