County looking to hire tourism director

6/4/2013

By Jim Poole

If you can market Schoharie County, this job's for you.
The county Planning and Development Agency is looking for someone to direct tourism, the county's second-largest industry.
Planning Director Alicia Terry is currently handling the work, but "there's a desire and a need to have more time devoted to it."
Many see tourism as a growing industry, with expansions at Howe Caverns, promotion of Schoharie Valley farms and businesses and more events in Sharon Springs.
"We have a great story to tell, and we want to share it internally as well as externally," said Ms. Terry, who began advertising the position this week.
The person--or persons--would be responsible for running the tourism program, be familiar with I Love New York requirements, know the county's attractions and amenities and "understand that tourism is a real asset," Ms. Terry said.
The tourism position would have assistance from Ms. Terry's office and also from the private sector. The Schoharie Alliance, a newly-formed group of county business organizations, is eager to support the person.
Ms. Terry advertised the job six weeks ago but received no responses at all.
She feels "there wasn't enough buzz" at the time.
"Nobody was talking about it, and there wasn't much publicity," Ms. Terry said.
The job could be full- or part-time and might be filled by one person, one and a half or two.
"We've identified the scope of the work, and we're anxious to see what people propose," she said.
Although having a county resident fill the job seems ideal, that's not necessarily the case, Ms. Terry added.
"We shouldn't limit ourselves to someone inside the county, but it is a factor," she said.
The position would contract with the county, so the position wouldn't be a county employee, Ms. Terry said.
Anyone interested should contact her office at 295-8770.