Although tourism seems to be an imposition on some people here, it is by far the cleanest and healthiest industry available to us. It is in fact our number one industry here. Even if it is seasonal, it makes all the difference in our economic survival. Although there are other ways to enhance our summer visitor activity, we don’t seem to get behind their implementation. As roads and other kinds of transportation become increasingly expensive, cruise ships have become the mainstay of our visitor industry. They come, partake of what we have to offer, and leave.
Although it seems like we have a plethora of cruise ships docking, especially in contrast to the one ship a week we had most recently, we used to have five big ships a week. The town was bustling, businesses were opening and thriving. Opportunities abounded. It didn’t really disrupt our way of life – just enhanced it. Our government is always in need of more funding. Here is an opportunity to make that happen, improve our infrastructure, provide more docking for locals, and help businesses to survive. A few more of these small cruise ships are not going to be an intrusive abomination to our community, but hopefully will help out our economic well being – at least a little. The very fact that they are willing to invest in Haines as a destination, is a step towards longevity of our economy, as they are less likely to pull out on a whim or an economic downturn.
Tresham Gregg