The Lure

Officials target economic gains of outdoor recreation

Attracting people to Santa Fe who have a passion for the outdoors could be an economic boost for the region, says David Griscom, Santa Fe County economic development manager.

In 2010, the county identified outdoor recreation and products industries as target areas in its strategic growth plan, a facet shared by both city and state strategies. Griscom says he met with 30 business representatives at an outdoor retail trade show in Salt Lake City last month and is talking up the idea of expansion or relocation in Santa Fe. One push he's making is that businesses "cluster" with Bicycle Technologies International, a worldwide parts distributor with a newish facility in Rancho Viejo.

"We see this as an emerging industry," he says, noting that a trade group recently estimated the state's economic impact from outdoor recreation is something like $6 billion per year. "We don't know exactly how they get that number, but no matter how you shake it, it's going to a big number."

The other reason a company might come here, he says, is the same reason visitors come with bikes, boots, skis and boards in hands.

"We think their employees would like it here. We are really selling the quality of life here," he says. "You can now ride or hike from the city to the ski area without getting on a paved road. That's a big deal, and we emphasize that. How many capital cities in the country can you get on a trail basically on the outskirts of the city and access so many miles of trail like that?"

Growth Griscom calls "eco tourism" is also a ring that officials are grasping for. It might be one part reality and one part dream.

"When I'm out on the trails, I stop and talk to people, and I see more and more people from out of state who are coming here to hike and bike," he says. "Santa Fe has long been known as a cultural center, and that is valid and that has its place, but more and more you are seeing a younger crowd come into Santa Fe with their skis and with their bikes to enjoy what we have."

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