Well the council is up to it's old tricks..


http://www.timminspress.com/ArticleDisp ... ?e=3146375

Seems to be a dumb move closing the STC right when Shania is mounting a comeback over the next year.

-Chris

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STNAOFC/Shania's Place
"You can't have a happy face without a happy heart."-Shania Twain

Once again, we are dealing with council thinking out loud. We were at the council meeting yesterday and only one councilor spoke of closure... all the others were very positive, but as usual, the media always grabs the sensational headline.

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Also, maybe he should watch WHY NOT?, Timmins has been all over it. Even when they don't show the city, Shania has mentioned a million times already.


-Chris

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STNAOFC/Shania's Place
"You can't have a happy face without a happy heart."-Shania Twain

POV: Report highlights the lack of effort developing Shania Twain Centre

By RON GRECH

There is a faction of residents out there who have never been committed to the Shania Twain Centre.

They don't believe in the institute of tourism, they don't want any money or effort put into it. Yet, they demand great returns.

If the Shania Twain Centre is deemed a failure, it's because the public holds unrealistic expectations and because the facility hasn't been managed in a way that continually stimulates interest.

Apart from the largest attractions such as Science North in Sudbury and the Agawa Canyon Tour Train in Sault Ste. Marie, tourism facilities in Northern Ontario draw only a few thousand people a year and lose money on an annual basis.

In that respect, the Shania Twain Centre and Gold Mine Tour is performing at a typical level. Put in the proper context, these types of attractions are not the be-all and end-all for Timmins tourism. They are simply part of the fabric that makes Timmins a place for people to consider visiting.

This month marks the 10th anniversary, since the centre opened.

Timmins council was presented with the interim findings from a five-year business plan for the Shania Twain Centre and Gold Mine Tour sites Monday.

The document reaffirms what we already knew, that attendance at the centre has steeply declined since hitting a peak 8,400 visitors in 2002 (the last year Twain released a CD of new music).

Last year there were 2,800 visitors.

The study notably points out there is no long-term development program to add a major new feature, activity or program every three to five years in order to keep the venues fresh, to support re-visitation and to be able to effectively compete.

Therein lies the problem. Need ideas to stimulate interest?


How about putting in a recording studio where local aspiring musicians can gain the experience of producing their own demos? Or, since the centre is sort of shaped like an amphitheatre, why not hold musical events there?

The consultant suggested introducing a travelling exhibit hall to feature different artists, preferably from Northern Ontario.

There are loads of possibilities.

Whatever the city does, it shouldn't let the centre die on the vine and then say it didn't work when it didn't put in a full-hearted effort.

It's like a marriage, you get out of it what you put into it. Instead of talking divorce, we should be reviewing how much effort has been put into turning this into a fruitful relationship.

rgrech@thedailypress.ca

http://www.timminspress.com/ArticleDisp ... ?e=3149365

Sure could use everyone's help with this online poll... vote for one of the options that don't involve closure.

http://timminspress.com/

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Uh, voted but...
It seems that 51% want to close the STC...

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STC ID Cards here! Last Update: 31 March 2011!

The Shania Twain Centre will NOT be closing. Council voted 5-3 in favor of allowing the STC to move forward with a business plan. The Mayor also voiced his support. I'm happy that this conversation should be over for the next 5 years... at least where council is concerned.

http://www.thedailypress.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3179123

Twain Centre gets new life
Council votes to enhance Shania Centre
By Kate McLaren, The Daily Press
Posted 8 hours ago

City council decided not only will the Shania Twain Centre and Timmins Gold Mine Tour remain open, the city will work to enhance the facilities.

After being presented with a report by PKF consultant Fran Hohol on Monday, May 30 which presented several options for the sparsely visited tourist attraction, councillors were divided on what should be done with the centre.

The report, which outlined a decline in visitors over the past several years, made various suggestions including operating the attraction on a seasonal basis only, operating the Gold Mine Tour attraction only, and investing $1 million for expansions to both facilities.

The option approved by council Monday night, however, established modest investments over the next five years to enhance both the Shania Twain Centre and Gold Mine Tour.

With preliminary capital and development costs for the enhancements estimated at $100,000 for each facility, Hohol explained that the municipal investment per year in the attraction will remain roughly the same as the status quo, at approximately $311,000.

Last year's operational costs were $490,000, with municipal investments in both attractions ranging between $280,000 to $320,000.

"The cost factor is basically around the same dollar figures as they're paying right now, however, the enhancements will increase the numbers on the visitation side, so that should bring more benefits to the community through the visitors."

PKF Consulting will now work with centre staff to establish a five-year business plan, which could include enhancements like showcasing other Northern Ontario artists, offering an outdoor performance venue, or designing educational programs geared at elementary or secondary grades such as writing workshops.

Examples of enhancements to the Gold Mine Tour include the addition of a lookout platform to view the open pit operation, the redevelopment of the Prospector's Trail with new storyboards, and the relocation of the Hollinger Information Centre to the former Gold Mine Tour/Timmins Museum building.

Although the majority of council agreed with the need to salvage the centre, Ward 3 Coun. Noella Rinaldo was adamant about the attraction's location.

Rinaldo suggested the Gold Mine Tour should take up the entire space, while the Shania Twain Centre memorabilia is moved elsewhere, or celebrated on an annual basis during a Shania Twain Week.

"The location is just not right. It's a beautiful building from the outside, but I never did understand the connection between a country singer and mining.

"Perhaps the building should become the new gold mine tour.

"You're looking at little sequinned outfits and Grammies that are in direct sunlight, or in the dark. There's something about that area that just doesn't seem right for that."

She suggested expanding on the Gold Mine Tour.

"There's a lot of mining memorabilia that we don't see, perhaps that's where it should be is in that beautiful building from the outside, where you see today's mining tours, where you see some of our history."

Ward 5 Coun. Todd Lever also voted against the enhancements. Lever was initially the councillor who broached the possible option of closing the centre.

"It's not an issue of pride. We're all very proud of Shania, and that's always been the case. For me, it's a question of dollars and cents. It's $300,000 that the taxpayers are spending on the facility a year."

He explained although the PKF report predicts enhancements will attract more visitors, he's not convinced.

"We have the statistics in front of us. The greatest predictor of future behaviour is past behaviour. I think we have to be realistic here, and the numbers speak for themselves.

"We're stewards of the public's trust, and we have to spend the money accordingly, so if we're going to spend money on tourist investments, there has to be some type of return, and there just isn't in this case."

For Shania Twain Centre manager Tracy Hautanen, the decision was a victory.

"We're very excited to move forward with the enhancements at the Gold Mine Tour and the Shania Twain Centre, and we're looking forward to working with PKF on the five-year business plan.

"To quote Shania, we can only go up from here."

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Thanks Ren! It's good to hear the STC will not be closing and give it a chance to move forward.

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Bianca

"All that we have is knowing that there's more... than we know"

Well, I understand and can empathize somewhat with the negative votes and council members' point of view when they're talking only dollars and cents from direct input/output for the STC and Gold Mine Tour.

But there's a bigger picture with multiple elements. Those combined, probably led to the more favorable conclusion and vote by a majority of council to keep the STC going.

Multiple persons over the years, have cited the indirect dollars that come into the Timmins community from tourism. Although those indirect dollars are not easy to see, and may have been overemphasized at times; a large part of tourism attraction to Timmins is the STC and Gold Mine Tour. The STC in turn has been set up as a special and important partner of the Gold Mine Tour. Although the two could be split, there's no compelling reason that I can see.

The unique and primary access to Shania Twain history, memorabilia, events and even her personal access; is not something that should be discarded as trivial, unimportant, or unconnected to Timmins. And the STC facility was specifically designed for such purposes. So what if the glitter of gold in the mining tour areas out the back of the STC, clashes with the wardrobe inside the STC. Tough! Not everyone is worried about such trivial matters as wardrobe. Besides, there is already a contrast between gold, and the dirty work required to mine it. Some flourish with that contrast. Some are depressed by it. The interpretation can say more about the person, their health and mood, than about the tangible materials being viewed.

The making of movies, TV, videos, music and books, involving footage and coverage of the STC and Timmins, for widespread publication; is a significant benefit for the Timmins community. How many zillions of small towns would give their eye teeth to get so much press coverage, stories, or interest from around the globe?

With the price of gold so high, Timmins' economy is booming, last I heard. The community is the opposite end of the spectrum, from the many cities in North America, facing some of the highest budget deficits ever. The economy in most of North America is only a few steps removed from recession and possible depression. Yet a community like Timmins with it's surplus economy, has a few people looking for ways to throw away one of their prime and special facilities. Makes me wonder if those persons have a personal axe to grind. Or if they're just responding to residents, who have an adversarial point of view about the STC.

In any sizable population, there are always going to be some malcontents and dysfunctionals. However I can't blame that for all the resistance to the STC. I have personal friends in Timmins. Some of them have character, intelligence, and integrity that is as high as I have found anywhere in my 65 yrs of living. And some of them are noticeably reserved, about the practicality of the STC. It costs quite a bit to the community. And it attracts some people with very rose colored glasses.

I don't know all the answers to this issue. I guess it's fair to say, people will all have their differences. Despite my best efforts, and our generally better than average relationship, I could not always swallow a few of my own Mom's views and choices. It's just something we have to live with. Now that she's dead and in the ground nearly a month, I don't remember so much, about even those few differences.

This is very good news!!!

Steve

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Merci René pour la bonne nouvelle.
Avec le retour de Shania , le Centre devrait retrouver plus de visiteurs je pense.

Nous le souhaitons Claudine!

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Oh boy! A chance to practice my French. Fair warning -It's rustier than Shania's singing voice.

avec le retour de Shania, le Centre devrait retrouver plus de visterus je pense.
with the return of Shania, the Centre will retrieve more visiters, I think. (give or take a few semantics)
Ah Claudine, your French is so beautiful. Even an insentient clod like me can understand.

Nous le souhaitons Claudine.
(Hmn, By Gar that vuss a tricky vun fer me)
Andrea! Help!!! (does she speak french?)
_______ the situation, Claudine
(It must mean something about 'this is good news')
Aaack! googled those french words
got an interpretation, but written in Thai. Phooey!
okay, if all else fails, google for french online translation site.
Oh!
"We wish" (or hope)
I would never have guessed that, from the root words and my Latin background.
Nous = we, which I kinda knew, but couldn't fit in with certainty
souhaitons threw me for a loop, a mile off target

souhaitons is the 1st person plural conjugaison of the verb souhaiter. The root of "souhaiter" is souhait which means to wish or to hope. So "Nous souhaitons" means We wish or we hope so.

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Thanks Ren. I understand your notes on conjugation etc. fairly easily.

However I haven't seen the connection between any parts of the root souhait, and wish/hope. Usually I can can find some connnection, using a combination of my 5 yrs of Latin, the origins of English and French in Latin, plus my intuition.

Googling further, I find Latin words for wish = desiderium, votum, voluntas, cupio

For an English word, I can look it up in in the dictionary, and it will break the word down into parts, including the meanings, roots or origins of each. But if I look up a work in a French dictionary, it would be a quick case of:
"Sacre Bleu! Je ne comprehends pas le situation!" I probably understand too little French, to read their dictionary.

If I were to join the staff of the STC, without being bilingual in French as well as English, they might have to shut the place down sooner. I wonder if that would make me an ally of those on Timmins City Council, who said it was necessary to at least consider the option of closing the STC.