Sicamous is going solo when it comes to tourism services with the decision to formally withdraw from the regional function. 

At the Dec. 11 meeting, council voted to withdraw from Shuswap Tourism, effective immediately, and focus on its in-house initiative that will be more Sicamous focused and put them 鈥渁 little bit more in the driver鈥檚 seat.鈥�

鈥淲e know our community and our surrounding area really well,鈥� Coun. Bob Evans added. 鈥淎nd I鈥檓 not saying Shuswap Tourism doesn鈥檛, but I think that... we could use every dollar and every ounce of energy on our own to craft this to be better suited to what we need for advertising.鈥�

Mayor Colleen Anderson seconded that opinion, pointing out they have Sicamous Tourism and several other businesses and organizations in town that also showcase and support the community. 

鈥淩ight now we鈥檙e looking at ways to look at our tax base and find some money to reduce, or not increase, our taxes that much, so I feel that this is a space where we鈥檙e being repetitive and redundant,鈥� she said, adding that this will the district about $40,000 annually.

City of Salmon Arm council made a similar decision this summer, electing to opt out of the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) function as of Jan. 1, 2025. 

"The decision has not been arrived at lightly, and we are hopeful there will be opportunities in the future to collaborate with the Columbia Shuswap Regional District on regional initiatives, on a case-by-case basis," wrote Mayor Alan Harrison in a letter to CSRD chief administrative officer John McLean.

At the Feb. 26 council meeting, Harrison tabled a motion to review the city鈥檚 future participation in Shuswap Tourism. This was in response to earlier budget discussions at the CSRD board around a proposed 20.61 per cent tax increase (equivalent to an additional $80,241) for Shuswap Tourism. Concerns with the amount were raised in the boardroom by city councillor and Salmon Arm director Tim Lavery, and city councillor/board chair Kevin Flynn, as the city pays 40 per cent of the tourism budget. Lavery received unanimous support for a motion to have CSRD staff look into the implications of reducing the proposed increase to 9 per cent. At a later meeting, staff came back with an increase of 8.42 per cent and the impacts it would have on the tourism function. Electoral area directors, however, opposed the change, saying it would have adverse effects.