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INTERREG IIIC SusSET PROJECT: COASTAL TOWNS WORKSHOPS
on 12 MAY 2006 – PYRGOS
& on 13 MAY 2006 – MESSOLONGHI
Q: Does being coastal make any difference to a town strategy?
A: Not in terms of process…
But it definitely means different emphasis due to key factor of ‘the sea’, (i.e. participant towns are small non-industrial towns with harbour and have an economic foundation on fishing).
Key weaknesses – fishing has declined, and so towns need to diversify imaginatively. Development is constrained by the sea, with expansion always moving further from town centre.
Key strength – people are naturally attracted and fascinated by the sea.
Tourism is a growth industry and an obvious diversification tactic (but not the only one, since tourism will not be the answer for all towns, and can bring problems). Part of a strategy must be to understand the market, customer needs, and the competition. Part of a strategy must be an action plan to raise awareness amongst the town’s businesses and to include hospitality/customer care training. People in a town, including the local press, must see themselves as ambassadors and be prepared to promote their coastal strip. Provision of tourism information points is considered essential.
Other points of agreement:
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Action |
- SusSET coastal towns to continue to work in partnership. The towns to work on three key questions, e.g. (i) how can coastal towns best exploit the sea? (ii) how can coastal towns expand and maintain successful town centres? (iii) how can coastal towns manage a better all-year-round product for visitors?
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- Each town to collate its ideas and post on the website
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NB/WM/
BJ/ED/GM |
- All ideas to be fully considerate of the environment
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- Stonehaven partnership model to be fully explained at Scottish conference
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WM |
- All towns to continue sharing practical experiences and feed good ideas to Theme Leaders (i.e. compliment, do not duplicate, the theme work)
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ALL |
- Coastal towns to meet again for workshop in Scotland in September and focus on themes other than tourism
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ALL |
- Stonehaven and Strömstad to provide email feedback to Messolonghi on first impressions and suggestions for action
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WM/BJ etc |
- Still some concern over the youth conference idea and the ability of the Greek towns to participate. Agreed important to value young people and encourage
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