Jamestown  (CSi)  Jamestown Tourism Director, Searle Swedlund says the year 2020 noted development gains in Jamestown.

On Tuesday’s Wayne Byers Show on CSi Cable 2, Searle said improvements and progress continues on Frontier Village.  He said in 2020, the Ft. Seward “Glamping Experience,” also attracted additional visitors, while the River Trail and Hiking Trail attracted visitors. He pointed out that in 2020 the 1883 Stutsman County Courthouse implemented the historical exhibit throughout the courthouse, the only one of its kind in the U.S.

2020 also included the evolution of the planned Buffalo City Park, for Jamestown, with the feasibility study showing the project is doable. He noted that funds are still be sought for the project.

Searle added that the new Tourism Community Calendar of events started to be distributed in the community.  Also the Tourism  E-Newsletter, is available to outline tourist attraction updates in Jamestown.

In 2020 Jamestown visitor counts were down about 1,500, compared to last year.  He said tourist numbers began to increase in late 2020.

With Tax collections, Searle said hotel tax collections were down about 30 percent, along with a drop in tax collections from bars and restaurants, stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on decreasing business.

He added that the Jamestown Tourism Annual Meeting is planned for Monday January 11, 2021 at 5:15-p.m., at the Jamestown Civic Center’s, Exchequor Room, with the public invited.