There is a brand new “Potomac” in town.
Fairfax County unveiled “Potomac Banks” Wednesday, the new tourism-centered branding for the southern part of the county and its historic and cultural sights.
In a push convention on the literal banks of the Potomac River at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, Fairfax governing administration and tourism leaders reported the new branding would assist to draw new and old site visitors back to southern Fairfax’s museums, historical attractions, wineries and breweries.
The branding exertion was kicked off in 2019 with a “destination growth assessment” by the Mount Vernon Endeavor Drive, in accordance to a county press launch. But it took on new significance for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, when tourism to the place and all over the country plummeted. Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck explained that in 2020, resort stays in the location dropped to about 10% of their normal ranges.
In accordance to a county analysis, Fairfax’s tourism industry introduced in above $3.4 billion in 2019 in all round economic impression, but that variety fell to underneath $2 billion for 2020. The hope for the rebranding is that it will attract readers to Mount Vernon as effectively as other county points of interest.
“[Mount Vernon] is frequently frequented by people who then go on to Washington, D.C., missing some of our state’s and our county’s finest cultural assets,” claimed Doug Bradburn, Mount Vernon’s CEO. “I believe which is a single of the items we want to consider to aid spotlight.”
The central design and style for the new manufacturer picture capabilities a few silhouetted figures. Duggar suggests that the tri-cornered hat signifies the area’s colonial heritage, the 2nd determine signifies suffragists, and the third figure acknowledges the way the area’s Black population – both free of charge and enslaved – helped to establish Fairfax County and the country at huge.
In addition to the new model id for the southern element of Fairfax, the area is also heading to encompass the county’s to start with “tourism enhancement district,” which Duggar mentioned will probable be founded afterwards this year. A board symbolizing the area’s tourism drivers will be appointed to oversee a possible levee that would go back into the district’s resources for advertising and marketing or money initiatives. The county is also launching a new “Potomac Financial institutions Cost savings Pass,” which will give readers discounted admission to Mount Vernon, George Mason’s Gunston Corridor, the Woodlawn & Pope-Leighey Home, and far more. The passes expense $25 for readers ages 6-11 and $42 for people 12 and up.
“We did not have a way, definitely, to thread all of our huge belongings in South County collectively in a deal that folks could see … that they could appear in this article and devote times understanding about our history and looking at the several belongings that we have in South County,” County Chairman Jeff McKay mentioned Wednesday. “And so to get to this issue to thread these alongside one another in a compact way for persons to comprehend, is seriously important.”
Jared Foretek handles the Manassas region and regional information across Northern Virginia. Reach him at jforetek@insidenova.com