Lac du Bonnet tourism plans come too late to save local shop
Gift shop Manitoba Made will shut its doors, owner says
Gift shop owner Lita Toms says her business in Lac du Bonnet is struggling, largely because local governments have failed to craft an effective tourism strategy.
Located on Second Street in the heart of the lakeside town, Manitoba Made showcases products created in the province, with most of its sales coming from tourists.
"I am planning to close the store on Dec. 21, a little bit because of the economy, and [I'm] just not sure I want to rough it out any longer," she said.
Toms said while inflation is partly to blame for keeping people from visiting Lac du Bonnet, she also thinks the town and rural municipality haven't done enough to spread the word about the area's natural beauty and small-town charm.
"People often will say, 'Where is Lac du Bonnet?'" she said. "People know where Gimli is, right?"
She said while Lac du Bonnet has a lot in common with the touristy lakeshore town of Gimli, that community in the Interlake makes a much greater effort to promote its festivals, restaurants and shops.
WATCH | Shopkeeper says her store is closing as Lac du Bonnet stalls on tourism:
"I've been at fairs in Winnipeg where I've seen people specifically sitting at a table promoting Gimli," Toms said. "Why don't we do that?"
Lac du Bonnet could also do better by promoting itself on social media and by building more places to stay, she said.
"We definitely need a lot more temporary housing," Toms said. "The hydro workers and the mine workers are pretty much the ones that are filling up the Airbnbs right now."
A new hotel called Lac House just opened up on the outskirts of town, but the rural municipality admits lodging is scarce.
Reeve Loren Schinkel hopes that a handful of new businesses popping up around town will help get the ball rolling for tourism.
"That development then creates the synergies for other businesses to come in," Schinkel said.
"We've talked about a restaurant, we've talked about Tim Hortons, we've talked about hotel ownership," the reeve said.
"It's just getting the investors here, to show them what we can offer the region."
The region is known mainly as a destination for snowmobiling in the winter and boating in the summer, but officials are making plans they hope will draw a wider range of visitors, including people who don't have a cottage of their own.
On the northeast end of town, there's an example of the opportunity to do more in Lac du Bonnet: a big, grassy lot on the shoreline used to be the site of the old Lakers Water Ski Club.
"It's been sitting here as green land just waiting for a plan," said Lac du Bonnet deputy mayor Keegan Sveinson.
After being largely unused for 17 years, the town's plan now is to team up with the rural municipality and turn the space into a recreational hub.
"We're looking at putting a [floating] dock right here that spreads over to the adjacent boat launch," said Sveinson, gesturing across a stretch of the water's edge, glimmering in the sunlight.
Ideas being floated for the spot include kayak and e-bike rentals in warm weather and a skating trail during frosty months.
"If people don't have an excuse to visit a place, they don't have a place to come back, they don't have a chance to fall in love with it," Sveinson said.
The Lakers Water Ski Club drew daredevils and spectators for 50 years, including local champions Hart and Robin Brown, son and daughter of Lac du Bonnet's first female mayor, Edythe Brown, who is also believed to be the first female mayor in Manitoba.
The property was given to the town after the club shut down in 2007 on the condition the land would remain open to the public. The little-known spot is one of the few places in Lac du Bonnet with public waterfront access.
But ask officials about the specifics, like when work will begin on the recreational hub, and the plan gets a bit murky.
"In the municipal world, I would always say after May, because that's when the budgets get put together," Sveinson said.
"Right now, we're just talking about the plans for it, but plans are nothing until the money's on the table."
Those plans won't come soon enough to save Toms's boutique, which relies on tourists to survive.
"We need places like my little shop, or restaurants with patios that overlook the water — things that people really want to come and see," she said.
"But all of that means that we have to put some money into development and we have to put some money into advertising."
Toms says she's been looking for a cheaper place around town to set up shop but hasn't found one yet.
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