Progress and prospects for AVESTA

BY AMY L. SMITH

NovaNewsNow.com

A recent meeting of the Annapolis Valley Event and Sport Tourism Association (AVESTA) provided new and returning members an update on the group’s performance.

The Annual General meeting held June 16 at Boston Pizza in New Minas presented status reports and plans for the future while unveiling new tools for the Valley’s tourism growth.

The organization is a young one. This is only their second Annual General Meeting since they became a registered organization in June 2007, but the group sees a lot of potential in their membership.

Upcoming projects for AVESTA include working with the Rainbow Riders Gymnastics Club of Kingston as they host the 2009 Eastern Canadian Tumbling and Trampoline Championships. The association gave support to the club during their bidding process and will now give help and guidance as the Riders plan for the needs of 275 athletes from all over Eastern Canada.

The Valley Harvest Marathon, slated for October, will also use AVESTA’s services in garnering media attention for their event and finding accommodations for their athletes. Organizers say that AVESTA’s mandate of encouraging athletes to spend time and tourist dollars around the Valley as an addition to their athletic mission will help to make their marathon a more well-rounded and long-standing event.

Web contact and database

Notably, the Harvest Marathon organizers got in touch with the association through their website. The group has put considerable effort into their site both in form and function, the newest addition being a searchable tourism database. Mark Eastman, Administrative Assistant with AVESTA partner Kings CED, presented his work with the database to the group.

Through a link from the main site, www.avesta.ns.ca, visitors can search for accommodations, art galleries, sports facilities and dining. The database allows searchers to control variables from location to the variety of amenities an inn or hotel may offer. When it comes to sports facilities, searches can specify elevator access and even ceiling height. This tool will make it easy for those looking to host an event to find excellent venues for play both in and out of competition.

Further online development and work with upcoming events will progress with a few new committee heads, but the basic five-committee structure of the organization will remain untouched for now.

Members suggested there are problems with overlap when it comes to their focal points of Conference and Event Planning, Bid Support and Development, Education and Advocacy, Partnership Development, and Marketing and Promotion. However, after discussion, the group decided to keep this committee structure and re-evaluate in six months’ time.