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concerns.In addition,consumers are more selective about environmental conditions like air <br />quality,cleanliness,heating and cooling,footing,health and human safety,and accessibility. <br />Without improvements,our facility would not be responding to the demands of our clientele <br />and would likely lose tourism-related bookings while being at a significant disadvantage in <br />attempting to attract new bookings.These changes will also help to make the facility more <br />flexible,making it more attractive to booking larger and more diverse events to attract even <br />more tourists. <br />This project also is in line with Goal 5:Involve the Community.The Kittitas Valley Event Center <br />is a tremendous local resource to Kittitas County and represents the strong agricultural base <br />within our culture.There are many local businesses and community groups that continue to <br />partner in the development and operation of this facility and that tradition continues with this <br />project.Tourist visitors who attend an event at the Kittitas Valley Event Center will likely brush <br />shoulders with locals utilizing the facility simultaneously for a separate or related reason. <br />Finally,the project also benefits the community significantly as is the intent of Goal 6.This <br />project provides upgrades to a long-standing facility,improving usability,flexibility, <br />accessibility,and safety for all.With these improvements it will also make the Event Center <br />more competitive in attracting and retaining tourism-related events that will bring economic <br />activity into the county which directly supports local businesses and the overall economy. <br />This project implements Action 4 under the Agricultural Tourism category,and is an existing <br />component of the Kittitas Valley Event Center Master Plan. <br />The web-based visitor surveys conducted as part of the Kittitas county Tourism Infrastructure <br />Plan identified specific areas of information that,if provided to visitors,would be most likely to <br />result in additional visits.Information about agriculture-based tourism activities received one <br />of the highest ratings for likely resulting in visitation (60%).In addition,62%of the original <br />visitor survey respondents listed agritourism as a major or minor reason for visiting Kittitas <br />County in the first place.79%of those surveyed listed event attendance as the major or minor <br />reason for visiting,many of which take place at the Kittitas Valley Event Center.We already <br />know that this facility is an important component in the County's tourism infrastructure <br />portfolio.This project promotes tourism in the county and increases overall tourism by <br />enhancing and modernizing a portion of an important facility that will make it more attractive <br />to new users and events while providing expansion opportunities and retention for current <br />events that attract tourists. <br />These improvements will increase economic activity from tourists.The Kittitas Valley Event <br />Center is already an important economic driver for tourism in the County.The Kittitas County <br />Fair and the Ellensburg Rodeo are the single biggest events in the County each year with over <br />60,000 attendees.These events continue to grow in attendance and in revenue each year,both <br />of which directly contribute to overnights stays,revenue to local businesses,and sales,lodging <br />and admissions tax revenue.In addition,the Event Center use throughout the rest of the <br />calendar year continues to grow.In 2016 a total of 1,605 rooms were booked at the facility. <br />While this does include numerous local meetings and events,it also includes many events that <br />drive tourism like the NW Gourd Festival,the Miss Rodeo Washington Pageant,the Washington