Deer Lake -
The Roy Whalen Regional Heritage Centre and Archives and Valley Crafts is tucked in off the Trans-Canada Highway. If one wasn't looking for it, it could easily be missed since it does not grab the eye of passing motorists headed north to Gros Morne National Park.
Faye Haines has been an employee at the Heritage Centre and craft shop for 15 years. Haines said it's not only visitors who could sometimes miss out on the museum and craft shop, but also local residents.
"I don't know if the location is ideal," Haines said. "It would have been ideal if it was in town. There's still a lot of people in town who don't know what's here. A lot of people come in and don't even realize that the museum is in the back of the building. This is the only museum in Deer Lake."
She said she thinks the museum and craft shop would have more of a presence at its current location if there were more signs.
"People pass before they realize they missed it, and a lot of people wont turn around and come back. A lot of it is the divided highway I think as well," she said.
Glenda Garnier is chair of the Grand Lake Centre of Economic Development in Deer Lake which owns the museum and craft shop. She said the sales at the craft shop did decrease this year, but visitor numbers were just about on par with last season.
"Museum-goers will seek out museums wherever they are, but funding to provide more signage would definitely be an asset," she said.
Deer Lake's multiphase tourism and recreation plan was unveiled to the public this week. Tract Consulting president Neil Dawe presented proposals for improvement and development throughout the town. When he focused on the Trans-Canada Highway, he said it would be ideal to have half the number of entry and exits connecting to the highway, new sidewalk and banners along the street.
"A key thing that we're recommending, because of the location of your museum and craft shop that's really in a bad spot, we're proposing that it be moved down next to the Visitor Information Centre. This Visitor Information Centre is scheduled for upgrading some time in the near future. We're suggesting then the museum and craft shop will be moved in line with the Visitor Information Centre," said Dawe.
The craft shop sells mostly local items and souvenirs, while the museum highlights artifacts, pictures and events from the early 1920s with the commencement of the power plant and the logging industry.
While the Grand Lake Centre of Economic Development didn't have a comment on the relocation of the museum and craft shop, Garnier said the tourism and recreation plan was discussed at the group's organizational meeting Wednesday.
"Overall we think it's a very positive step for Deer Lake and for the region. Having a plan is the first step to implementing a plan. It's based on the community's assets," she said.
