Tuesday, October 2, 2018
With five beautiful beaches, a wealth of musical talent and a prime location mid-way along the Celtic Shores Coastal Trail, Port Hood knew the community had a lot to offer visitors. So the community came together to create a vision for a town brand that would help promote its assets and attract more visitors. The streetscaping and façade program that followed was intended to help ensure visitors have a positive experience in the town.
The Port Hood Area Development Society, in partnership with other funders, contracted Ekistics Design to help lead community consultations and develop the Port Hood Conceptual Development Plan.
With the development plan in place, the Municipality of the County of Inverness and Port Hood Area Development Society applied to the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) for the Façade and Streetscape Program, and the project was approved in 2016. The façade and streetscaping project was a partnership between ACOA, Port Hood business owners and the Municipality of the County of Inverness, with countless in-kind volunteer hours contributed by the Community Management Committee members. The total project cost was $1,026,162.
The Community Management Committee, and its hired consultants, developed a vision for the Beach Capital of Cape Breton, along with a nautical theme and design guidelines for businesses and public spaces.
“The goal was to encourage more people to stop in the community and help businesses grow,” says Judy Watts, Secretary of the Port Hood Area Development Society.
Melanie Beaton, the Façade and Streetscape Project Coordinator for the County of Inverness says investing in exterior improvements helps businesses increase traffic and improve sales.
“The business investment allows communities to leverage additional funding for community shared infrastructure or streetscape improvements. Investing in community shared infrastructure via streetscape improvements is another way to elevate a community or region’s overall attraction capability by linking together individual improvements and by improving both visitor and residential experiences.”
The streetscaping project included new gateway signage at each entrance to Port Hood, directional signage for attractions and each of the five beaches, identifying signage for each beach, and planters. Sunset vistas with Adirondack chairs were created to give people a spot to take in the view and admire the sunsets. Visitors are taking photos at the sunset vistas and beach signs and sharing them on social media, making them a great tool to help raise awareness about Port Hood as a destination. Banners on the light posts carry a beach theme with sayings like “Eat, sleep, beach, repeat” and “Seas the Day.”
The community also developed a new map and brochure with business listings and directions to the five beaches.
“There’s a renewed sense of community pride of place,” says Amey Beaton, Tourism Development Coordinator for the County of Inverness. “Friends are coming home in the summer and posting pictures of the sunset vistas and saying, ‘I love what you’ve done with this place.’”
Fourteen businesses participated in the façade program, contributing a total of $344,000. Each business worked with an architect and designer to ensure exterior design and signage is consistent throughout the community.
Patricia vanZutphen, owner of the Clove Hitch Bar & Bistro was one of the business participants. Her building was constructed in the late 1980s and expanded in the early 1990s. The Clove Hitch received new windows, doors, roofing, siding, and a new deck, plus Patricia decided to renovate the dining room.
“We’re receiving positive feedback from people coming in and saying ‘wow.’ Locals who’ve seen the building for years and years just felt proud to have this in their community,” says Patricia. “Visitors appreciate the modern atmosphere here and they definitely comment on it.”
She says some businesses did small projects like signage or painting, and others did $50,000 in renovations.
“The project was about taking pride in the community and I saw a really great energy come from it,” Patricia says. “It just boosts everybody up.”
Amey Beaton says “The businesses achieved the look and feel on the outside, so now they’re doing an equal amount of work on the inside to make business better. Some businesses are changing how they operate.” She says some businesses have started offering live entertainment, for example.
The Port Hood Co-op is the main grocery store in town, and the building needed an update. The entire community pulled together to ensure the Co-op could participate in the façade program. The Port Hood Area Development Society contributed $12,000, local fisherman donated lobster for four 20 Lb lobster draws, and donations came in through the in-store Raise the Roof fundraiser.
“It generated a lot of excitement and shows how the community sticks together and supports each other,” says Janet McManus, store manager at the Port Hood Co-op.
She says the results have been fantastic, with positive reactions from visitors and residents alike. “I think it has given us a resurgence to see people coming in to see who we are and what we’re about.”
“It really did a boost for the community’s morale,” says Judy Watts.
Both Judy Watts and Amey Beaton say they see growth in tourism in the community, with new accommodations opening and more and more visitors discovering the beaches.
“We have seen an increase in the number of local accommodations available, people are saying maybe I should participate,” says Judy.
In addition to the Façade and Streetscaping program, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Small Craft Harbours funded a major upgrade to the facilities at Murphy’s Pond Harbour. Amey says this upgrade made space available for recreational boaters to dock seasonally as well as providing space for short term visitors landing by sea. Recently, the Hebridean Sky cruise ship anchored in Port Hood to take passengers to nearby Cabot Links.
The upgrades also prompted local organizers to host the first annual Murphy’s Pond Music Festival at the wharf on July 14, 2018, with hopes to expand the festival next year.
Amey says the next step will be for the community to work with operators develop new travel experiences that will continue to attract more visitors.
Port Hood’s Conceptual Development Plan and Streetscaping and Façade Program are great examples of how communities can collaborate with government and businesses to create compelling, visitor-friendly destinations with the greatest opportunity to attract visitors.
Related links:
Tourism Nova Scotia Experience Development Resources