As a service industry worker in beautiful Banff, Alberta, I find myself struggling to make ends meet. The cost of living here is high and the expenses are piling up. Starting a family or saving for the future seems like an impossible dream. This story is not unique to me but shared by many others in our community.

Do you know about BLLT?

We need to talk about Banff Lake Louise Tourism (BLLT). If you don't know about this organization, it was founded shortly after the Town of Banff was incorporated in 1991 as a destination marketing organization with the intention to advertise Banff National Park to the world as a place to visit.

At the same time, the Town of Banff started to redirect 100% of the annual business licence fees that it collects from anyone doing business in the Town, to BLLT for tourist marketing.

Crazy Budget to Attract More and More Tourists

These license fees amount to about $5 million annually!! This money (which is about 10% of the annual municipal budget) is spent on destination marketing for our already over-visited town. I have no problem with a private business spending their capital on marketing (matter of fact, the actual budget of BLLT is about $10 million annually!) but the major part of the business license fees should be spent on improving lives fro residents. Other municipalities e.g. the City of Edmonton directs these fees in their general revenue.

While tourism is important, we believe that these funds could be better utilized elsewhere within our municipal budget. BLLT seems to have grown into a bloated giant of organization. The employees listed on their homepage alone contain 1 Director, 3 Vice Presidents, 5 Directors, 6 Senior Managers, 17 Managers and others. In total 43 people that made it on their website, who knows how many are not listed.

But do they care about the Locals?

BLLTs vision is to "Inspire the world to experience the indelible awe of Banff and Lake Louise" and its Vision statement is "A bold and disciplined marketing organization committed to the growth of our tourism economy and curation of our brand." Some events put on by BLLT (snow days, christmas market) have some appeal for local residents but as their official mission and vision show, they are not here for the locals.

Of course we're all dependent and live off the tourism industry. But when is enough? And who profits from the ever escalating prices and profits? I don't know about you but I haven't seen the same increases in pay as the CEOs of this town must have if we just go by looking at room rates. By the way, maximizing room rates is actually a target for BLLT: in their 2022 highlights they were proud of increasing revenue per room to $224! 

Let's Shift our Focus from Business needs to Residents
I propose shifting this funding towards areas such as housing and transportation which directly impact us, the residents of Banff. Affordable housing options are scarce and public transportation could be improved significantly with additional funding.

Banff's population was 7,851 as of 2016 census data (Statistics Canada). With more than half of us working in the service industry (Alberta Government), it's clear that many are likely facing similar financial struggles.

By reallocating some or all of BLLT’s funding toward improving local living conditions, we can help ensure that those who contribute so much to making Banff a desirable destination can also enjoy a decent quality of life here instead of spending it on large advertising campaigns or "influencers".

Council seems to just start with their annual budgeting. Now is the time to let these people know what you think should be the priorities. If we show them that people in this town care, they have the ability of diverting these funds to more worthy endeavours.

Please sign this petition and email town council (council@banff.ca) if you agree that it's time for change – let’s redirect BLLT funding towards improving life for all residents in Banff!

If you're even braver, sign up to speak at one of Councils meetings to express your feelings about this topic.