LITTLE GEMS
Stephanie Klett gave a presentation at Monday night’s committee of the whole meeting.
Klett is the head of Visit Lake Geneva and Visit is all about tourism. Of course, Visit Lake Geneva covers more than just Lake Geneva, it spans around Walworth County. With Lake Geneva being the tourist hot spot in the county the city’s tourist revenue trickles around the entire county. Klett’s presentation shared the effect of tourism and how it impacts different areas around the state which trickles into the county and the city.
The economic impact of Walworth County tourism in 2023 was impressive. Direct visitor spending for 2023 in Walworth County reached 728 million dollars ($728,000,000.00) up 7% or 48 million. Of the county’s direct spending revenue Lake Geneva’s direct spending made up 527 million of that total. Since 2019 direct visitor spending has increased 25% and the Lake Geneva region represented 72.4% of all direct spending in Walworth County in 2023. The majority of the spending is on lodging, with restaurants and retail second and third. This is great news for the business community but also for the county residents.
Without the local and state taxes generated from the direct spending each household in Walworth County would need to pay more in taxes to replace visitor-generated tax revenue. Very impressive, and it really shows the importance of Lake Geneva’s tourism for the businesses and residents of Lake Geneva and throughout Walworth County.
Celebrate Smokey Bear’s 80th Birthday at Wisconsin State Parks.
The Smokey Bear campaign has helped children and adults throughout Wisconsin understand their role in preventing wildfires. For 80 years, Smokey Bear has empowered people to make a difference through his message of personal responsibility. Since 1944, Smokey’s adventure to inspire Americans to prevent wildfires started when he first appeared on a poster. Now in the 2020’s Smokey has partnered with celebrities like Betty White to help bring his message to Americans of all ages. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) encourages the public to celebrate Smokey Bear’s 80th birthday by making sure they understand the basics of wildfire prevention and practice fire safety while enjoying the outdoors.
Some helpful tips include keeping fires small and manageable, having plenty of water and tools handy to keep your fire in control, and only burning clean, dry wood (only use local firewood). To commemorate Smokey’s 80th birthday, the DNR is hosting several events at state parks and state forests across the state over the coming weeks. Join DNR staff to hear the story of Smokey Bear, enjoy a slice of birthday cake, listen to some live music or participate in a family-friendly fire safety activity. Remember Smokey’s message of campfire safety is important whether you’re camping in one of our state parks or forests or simply roasting hotdogs in your backyard.
Check the DNR Events Calendar to find out if Smokey will be paying a visit to your favorite public lands this summer.
