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Destination Edgerton: Chamber hopes events bring tourists, dollars to community

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

Downtown Edgerton.

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

The Sterling North boyhood home in Edgerton.

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

The Edgerton train depot.

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

The golf course in Edgerton.

EDGERTON — Every now and then, a community has to reinvent itself.

So says Vicki Brown, a member of the Edgerton Area Chamber of Commerce tourism and marketing committee.

And Edgerton has done just that in the last few years, she says, turning itself into a small town with big events.

“If you don’t try new things, the community gets tired,” she said.

A few years ago, Edgerton’s downtown hit a rough patch, said Val Wilcox, chamber secretary. Mom-and-pop shops were shutting their doors, unable to compete with big-box stores in Janesville and Madison.

So the chamber started a push to bring people downtown with events that could draw Edgerton residents and regional tourists.

Now, the community offers something for everyone, from booklovers to car buffs, chamber members say.

Events that debuted over the last few years include the Sterling North Book & Film Festival, a weekly farmers market and monthly car shows. The city’s first music festival, “The Edge,” took place last month.

“Edgerton’s a destination,” chamber President Deena Wettstein said. “Almost every weekend, there’s something to do.”

Edgerton has the right idea, said Sarah Klavas, director of marketing and communications for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.

“Their events are one of the things they hang their hat on,” she said.

The city seems to be in a good spot for tourism. Rock County ranked 13th out of 72 counties in tourism spending in 2007, taking in $233 million from travelers, according to the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.

And travel experts are finding tourists like small towns such as Edgerton, Klavas said. In fact, the department launched a marketing campaign last year that emphasizes the state’s smaller communities.

“In Wisconsin, small communities and their events are really the fabric that makes us so special,” she said. “Nowhere do you find more friendly people who are willing to host a visitor than you do in small towns. Small-town Wisconsin is really an important part of our industry.”

Edgerton isn’t sitting back on what it’s already accomplished. The chamber and other organizations have several new events planned for the rest of 2008, including a murder mystery dinner theater, a quilt show and a visit from the “Santa Steam Train” in December.

The chamber also is working on updating its promotional materials to highlight permanent attractions such as the Sterling North Home and Museum, Lake Koshkonong and downtown shops.

The Sterling North Home, in particular, has put Edgerton on the map. The museum in June drew tourists all the way from Japan to see the real-life home of Rascal the raccoon.

Tourism spending benefits everyone in the community, chamber members say. Tourists spend money at local businesses, and new events improve the quality of life for residents.

Plus, visitors might find they like Edgerton enough to stay forever, Brown said.

“Tourism brings people to the community, so maybe somebody’s looking to relocate or maybe somebody’s looking for a place to open a business,” she said.

The chamber hopes Edgerton can be that place.

Room tax?

The Edgerton Area Chamber of Commerce has another idea for marketing the community outside the area, but not everyone is on board.

The chamber hopes to institute a tax on hotel rooms rented in Edgerton, Fulton Township and Albion Township. The 5 percent tax would raise money for promotions to attract overnight visitors to the area, chamber officials say.

A tourism commission would keep 75 percent of the money collected for promotions. Another 5 percent would go back to hotel owners, and 20 percent would go to the municipalities.

The tax would affect three hotels: Comfort Inn in Fulton Township, Town Edge Motel in Edgerton and Coachman’s Golf Resort in Albion Township.

Deena Wettstein, chamber president, said the tax would add between $1.25 and $4.25 to the price of a one-night stay. Visitors expect such a tax because so many other communities already have one, she said.

In Rock County, Janesville, Evansville and Beloit already charge room taxes.

But the hotel owners who would be affected expressed mixed reactions.

Lydia Moore, president of Coachman’s Golf Resort, said the tax could boost tourism.

Gurdiel Dhillon, owner of Towne Edge Motel, feared his guests wouldn’t be able to afford a new tax.

The city of Edgerton on Aug. 4 passed a first reading of an ordinance instituting the tax. The towns of Albion and Fulton have not voted on the measure.

MARKETING GRANT

The Edgerton Area of Chamber of Commerce has received a “joint effort marketing” grant from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism to promote the third Sterling North Book & Film Festival, the department announced this week.

The event has received the grant every year since its inception in 2006. The state offers a graduated grant program that provides 75 percent of advertising expenses in the first year of an event and less in the second and third years.

The chamber will receive $10,000 to promote the 2008 event, taking place Oct. 4 and 5.

A marketing grant allows a community to launch a new event, boost attendance at an existing event or design a sales promotion to encourage traveler spending, according to a news release from the department.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Here are some events happening in Edgerton in the coming months:

-- Chilimania, 11 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, Sept. 6. The annual chili cook-off in downtown Edgerton draws chefs from all over the country. Highlights include a salsa contest, the chili tasting and live music.

-- “The Chicago Caper,” 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 20. This murder-mystery dinner theater at the Masonic Lodge, 312 W. Fulton St., will raise money for the annual book and film festival. Tickets are $35.

-- Chamber Fall Fest, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 27. The event in Edgerton’s historic downtown includes an arts and crafts fair, children’s activities and an apple pie baking contest. A quilt show will take place in the Edgerton High School gym.

-- Sterling North Book & Film Festival, Oct. 4 and 5. Now in its third year, the book and film festival will focus on “celebrating expressions of freedom.” It draws writers and filmmakers from across the Midwest.

-- Santa Steam Train, Dec. 5 and 6. The steam train from the Soo Line has proved wildly popular in other parts of the state, and Edgerton expects thousands of visitors when the train makes its stop at the Edgerton Depot this year.

For more information about these events, call the Edgerton Area Chamber of Commerce at (608) 884-4408 or visit www.edgertonwisconsin.com.