Regional Spotlight On Our Community

Growing ‘Visitor Services’ In Yuba – Sutter

by Steven Dambeck, Director of Visitor Services at the Yuba-Sutter Chamber of Commerce and runs a small tasting room/café/market called Yuba Harvest, in Oregon House


There is a bit of a mystery to our region. We are blessed with an abundance of magical experiences; to name a few:
• the glorious tundra swans who over-winter with us each year
• the most highly regarded olive oils – and some of the most highly regarded wines – in California
• a flourishing Farm to Fork culture
• a rich and expansive history from Native Americans to Cold War intrigues, with special emphasis on the Gold Rush
• some of the best fishing and duck hunting in America
• Beautiful, cool lakes and rivers in an otherwise dry State
• The magnificent Sutter Buttes
• And an agricultural legacy that is second to none

Pretty outrageous, really. And yet, relatively few visitors come to enjoy these things. And we ourselves don’t seem to fully appreciate what we have. Can this be changed? Can we develop our wonderful resources, and utilize them more fully to enrich our lives and those of others?

The Yuba-Sutter Chamber of Commerce, with funding provided by the City of Yuba City, has set out to do just that. Working with a wide range of partners throughout the region, we have been developing strategies for enhancing and promoting each one of the experiences listed above.

A prime example is the Swan Festival, which now occurs annually in November. Working with local birders and farmers, as well as State agencies, we have created a wonderful, family-friendly event that attracts bird enthusiasts from throughout the state, and beyond. We can’t claim credit for the presence of the birds – that is a blessing – but we can, and have, built an infrastructure around the birds that allows us to more fully enjoy them.

We are working to do exactly the same things with all of our other blessings. We are working with the newly formed Yuba County Historical Commission, other local historians, land trusts and politicians, to develop our tremendous historical heritage, not only in Marysville and Yuba City, but also in the outlying areas of Smartsville, Wheatland and the Native American settlement of Kulu. We are working with local growers, wine-makers and food processors to deepen and share our great Farm to Fork heritage (which will result in a large, annual Farm Fest being launched this coming October). We are working with Yuba Sutter Arts and the cities of Marysville and Yuba City to enhance our Bok Kai festival and to reinaugurate Ethnic Diversity Day. We are working with local high schools to begin attracting and supporting athletic tournaments. And much more…

And while we are working to strengthen and develop these experiences, we have also begun to get the word out to the rest of the world. Under the guidance of Rikki Shaffer, CEO of the Chamber, we have over the last 12 months built a new visitor website (visityubasutter.com) and FaceBook page, placed tourism ads in national media, and been featured in a national TV program (CrossWest Adventures). We have also begun reaching out to the local hotels, restaurants and shops to create a more unified and attractive offering to potential visitors.

What can you expect to see in 2015? More of the same, and an ever-expanding coalition of local partners building our internal sense of gratitude and appreciation for what we have, as well as an ever-more-effective marketing campaign to get the word out. And how can you contribute to this? Well, start by attending our wonderful annual events, and by drinking our great local wines, and by swimming and hiking in our great natural environments -- and bring your friends and family! And always feel free to contact me with any ideas or aspirations you might have:
sd@rt-consulting.com or (530) 701-3577.