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May 18, 2009

Corbin, time to think big

Samantha Swindler

When KFC unveiled its latest corporate logo, 65,000 square-foot painted tiles were assembled in the Nevada desert so Colonel Sanders’ famous image could be viewed from space.

That’s thinking big.

Of course, in Corbin, we know where it all began. Some Corbinites worked at Sander’s Cafe. Others cut the Colonel’s lawn. His fried chicken doesn’t seem like a big deal.

But it’s a huge deal for the rest of the world.

Corbin’s tourism dollars from hotel and restaurant taxes have funded banners and planters for downtown, a frisbee golf course for Miller Park, and a variety of sponsorships for local events.

These have been great projects — but are we thinking big enough?

Little Corbin, Kentucky can capitalize on two vastly different and entirely unique tourist attractions that exist nowhere else in the world — Cumberland Falls and the very first Kentucky Fried Chicken.

We should be marketing to busloads of Japanese tourists, not just weekenders from Somerset.

Understandably, because it’s being run by an all-volunteer board, Tourism has been reactive to funding requests rather than proactive in developing its own long-term strategy. This week, the board allocated $40,000 toward the possible hire of a tourism director. I’m glad the board is looking ahead. But to me, the most important thing isn’t hiring someone to shake hands around town — it’s getting a PR firm to develop an effective, national marketing campaign for our two biggest assets.

I am amazed by the number of tourists drawn to Sander’s Cafe as it stands because — and bear with me, this is something a “Johnny-come-lately outsider” can help you with — it’s a huge disappointment.

I expected sit-down table service. I pictured an actual, pay-admission museum. I wanted 1950s, kitchy fun. I imagined a marble fountain of Gary Larson-style chickens blowing streams of sparkling water from their beaks.

OK, the fountain was wishful thinking, but still — Sander’s Cafe is just a mediocre KFC.

I expected more.

And any visitor will say the same thing.

The Corbin Tourism Commission should reach out to the owners of the KFC and offer assistance in marketing, renovating and expanding what they have to offer. I realize it is (gasp) not inside the city limits, but it still propels thousands and thousands of tourists through the city every year.

Also, no signage exists at exit 25 to show visitors the way through town and to the area’s most famous restaurant. Why not? A good marketing campaign for Corbin would direct tourists off I-75’s exit 25, along “Sander’s Way,” through downtown and past a statue and a museum (inside the city limits) dedicated to the Colonel’s legacy.

I know there’s been talk of a railroad museum, and while the railroad is a great source of local pride and history, lots of towns have railroads. Tourists aren’t going to travel the globe to learn about our railroad in the same way they would travel for KFC. Admittedly, a railroad museum would do more to bolster community pride and would have more significance to local people. But I’m talking tourism. Grow tourism revenues with KFC, and then invest visitors’ money back into the community with a railroad collection and park improvements that benefit locals as much as tourists.

And then there’s the other great tourist mecca — Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. I love the falls because I love nature, the outdoors, rock formations, hiking and rafting.

If you’re not interested in any of that, love it because the falls is consistently rated as one of the top tourist attractions in the state, and it brings millions of people through the area.

Corbin’s downtown merchants have banded together to capitalize on the falls’ famous phenomena with Moonbow Nights, a monthly, summer event that kicks off June 6. Let’s grow this into a city-wide festival, with tourism offering free bus or trolley rides from downtown to the falls.

Please note, our two biggest attractions aren’t inside the city, so if Corbin doesn’t capitalize on these branding opportunities, Williamsburg and London will.

I promise you — focus on nothing but those two attractions for the next three years, and Corbin Tourism will have done more for this town than they have since the board was created.

With local leadership that saw fit to invest in a mammoth expo center project, I know Corbin can think big.

Now, how big can we capitalize on fried chicken and waterfalls?



Samantha Swindler is the managing editor of the Times-Tribune. She can be reached at sswindler@ thetimestribune.com

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