In the Feb. 3 edition of the Alderson Review, the West Virginia Daily News reported on a Feb. 1 meeting held between Mayor Travis Copenhaver, area small business owners and those thinking about starting a new business within the town of Alderson.
“The meeting was very beneficial and a lot of good things are happening,” Copenhaver told the West Virginia Daily News at the conclusion of the meeting. “This was the beginning of a collaborative effort geared towards turning Alderson into a destination location.”
Margaret Hambrick, who serves as public information officer for the Town of Alderson, has provided the West Virginia Daily News with a written accounting of the meeting.
According to Hambrick’s notes, “The purpose of the meeting was to generate interest in collaborative efforts to create a tourist destination using the assets of the Town of Alderson and the surrounding area.”
After mentioning some of the more positive qualities of Alderson, including its “small town” atmosphere, access to the Greenbrier River and Amtrak-serviced train station, Copenhaver outlined several improvements recently made to the town’s infrastructure.
Copenhaver further pointed out that, “houses are selling here (Alderson) and that the hard work of the AVFD (Alderson Volunteer Fire Department) has resulted in a Class III fire rating for the town and lower insurance rates for its residents.”
According to Hambrick, “The mayor challenged the group to think about what they could do to improve Alderson as a destination.”:
Beth Gill, marketing director for the Greenbrier Convention and Visitors Bureau, was in attendance for the meeting.
“Packaging is the key to attracting visitors,” Gill said. “Visitors want a place to stay, places to eat and things to do. In order to be part of the spring promotion, the CVB needs to have information about Alderson packages by April 1. Businesses need to work together to create packages.”
Hambrick’s accounting also states that “the next meeting is set for 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 18, in the Council Room of City Hall. All business owners and prospective business owners in the Alderson area are encouraged to attend and bring their ideas of how to create ‘Destination: Alderson’.”
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