Funding cut leaves Ottawa Tourism scrambling for conference clients

A cut in provincial funding has left Ottawa Tourism scrambling to support large conferences hosted by the Ottawa Convention Centre this year, according to a spokesperson for the tourist organization.

The Ottawa Convention Centre, which opened last April, was built to promote and develop tourism in Ottawa, and boasted it would boost the local economy by attracting larger conventions. The centre cost about $160 million to build, with funding from both the federal and provincial governments.

This year, the centre may have less business than anticipated. The provincial funding was used to attract national and international conventions to Ottawa, and without it, Ottawa does not have a plan to entice large conventions to choose the city.

The lost funding was part of the Convention Development Fund and was administered by the provincial Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport.

As a result, the City of Ottawa, as well as several local tourism-promoting organizations, are scrambling to find alternative funds.

The CDF was a one-time investment to help Ontario cities increase convention business and visitor spending. The investment was worth $2.75 million and was allocated to Toronto, Ottawa, Niagara Falls, Hamilton, London, and Windsor.

Ottawa received a $500,000 share of that investment, though the ministry says it would cost-share up to 50 per cent of total eligible project costs to a maximum of $250,000 per convention. This means it would pay a portion of the costs for the sponsored project.

The funding could have included covering the rental costs for the convention centre, transportation costs, or accommodations and meals for the participants in the large conventions. “Large” conventions are defined as events that attract thousands of attendees.

According to the office of Bob Chiarelli, Liberal MPP for Ottawa West-Nepean, this investment was intended to last for several years.

Without its continuation, Ottawa is having difficulty solidifying a plan, says Jantine Van Kregten, director of communications at Ottawa Tourism.

She says the change impacts the way Ottawa Tourism can work with the national and international conventions coming to Ottawa. Other cities incorporate more local fees to collect funding. For example, a city might incorporate a surcharge on hotel rooms during the convention.

One strategy is asking for more one-time funding opportunities, but Van Kregten says this plan is not ideal.

“It’s impossible to plan that way, to plan with no guaranteed funding,” she says.

Instead, she says Ottawa is still working on a long-term solution. Ottawa Tourism, the Ottawa-Gatineau Hotel Association, the City of Ottawa, and even the province of Ontario are currently “in negotiations” about the future of Ottawa’s largest conventions.