Last week, news broke via Facebook that Pemberton’s Visitor Centre would permanently close its doors at the beginning of September. Pemberton and District Chamber of Commerce shared the date of the vital building’s final day in operation on August 26- less than a week before its closure. Now, Tourism Pemberton is happily taking over the reins. The organization hopes to have a functioning visitors’ centre back in place before a swarm of guests arrive next May.
Executive Director, Christine Raymond told Pique that Tourism Pemberton and Pemberton Chamber of Commerce were once one entity. “It was divided and the chamber kept the visitor centre,” she said.
She admitted that all parties knew that the location was going to be lost to make way for a new Lil’wat Nation development, who own the land. Lil’wat Business Group’s project is still in the planning phase and will also require the removal of the sani-dump located on the same plot of land.
Raymond said that Tourism Pemberton knew that the visitor centre’s days at that location were numbered. “We were going to lose the location. It brought up a wider conversation about whether the tourism centre would be run by the chamber or by Tourism Pemberton,” she said. “There is a big advantage in us running the visitor centre. We knew that it was probably going to be the last time we were operating out of that location. We are seeing a shift. We always want to support sustainable and responsible tourism.”
Mayor of Pemberton, Mike Richman previously said the early closure came as a surprise to council. However, Pemberton Chamber’s Adam Adams said that his organization let local government know months ago. Raymond called last week’s development a “misunderstanding.”
“We thought we had the centre until the end of the month,” she said. “Maybe because we don’t work in the building, or we weren’t part of the conversation like the chamber might have been. They are on site, and they know the amount of work that there is to do. It had to be closed by the end of the month.”
While Tourism Pemberton has not confirmed a location, it is hopeful it will be back up and running soon. “We are excited,” said Raymond. “We are cooking something right now for next season. It’s not going to be at the same location. We are really hoping that this project will work. We don’t have the location confirmed yet.”
The Executive Director went to the visitors centre the day after the closure was announced. “I was concerned. There were a lot of RVs there,” she said. “There are frustrations. People are used to coming here and they plan their vacation for September/October. They are expecting to have this facility. It is very unfortunate timing. I don’t know if a bigger conversation could have been had.”
Raymond said that the visitor centre adjacent sani-dump is another story entirely. “That is part of a bigger conversation,” she said. “We knew that the visitor centre and the sani-dump would close this fall. Decommissioning the sani-dump and visitor centre takes some work. We were looking to see if a location or an organization can take the sani-dump.”
She said that change to this summer’s set up was needed regardless. Raymond said that the sani-dump was old and often unreliable. “People would come here expecting to use the service and it would be out of commission,” she said. “We have to look at the positives. We are this small town, and we had these services on offer for so many years. We need to upgrade these facilities. Every time that change happens it’s easy to point a finger. I think that we are all working together to provide something better.”
Whistler is ready to deal with added pressure on its sani-dumps. It is now the last sani-dump spot for passing RVs before Lillooet, two hours North.
A Resort Municipality of Whistler communications official said the municipality had asked staff to monitor the Whistler site to ensure it remains in good operating order and is kept neat and tidy.
“We should expect there will now be more pressure on sani-dumps in Whistler, including the municipal sani-dump site at the Re-Built-It Center/Compactor and Recycling Depot in Function Junction,” they said in an email to Pique.
“To what degree will remain to be seen. We will continue to monitor the situation as the impact of the Pemberton closure becomes clearer.”
Nikki Johnston of Tourism Whistler said that it was sorry to hear that about its neighbor’s visitor center closing. “The Whistler Visitor Centre, which Tourism Whistler manages and operates also shares information with visitors about the Sea to Sky region including Pemberton,” she stated. “The Whistler Visitor Centre will continue to do so, especially in light of the Pemberton Visitor Centre Closure.
Meanwhile, Destination BC said that the issue was a local matter and that all visitors centre in the province are operated by community-based organizations. “The decision to build and operate a VC is solely the responsibility of the community,” said Director of Corporate Communications, Clare Mason. “We have just been advised of the closing, and discussions between the Chamber and Tourism Pemberton are ongoing, regarding the site and provision of visitor servicing.”
