Yellowknife (July 14/04) - Mayor Gord Van Tighem says a new report linking the diamond industry with tourism means the City of Yellowknife and the territorial government will have to begin developing more RV parks and camping spots.

If that doesn't happen soon, Van Tighem says the territorial government and the city could lose the potential revenue to an enterprising entrepreneur willing to establish the RV and camping spots on their own.

The mayor offered the opinion that once the highway to Yellowknife is upgraded and once the bridge across the Mackenzie River is completed there will be increased "rubber-tire" tourism traffic into Yellowknife.

"A case in point is earlier this year when the ferry finally opened up. The very next day there was an RV from Texas in Yellowknife," said Van Tighem.

The report, The Perfect Setting: Diamond Tourism in the Northwest Territories, was commissioned jointly by the City of Yellowknife and Resources Wildlife and Economic Development and researched by The North Group.

"The key point to the whole marketing strategy is people aren't coming here for one purpose," said Van Tighem.

RWED Minister Brendan Bell said the NWT Arctic Tourism Association will take the lead in bringing the two concepts together.

"The NWT Arctic Tourism Association is a marketing model that makes sense as opposed to having governments drive this," said Bell.

"They've been much more successful in bringing the private sector and industry together," said the RWED minister.

NWT Arctic Tourism spokesman Brian Desjardins said the tourism organization will play an important role in bringing the concepts of tourism and the diamond industry together.

"With all the marketing that we do, we can certainly take advantage of diamond-tourism concept," said Desjardins.

Hilary Jones, general manager of Arslanian Cutting Works Ltd. says tours are not currently being offered at the diamond cutting plant but adds the idea is in the long-term plans.

If the tours do become a reality they wouldn't be free, said Jones. An individual from the company would have to be assigned to provide the tour and that person's time would cost the company money, she confirmed.

Bell said by this fall, RWED will meet with the City of Yellowknife to strike a committee to move the process forward. He hopes to have announcements concerning the National Diamond Strategy when the Energy and Mines ministers meet in Iqaluit from July 18-21.