Ecotourism, Cultural Tourism and Land Use Planning

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Ecotourism, Cultural Tourism and Land Use Planning

• Tracy Mullins, AICP
• Jon Adams, BA

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The Problem

• Aug 16, 2009
• Florida Bay Ecosystem Feared on the Brink of
  Collapse

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Ecotourism and Cultural Tourism

• Depend on a sense of Place
• The enemy of Place is sprawl

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Sustainable Development

• Quadruple
• Economic
• Environmental
• Social
• Political
• Sustainability is not an end but an ongoing
  process

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Urban planning differs from Tourism Planning

• Urban Planning is for the whole community
• Tourism planning is for targeted communities

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Tourism planning or Planning for Tourism

• Coordination of Planning
• Integrated community of planning
• Grey Infrastructure
• Green Infrastructure
• Watershed Management
• Controlling Sprawl
• Regional Planning

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Tourism

• Sustainable Tourism Development has been defined
  as meeting the needs of present tourists and host
  regions while protecting and enhancing
  opportunities for the future

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The Tourism Destination

• A tourism destination can take 3 forms for
  Planners
• Virtual
• Function of special interest i.e. canoeing
• Geographic
• i.e. a beach or mountain
• Administrative domain
• i.e a municipality or cultural organization

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Tourism Planning MethodologyFour Steps

• Inventory
• Orientation
• Design
• Action

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Step 1
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Step 1 Inventory

• Natural Resources
• Habitats
• Current Conservation and Planning

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Inventory Initial GIS Analysis
Soils

• Aerial

Topographic
Location
Wetlands and Floodplains
Land Use
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Step 1 InventoryPhysical Inventory of Elements

• Florida State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation
  Plan (SCORP)
• Greenways, Blueways Transportation Corridor Plans
• County and Municipal Comprehensive plans
• Special Overlay Districts

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Step 1 InventoryConservation Data Sources

• Florida Wildlife Conservation Guide
• http//www.myfwc.com/CONSERVATION/FWCG.htm  
• Federal Regulations
• State Regulatory Compliance
• Permitting Birds, Gopher Tortoise
• Memorandum of Understanding
• FL Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
• Regional Planning Councils
• UF IFAS Extension
• Water Management Districts

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Step 1 InventoryTourism Stakeholders

• Nature-Based Recreation programs
• Public Involvement
• Open Space programs
• Charettes
• Focus Groups
• Public Presentations

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Step 1 - InventoryAttractions

• Natural Attractions
• Cultural Attractions
• Historic and Heritage Attractions
• Recreational Activities
• Inventory Evaluation Sheets

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Step 1 - InventoryInfrastructure and Services

• Transportation
• Accessibility
• Public Services
• Evaluation of Surroundings

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Step 1 - InventoryCurrent Market Demand Analysis

• Chambers of Commerce, Visitor and Convention
  Bureau, Public and Private Agencies
• Visitor Questionnaires
• In person
• On line
• Visitor Survey
• License plates
• Values and lifestyles

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Step 1 InventoryCompetition Labor
Requirements

• Competition
• Who are the competition?
• Competitive Advantage
• Accommodation Facilities Survey
• Labor Source Survey Training needs
• Local capacity building plan

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Step 1 Inventory THE RESULTS DATA

• Area-wide Map of Conservation and Development
• Tourism Database

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Step 2
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Step 2 Orientation

• Create Stakeholder Committee
• Orientation to the community
• Orientation to the concept
• GIS Map Analysis Creating a Common Operating
  Picture
• Opportunity Spectrum Tools
• Tools to Managing Visitor Use
• Financial Analysis Tools

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Step 2 Orientation Create Stakeholder Committee

• Orient to the community
• Community Mapping
• Stakeholder Focus Group
• Residential Survey
• Orient to the concept
• Educating the public

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Orientation GIS Analysis
Inventory Site
Set Buffers
Identify Critical Areas
Identify Buildable Land
Place Infrastructure
CREATE ZONING MAP
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Step 2 Orientation Carrying Capacity

• Environmental factors set limits on population
  that an area can sustain
• Three main elements
• Biophysical which relates to the natural
  environment
• Socio-cultural impact on host population and
  its culture
• Facility which relates to the visitor experience

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Step 2 Orientation Recreation Opportunity
Spectrum Limits of Acceptable Change

• Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) is based
  on levels of development ranging from primitive
  to modern and levels of management required
• Levels of Acceptable Change (LAC) builds on ROS,
  and recognizes both the social and environmental
  dimensions of recreational impacts

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Step 2 Orientation Rural to Urban
Transect After A. Duany
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Recreation 0pportunity SpectrumActivity-gtSetting-
gtDesired Experience
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Step 2 OrientationLimits of Acceptable Change
(LAC)

• Similar concept to Level Of Service (LOS) in
  Transportation
• Exceeding the Limits of Acceptable Change results
  in ecological disaster
• Requires Benchmarks, Indicators, and continuous
  Monitoring of Indicators

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Step 2 Orientation Tourism Optimization
Management Model

• Identify strategic imperatives
• Identify community values, characteristics,
  trends and opportunities and alternative
  scenarios
• Identify Limits of Acceptable Change and,
• monitoring techniques
• Identify poor performance and develop management
  options to mitigate

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Step 2 Orientation Visitor Impact Management

• VIM involves legislative/policy review,
  scientific problem identification and analysis,
  and professional judgment.
• Requires the assistance of Resource Management
  experts

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Step 2 Orientation Visitor Activity Management
Process

• VAMP develops activity profiles which connect
  activities with
• Social, demographic characteristics of
  participants
• Activity-setting requirements
• Trends affecting the activity

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Step 2 Orientation V.A.M.P.

• Visitor Activity Groups
• Visiting friends and relations
• Ecotourists
• Cultural Tourists
• Profile visitors by
• Demographic
• Geographic
• Psychographic

• The Experience
• Awareness
• On-route
• Arrival
• On-site
• Departure

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Step 2 Orientation Zoning

• Example of Tourism Zoning
• Zone I-Special Preservation
• Preservation
• Zone II-Wilderness
• Perpetuation
• Zone III-Natural Environment
• Controlled motorized access
• Zone IV-Outdoor Recreation
• Direct access by motor vehicles
• Zone V-Park Services

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Step 2 Orientation Tools to Managing Visitor
Use

• Use Limitation
• Design
• Education/Interpretation
• User fees and charges

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Step 2 Orientation Use Limitation

• Resource Maintenance
• Golf - group size, start times
• Hunting, fishing - game limits, seasons
• Visitor safety/comfort
• Camping, spectator sports - number of sites,
  number of seats, seasons

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Step 2 Orientation Design elements Policy and
Institutional framework

• Public institutions FDOT, DOE, etc
• Private institutions- Conservation groups
• Tourism Legislation (Licensing, classification,
  inspection
• Inventory of relevant policy reforms underway or
  being discussed

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Step 2 Orientation Education/interpretation

• "Interpretation is the process of communicating
  messages and stories about our cultural and
  natural heritage, providing the audience with
  inspiration and a wider understanding of our
  environment. Or quite simply, interpretation is
  about telling stories." Heritage
  Interpretation Association

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Step 2 Orientation User fees and charges

• User fees Admission, trekking fees etc.
• Concession fee for permission to operate at a
  location from hotdog carts to canoe rentals
• Sales and royalties Branding the community
• Taxation tourism bed taxes
• Donations

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Step 2 Orientation Cost Benefit Analysis

• Economic Cost Benefit Analysis
• Estimating un-measureable costs and benefits
• User fees and charges
• Cost benefit evaluation recommendations

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Step 2 Orientation Result of Step 2 Data
Analysis

• Decision support documents based upon tools such
  as VAMP and ROS
• Decision Support Documents based upon the result
  of stakeholder input and the Public Involvement
  Process.
• Decision Support Documents based upon Economic
  Analysis
• Decision Support Maps based on Geographic Analysis

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Step 3
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Step 3 Design

• Plan beyond the fence
• Everything connects to everything else Step back
  and evaluate how things are connected in a
  regional context
• Each planning decision made will affect other
  land and water resources nearby create a matrix
  that shows the relationships

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Step 3 - DesignCarrying capacity has four
branches All related to the number of visitors to
a site or area

• Physical is the actual number of visitors a site
  can hold
• Biological is the point at which environmental
  degradation occurs to the extent that it is
  irreversible or unacceptable
• Psychological is the point at which the tourists
  feels the quality of their experience is damaged
  by the number of other tourists and/or their
  behaviors, and
• Social is the level at which the local
  inhabitants of the site (possibly the tourist
  attraction themselves) feel disrupted, intruded
  upon etc.
• Quality demands setting limits

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Step 3 - Design Design Sustainability

• Policy Tools
• Policy Documents
• Codification
• Management Tools
• Business Plans Marketing Plans 10 Ps
• Implementation Plans
• Design Tools linking elements
• Multi-model Transportation Corridors linking
  Conservation Subdivisions, Conservation areas,
  Parks and Open Space, grey field redevelopment

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Step 3 - Design Perpetuate sustainability by

• Establishment of
• Monitoring changes in levels and conditions
• Indicators of changes from benchmarks
• Control/Incentives to correct problems and
  achieve goals.
• Policies integrated vertically and sectorally
  implemented and enforced

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Step 3 - Design Tourism and Urban Design

• Link Urban Design with sustainability
• Connect system of multi-use trails, recreational
  areas, open spaces and environmental lands
• Wildlife-friendly Lighting
• Wildlife-friendly Yards
• Wildlife Undercrossing Design
• Parks and Recreation Stakeholders include
  visiting friends and relatives

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Step 3 - Design Business Plan

• Ensure returns on investment
• Adopt a User paysstratigies
• Determine optimal levels and limitations of
  investment
• Based on individual destination capabilities and
  community and land/resource carrying capacity

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Step 3 - Design Results of Step 3 Tourism Plan
(based on Step 1 2) Mapping

• Management Recommendation matrix
• Defensible business cases/plans sustainable
  comprehensive tourism plans
• Proposed Land Use Changes, Ordinances, Overlay
  Districts etc.
• Map series

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Step 4
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Step 4 - Action

• Money
• Muscle
• Magic
• Maintenance (so you dont have to mitigate)

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Step 4 - Action The 4 Ms of implementation

• Money Sufficient cash flow
• Muscle Political will to pass policy and
  regulation, volunteers to work on review
  committees, community involvement
• Magic
• Creating a sense of place and marketing it
• Maintenance
• Look to Disney for maintenance standards

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Questions?
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floridaplanner_at_gmail.com

• Thank you!