Forum to focus on recreation industry
Strengthening southern Lincoln County’s recreation economy will be the topic of a public forum set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, in the Ponderosa Room at Libby City Hall.
The forum is part of an ongoing series on the future prosperity of Lincoln County sponsored by a coalition that includes the Libby Area Chamber of Commerce, Revett Minerals, Kootenai River Development Council, Molly Montana Real Estate, Idaho Forest Group, Clearwater Montana Properties, Lincoln County Tourism Bureau, Lincoln County Asbestos Resource Program, Montana Wilderness Association and Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness.
Guest speakers will be Lee Boman, founding member of Seeley Lake ROCKS! (Regional Outdoor Center for Kinetic Sports) and board member of Seeley Lake Community Foundation; and Greg Fortin, owner and lead guide for Glacier Adventure Guides in Columbia Falls.
Local panelists will include Kootenai National Forest Supervisor Chris Savage and Mark Mason, recently retired Forest Service recreation manager and an avid outdoor recreationist. Tina Oliphant, executive director for Lincoln County Port Authority and Kootenai River Development Council, will moderate the forum.
“It’s all about the future of the area, positivity around the community, what’s available,” said Molly Montana, who has been involved with the series since the kickoff last February with a forum that focused on “Community Assets and Growing Local Business.”
Other forum topics over the course of 2014 included anchor industries in Lincoln County, Forest Service contributions to the economy and community, technological entrepreneurship, health care, and business loans, grants and other incentives.
At the first forum last February, Bonner County Economic Development Corporation director Karl Dye discussed the growth of Sandpoint’s economy. Southern Lincoln County boasts similar quality of life amenities that could promote a more diverse economy, Montana said.
“We’ve got high speed Internet, we’ve got the mountains, we’ve got the river, we’ve got it all,” she said.
Diversification is necessary for a healthy economy, said Johnette Watkins of Kootenai Job Service.
“As we see now with the Troy Mine, we can’t put all our eggs in the natural resource basket,” she said.
Greg Fortin’s experience with Glacier Adventure Guides could serve as an example for local outdoor enthusiasts looking for business opportunities, Oliphant said.
“He turned his passion into an entrepreneurial pursuit, and he has been very successful,” she said.
Lee Boman will talk about how a consensus-based, collaborative effort with a focus on private-public partnerships turned Seeley Lake into a hub for Nordic skiing.
As a real estate broker, Montana said she’s seen firsthand how amenities like recreational opportunities promote economic growth.
Recreation in itself may never be the driving force of the local economy, but it does serve to bring people to the area, Oliphant said – people with the potential to start businesses, bring special expertise to the community or build a skilled workforce.
“People who visit come back and move,” she said.