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NW Paddling Festival Attendees Stream into Issaquah for Weekend
Community Continues Tourism Focus to Support Local Economy

Attendees for the 2012 Northwest Paddling Festival, an event featuring paddling industry vendors, product demonstrations, kayak tours and more, are streaming into Issaquah's Lake Sammamish State Park for a weekend of exhibits, workshops and fun-putting Issaquah on the map within one of the nation's fastest growing outdoor recreation activities. 


The Festival, a gathering of kayakers and other paddle sport enthusiasts previously held in Seattle and other Northwest locations, is expected to draw over 1,000 visitors to Issaquah, which is estimated to include dozens of hotel stays, added business for local restaurants and increased exposure for the community to visitors from across the Northwest.

Given this number and demographics of the expected attendees, the festival is expected to bring thousands of dollars in economic impact to the Issaquah economy.

“The Northwest Paddling Association members will deliver an event that will bring new visitors to Issaquah and overnight guests for our hotels,” said Philip Morris, General Manager of the Motel 6 and Co-Chair for the Issaquah Tourism Committee. “The Association has embraced local sponsorship and non profit participation and we look forward to hosting them.”

The Issaquah Chamber is working with festival organizers from Issaquah and Seattle to ensure festival attendees maximize their Issaquah experience. Locally-based Issaquah Paddle Sport/ Kayak Academy recruited the festival to Issaquah. Evergreen Ford, one of the leading businesses in Issaquah, is one of the leading sponsors of the event.

“When we heard that this event may be a possibility, we immediately encouraged the local organizers to continue to promote Issaquah as the venue of choice, given our outstanding natural amenities and our desire to further develop our niche as a community focused on active, outdoor recreation,” said Nate Perea of the Issaquah Chamber, who is supporting portions of the Chamber’s tourism work. “Outdoor recreation activities like Kayaking fit perfectly with what Issaquah has to offer so we are thrilled to have this event in our city.”

“The NW Paddling Festival found a perfect home here in the Issaquah area,” said Issaquah Mayor Ava Frisinger. “Our community has quickly become a regional destination for outdoor enthusiasts, who travel here to enjoy our majestic Issaquah Alps, beautiful waterways and vibrant downtown.”

“We are thrilled to welcome the NW Paddling Festival to Lake Sammamish,” added Keith Niven, the City of Issaquah’s Economic Development Director. “These events enhance our City’s economic vitality by not only bringing new visitors to town – who eat, sleep and shop here – but also support Issaquah’s growing reputation as a top outdoor destination. In fact, Outside Magazine just recently named Issaquah one of its ‘best towns.’”

This year, the Chamber’s Board made a strategic decision to focus on the development of a tourism/destination marketing program for the community, with the goal of enhancing Issaquah’s share of the statewide tourism dollar and developing a long-term tourism entity and strategy for the community. In partnership with the City, a Tourism Committee was established to bring together stakeholders associated with the Issaquah tourism industry, including local hoteliers, restaurants, attractions and more. The group meets monthly and is actively involved in organizing a number of programs, marketing campaigns and initiatives to bring visitors to Issaquah.

Chamber leaders offered hopes that the Festival will stay in Issaquah and grow to be one of the community's signature festivals and events, in addition to Salmon Days (October), Tastin' n Racin' (June), Chocolate, Wine and All that Jazz (July) among other existing and developing local events.

"We are thrilled to welcome the festival exhibitors and attendees this year, and are looking forward to partnering with those in the industry to continue to grow the program in the years to come" added Chamber CEO Matthew Bott.

Learn more about the event at: www.northwestpaddlingfestival.com/
 
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Added on 05/11/2012

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