The committee that stunned the cities of Ketchum and Sun Valley two weeks ago with a grim diagnosis of the area's failing economic health will be returning Tuesday, May 18, to prescribe a cure.
The three-person group, called the Sun Valley-Ketchum Region Marketing Committee, last presented in Ketchum City Hall on May 3 to both city councils and a crowd spilling out of the room. This time, the venue has been changed to a larger arena, Sun Valley Inn's Limelight Room, at 5:30 p.m., to accommodate the expected attendants.
Committee Chair Jim Knight warned the audience at the May 3 meeting that a cure would be presented in weeks' time, but the recovery would be slow.
"I want to point out that there's no magic drug that's going to make us all better," Knight said.
The committee's prescription is expected to emphasize a revamped and cohesive marketing strategy that all area businesses can follow, since that's the reason Sun Valley City Councilman Bob Youngman created the committee in the first place.
Youngman made a presentation last winter revealing the fact that over the past decade Ketchum's sales tax collections decreased by 35 percent and Sun Valley's by 23 percent, a key indicator that the tourist economies are dwindling.
Knight said people, by their nature, wouldn't all agree with the committee's suggestions, but they should be open-minded.
"We really need, in my opinion, a tent big enough for everyone to live in and want to be a part of," he said at the May 3 meeting.
Trevon Milliard: tmilliard@mtexpress.com
Jim Knight
