COCHRANE— Cochrane Tourism has released a new survey, hoping to gain some insight into how residents make use of the Bow River, and what sorts of improvements to the Bow might enhance their recreational experience, including the addition of a River Wave Park.
Cochrane Tourism released a previous survey that resulted in 92 per cent of respondents indicating they want improved river access in Cochrane.
Some of the upgrades being considered are improved river access points for non-motorized craft, designated floating paths or river trails, and the potential wave park.
In regions where man-made standing waves are accessible, they are hugely popular, said Jo-Anne Oucharek, executive director of Cochrane Tourism.
The global surf tourism industry has also seen massive increases in recent years.
“It’s currently a 50-billion-dollar industry and there is only one wave in Canada, basically,” she said. “There is a wave at Kananaskis, and there is a standing wave where surfers surf in Calgary at the 10th Street bridge, and people surf those all year round.
“This potentially could be a great economic driver for the community,” Oucharek added.
The River Wave Park project is being overseen by the Cochrane River Wave Park Steering Committee and includes representatives from Cochrane Tourism, the Alberta Whitewater Association, the Alberta River Surfing Association, the Town of Cochrane, Cochrane Fire Services, the Professional River Outfitters Association of Alberta, the Cochrane Environmental Action Committee and the Cochrane and District Chamber of Commerce.
The wave park is still in the conceptual phase of planning and has not been green-lit for construction.
A wave park in Cochrane could be hugely beneficial for the community, Oucharek said.
“If tourism, visitor economy money, is used to create recreational areas— Which means it doesn’t come from any tax-payer dollars— then the community benefits from that, because we have facilities that the people who live in Cochrane have access to all year round,” she said.
Recreation facilities not only give locals a place to recreate, they also drive traffic to the town and give entrepreneurs new markets to explore.
“If the Town builds ballparks, then we can have tournaments. If the committee builds recreational areas people will start to create businesses, like equipment rentals, and sales, lessons and river activity packages,” she said. “We’re already starting to see that … There are two businesses that started operating on the river. One is the Bow River Float with Hunter Valley, the other is Cochrane River Trips that is doing stand-up paddle boarding trips from bridge to bridge.”
Waves in other locations are also used as swift-water training facilities for emergency personnel, and a wave park on the Bow River could be used similarly for many emergency services in the region, Oucharek said.
Increasing tourism to a region also has peripheral benefits for many of the existing businesses in Cochrane as well, she noted.
“When people travel to participate or even be a spectator, the average spend is 62 dollars a day,” she said. “They spend that in restaurants, they stay overnight, they rent equipment. That helps the economy and that’s where the economic impact comes from. It makes our businesses stronger."
If you would like to provide your input regarding the wave park or other potential improvements to the Bow River, you can find the survey online at cochraneriverwavepark.com/.
