C-19 BULLETIN - September 4, 2020

Do or die. Sink or swim. Now or never. Fish or cut bait. There is no tomorrow. All idioms professional athletes and coaches have used a million times, especially during the final game of a playoff series.
 
In recent months, I’ve heard similar refrains by tourism and hospitality operators as many struggle to pay the bills and stay afloat. Some literally don’t know whether they’ll be able to keep their doors open next week, let alone next month or next year (as I and many of my sector colleagues have been saying ad nauseam). In other words, it’s a make or break situation for many in our industry as summer soon transitions to fall and domestic travel begins to wane.
 
It’s also crunch time for government as they continue to evaluate the multiple submissions and public recommendations on the distribution of the $1.5 billion in recovery funds that have yet to be earmarked for measures to help businesses rebuild during and following COVID-19.
 
Given that meetings and final decisions on the funds are in the late stages, it could be as soon as next week but more likely mid-September and the weeks following that we’ll learn what the Province has planned, if anything, for tourism and hospitality specifically, as well as other business sectors.
 
In the meantime, we’re at the 11th hour vis-à-vis the opportunity to individually and collectively convince decision-makers on why it is so important to provide direct and meaningful support to our sector.
 
As we’ve been encouraging you to do for months…pick up the phone, text, write, tweet, or visit your local MLA today and ask them to advocate for an industry that under normal circumstances (i.e. no travel and gathering restrictions or closed borders, etc.) generates in excess of $20 billion in annual revenues provincially and $4.5 billion in tax receipts for all levels of government.
 
Remind them that tourism and hospitality is the largest employer of youth and provides hundreds of thousands of jobs for women, Indigenous peoples and other important members of society. Impress upon your elected representative that the visitor economy is often the catalyst for community building, cultural shifts, sustainable development and innovation, and has been one of the top contributors to the overall provincial economy for many years. Let them know that a government investment in retaining and restoring our industry now will continue to pay dividends in the years ahead.
 
Do it now. After-all, our backs are against the wall and this could very well be industry and government’s moment of reckoning to realize a positive future for BC’s visitor economy.

Enjoy a safe long weekend and Go Canucks Go.

Walt Judas
TIABC CEO
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Provincial Government Updates

Province Confirms Tax Measure Implementation Dates, Deferral Deadlines for Businesses
The Province is delaying implementation dates to April 2021 for changes to PST and BC’s carbon tax to help businesses and families through the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery.

A scheduled increase in April 2020 from $40 to $45 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) had been paused until at least October as part of the COVID-19 Action Plan. Upon review, the Province has decided the carbon tax rate will remain at its current level until April 2021, when it will increase from $40 to $45 per tCO2e, and then again to $50 per tCO2e in April 2022.

The implementation of two other planned tax changes is also being delayed until April 2021. This includes the elimination of the PST exemption for carbonated beverages that contain sugar, natural sweeteners or artificial sweeteners, and the addition of new PST registration and collection requirements for e-commerce businesses located outside B.C.

To further support businesses, the employer health tax (EHT) 2020 quarterly instalment dates are being extended as follows:
  • Dec. 31, 2020 (original instalment date was June 15, 2020)
  • Jan. 31, 2021 (original instalment date was Sept. 15, 2020)
  • Feb. 28, 2021 (original instalment date was Dec. 15, 2020)

These extensions will give businesses more access to cashflow during recovery and more time to determine their annual payroll and estimate the amount of EHT they will owe. The 2020 EHT filing and balance due date will remain March 31st, 2021.

As a reminder for businesses, effective March 23, 2020, as part of B.C.’s COVID-19 Action Plan, the filing and payment due dates for the following sales taxes were extended to September 30th, 2020, along with the 2019 EHT filing and balance due date:
  • PST
  • hotel tax, also known as municipal and regional district tax
  • tobacco tax
  • motor fuel tax
  • carbon tax

These administrative deferrals are not being extended further. Businesses were never able to spend taxes collected from customers such as PST, but delaying tax remittances removed an administrative burden from potentially short-staffed businesses during the beginning of the pandemic.

Dr. Henry and Health Minister Dix Caution Long-weekend Travellers
“COVID-19 continues to affect our province and this long weekend is no different. Whether you’re celebrating the Canucks game tonight or meeting friends for a barbecue or camping, let’s make it a safe, small-group long weekend."

“Get outside this weekend and enjoy your time with friends and family and outdoor activities, while protecting the more vulnerable around you. We must maintain a very careful balance between fun and caution this long weekend and onwards to the fall."

“Remember, we have a playbook to guide our good times on weekends to keep things fun and safe, and we can’t let our end goal out of sight: keeping COVID-19 low and slow. Your actions this weekend and every day make a difference."

“We have the tools and we can make the right choices. To be successful in this next phase, we need to step back to safely move forward. So let’s all make choices that will keep our communities, our Elders, our loved-ones and ourselves safe.”
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Tourism Industry on Life Support
Commentary by the CEOs of Destination Greater Victoria, Tourism Vancouver and Tourism Richmond


Tourism in Kamloops Faced a Difficult Summer
Beverley DeSantis, Tourism Kamloops CEO (and TIABC director) discussed the impacts of lower visitation on Kamloops this summer on CHNL radio.
“We expected about a 75% decrease in visitation,” she said. “We saw some bumps you know on long weekends but for the most part, we got exactly what we thought – a very slow and dismal summer tourism season.”
DeSantis says most of the tourists in Kamloops this year have been from the Lower Mainland, as well as from Alberta. However, she says they don’t spend near as much money as international visitors do.

Tourism Kamloops Calls on the Province to Fund COVID-19 Stimulus Package
Tourism Kamloops and the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce have renewed the call for help for the tourism industry amid fears that if something isn’t done, many tourism businesses could be gone for good.

Businesses Forge Ahead in Prince George
There are many stories of businesses that have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. Two businesses in Prince George tell their stories of opening just before the world closed down.

Victoria Tourism Having ‘Brutal’ Time; 35% Occupancy for Hotels
Though there are a few more out-of-province licence plates dotting the city and good weather has drawn people to restaurant patios and bars, Victoria’s hospitality industry continues to bleed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Numbers released Wednesday by Chemistry Consulting show the city’s hotel occupancy level, key in determining the health of the tourism industry, was just over 35% through the first seven months of this year.

Central, South Okanagan are Leading the Recovery of B.C.'s Hospitality Industry
While BC hotels expect to end up with an average of only 32% occupancy for 2020 due to COVID-19, the Thompson-Okanagan region is looking at 41%.
Downtown Vancouver expects an occupancy rate of only 25% by the end of the year.

Tourism Operators Pivot from Guiding to Beach Cleaning
The coronavirus pandemic has created a rare opportunity for B.C.’s debris-strewn shoreline – eco-tour operators have free time and available boats to pick up ocean trash.
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TIABC hosted a webinar and open forum in collaboration with the BC Hotel Association on Wednesday, September 2nd. Thanks to all of those who attended. If you missed the session, or wish to share information with colleagues, please see the links below for the recording and presentation.

If you have any further questions regarding the State of the Industry webinar, BCHA, or TIABC, please do not hesitate to reach out.
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COVID-19 Research

BC Public Perceptions: To monitor British Columbians' current views on travel and tourism, plus track travel and tourism behaviour intentions. Read the Wave 8 report here.

Research Roundups: A roundup of research and articles each week related to the travel and tourism industry and COVID-19. Read the August 31 report here.
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BC Weekly Domestic Overnight Visitor Insights

Key Findings:

The week of April 19 (Week 11) saw the largest drop in domestic Overnight Visitors in British Columbia, dropping 81% from the previous year. Findings are consistent across all BC Subregions.

While Overnight travel is significantly down compared to 2019, an upward trend in movement and overnight stays on a week over week bases was apparent during Weeks 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28.

All of the BC Regions saw a decrease in visitation from Week 29 (August 17-23) to Week 30 (August 24-30).

The Cariboo Chilcotin Coast, Northern BC, Vancouver Island and Vancouver Coast and Mountains saw an increase in visitation over British Columbia during Week 30 (August 24-30).

The Thompson Okanagan and the Kootenay Rockies saw a decrease in visitation compared to BC during Week 30 (August 24-30).

Download the full report here.
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Tourism Kelowna Research

Stakeholder Impact Survey
Recently, Tourism Kelowna conducted their third survey to assess the impact of COVID-19 on stakeholders.
Key findings include:
  • 67% of respondents have seen a 20% or higher decrease in revenue over the summer season
  • 74% are forecasting a 20% or higher decrease to revenue for the fall season
  • 83% reported decreased sales over the same time last year, up from 47% reported in March
  • 50% reported summer visitation was higher than expected
  • 73% are forecasting lower visitation this fall than last
  • 30% reported less than usual business from locals, where as 25% reported more than usual support from locals
  • 94% support Tourism Kelowna promoting businesses to a BC audience
  • 42% of respondents are optimistic about the state of their business looking forward to 2021

Learn more at:

Resident Sentiment Survey
During the week of August 10, Tourism Kelowna conducted its second resident sentiment survey, which garnered a significant response with almost 735 surveys completed. 

The key findings of the survey show that residents demonstrate higher levels of comfort in welcoming visitors from closer to home and that higher COVID-19 case count numbers in the Central Okanagan over the summer have led to lower overall comfort levels in general.

Some of the key findings are:
  • 66% of residents are happy to welcome regional visitors to Kelowna; however, only 20% would welcome international travellers, and only 8% would welcome visitors from the USA 
  • Over half of residents feel it's important to welcome visitors to support our local businesses
  • 45% of locals are likely to take a trip within BC this fall

Learn more at:
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GVHA Receives Funding for Commercial Customers Through Canadian Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program

The not-for-profit Greater Victoria Harbour Authority (GVHA) has received funding for 33 commercial customers through the Government of Canada’s Canadian Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program.
 
The CECRA funding for all five of GVHA’s major properties is approximately $358,000 for the five-month period. The financial aid provides a lifeline to the organization’s customers, the majority of whom are small, family-owned businesses. CECRA allows for landlords – in this case GVHA – to reduce rent by 75% for the months of April to August for their small business customers. CECRA will cover 50% of the rent, with the tenant paying 25%, and the property owner forgiving 25%.
 
To assist commercial customers, GVHA staff also explored how rental fees could be evaluated on a month-to-month basis based on service levels aligned with each customer’s business plan; instituted a rent deferral program for all commercial customers with signed agreements for April, May, and June 2020 until June 2021; and applied for CECRA.
 
GVHA staff have proactively worked to ensure that facilities such as Fisherman’s Wharf remained open during the pandemic and implemented steps to reduce the potential spread of COVID-19. This included COVID-19 specific signage, physically distanced set up of seating areas, and collaboration with commercial customers on their WorkSafe BC return to work plans.
 
This year, GVHA had projected 300 cruise ship calls and more than 770,000 passengers throughout the seven-month season. When Transport Canada suspended cruise visitation until at least October 31st, the organization lost 70% of its revenues, or more than $12 million for the fiscal year. The not-for-profit organization has laid off several staff members, reduced expenses by close to half, deferred major capital projects, and increased its focus on additional business development opportunities at The Breakwater District at Ogden Point. 

Learn more at:
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REVISED
Re-start Guidelines
Introduced by BC Meetings & Events Sector

As mentioned in Wednesday's C-19 Bulletin, the BC Meetings & Events Industry Working Group has unveiled new B.C. Meetings & Events Safe Restart Guidelines that will form the basis for the eventual re-opening of the sector. These comprehensive, high-level guidelines are meant for all types of events and operators.
 
A slightly revised version of the guidelines is now available for download here.
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Manage your Online Presence: Tripadvisor and HelloBC.com
September 30th and January 13th
Walk through the process step-by-step to claim, create, and optimize your business listings on Tripadvisor and HelloBC.com. 

Get Your Local Business on Google Search and Maps
October 7 and January 20
Explore Google My Business and connect with customers through Google Search and Maps. Get hands-on help creating or updating your business profile in this Grow with Google Webinar. 

Get the Most Out of Your Website
October 14 and January 27
Whether you’ve had a website for 10 years or you’re just getting started, discover how to create a search-friendly website that drives user action and supports your goals. 
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October 2

October 7
(call for Board Nominations open until September 11th)

CCCTA/TOTA AGM & Conference
October 26-27

September 21-25

November 17-18
****NOTE: TIABC's C-19 Bulletin is now published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Feel free to send us your ideas on what information would be valuable for TIABC to share through our COVID-19 Bulletin going forward. Drop us a line at info@tiabc.ca.