Stewart Istvan has been a Niagara-on-the-Lake ambassador for the past two years, joining the group after just two years of moving here from Toronto. And it’s easy for him to talk to others about his town.
“We are proud of living here,” he said. Many tourists he meets during his stint as ambassador, whether they are from Niagara Falls or have travelled internationally, are “always positive. Last week, everyone commented on the flowers.”
Istvan is only one of many NOTL residents who are pretty happy with their way of life in town.
That was a recurring takeaway from audience members who had just learned about the results of the Tourism and Life in Niagara-on-the-Lake survey.
Speaking to a group gathered at the Pillar and Post Inn, Eddie Sheppard, vice-president at Abacus Data, presented the results of a random telephone survey of 302 NOTL residents, and a random online survey of 521 Niagara residents, between July 11 and 29.
Audience members were a bit surprised at just how many people were that satisfied with the quality of life in town, a whopping nine out of 10, compared to a national overage of 50 percent.
“What a confidence in town,” said Niagara Falls resident Jack Custers, who covers many events in NOTL for Cogeco, and knows the town well.
The data suggests that there are two areas needing improvement: parking and traffic congestion.
Queenston resident Lisa Dahl and her husband, Rick Mlcak, have just moved here from Boston to help Rick’s mother with her store, Queenston Pottery. In Boston, said Mlcak, they have hop on/hop off trolleys. “That might work here and could address both parking and traffic issues,” he said.
Dahl liked hearing that the town is looking for a way to expand the experience for tourists. “We walk into town and we see so many people here that might want to try other things, but they don’t know what they are,” she said, and suggested that more outlets in town carry a map outlining other tourism experiences, besides wine tours, such as art stops.
The next step, those gathered at the event heard, would be releasing the official tourism master plan, expected in October.
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