New tourism initiative may bring more bikes to campus

Cycling tourism may be coming to the MHCC campus.

The East County Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center is working on the East Multnomah Country Bicycle Tourism Initiative and trying to lure cycling-related commerce to the region.

A statewide tourism bureau awarded the local group a grant to research tourism in East County. The goal is to develop a program that would generate overnight stays, since funding of the grant originates from hotel taxes.

The initiative began about a year ago and is still in the research stages.

Coming next week: two bicycle tourism workshops, to be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 13 at the Edgefield McMenamins and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Corbett Fire Hall.

The Chamber has met with MHCC staff, administrators and students to get their perspective on the potential bicycle niche in the East County.

“Everybody brought different perspectives to the table,” said Michelle Gregory, MHCC director of community involvement, who has been involved in the process for about a year.

“I think for the Chamber, the constant challenge was bringing the group discussion back to tourism, because there’s still a conversation that needs to happen in East County around basic commuting.”

Gregory said conversations took place on how to safely increase cycling, what role MHCC would play and if there are enough businesses locally that support cycling and bike repair.

The target audience for the initiative would be avid cyclers who travel looking for “the next cool place to go cycling,” she said.

The Mt. Hood campus could serve as a staging area, where cyclists park their cars (and unload their bikes); could offer classes in bike safety; or help to organize a business certification program with which to market cycling and promote bike-friendly options.

As for the recent spike in bike thefts at MHCC, Gregory said, “It’s probably not in itself a reason to look a way from the tourism effort” because the type of events taking place would bring crowds and a lot of eyes to campus.

There is also potential for the MHCC Hospitality and Tourism program to partner with new events hosted on campus.

MHCC has a system and checklist in place to decide which events would fit with the college mission statement and would work with the college’s availability. Overnight stays were an issue for the campus in the past, said Gregory.

“There are probably years of cultivating a bike tourism market, but it would be a good thing for the college, and it would be a good thing for East County,” she said. “We’re very supportive of anything that helps the region.”