Tourism proponents say Muskogee’s natural resources already are drawing tourists and will bring more with an addition to Honor Heights Park.

Matthew Weatherbee, a member of the Muskogee Parks and Recreation Board, recently presented plans for a butterfly garden and sanctuary to the Public Works Committee.

The garden is a highlight of a larger plan called Birds, Blooms and Butterflies, which has been under development for several years.

Weatherbee says the garden will fit in nicely with existing projects.

“It’s a part of a trend in ecotourism; a lot of people are visiting natural attractions like lakes, rivers and gardens rather than amusement parks,” he said. “So, it fits in with Muskogee’s tourism plan.”

Other cities have been responding to public interest, Weatherbee said, a fact revealed in research done by Muskogee Parks and Recreation.

“We looked at other cities have similar facilities, like Wichita, Tulsa and Oklahoma City,” he said. “These butterfly houses have a really big appeal, not only for kids, but for adults also. When you have something that attracts the entire family, then it has a bigger tourism impact.”

Weatherbee said the garden also will expand the number of people visiting Honor Heights Park.

“Honor Heights Park is Muskogee’s No. 1 tourism attraction right now, but much of that is two times a year; the Azalea Festival and the Garden of Lights,” he said. “With the butterfly sanctuary and teaching garden, we’ll be providing an attraction to extend that tourism spike from summer into fall. The teaching garden will be fenced in with educational aspects including information about each plant and how they attract butterflies. There will be hours of operation, staff and an admission fee.”

Based on the research and planning done so far, Weatherbee is optimistic about the tourism public embracing the garden.

“I expect that it will be so successful that it won’t be long before we’re expanding it,” he said. “That will make it even more attractive and provide more reasons for the visitor to return.”

Treasure Ruttman, vice president of Tourism and Marketing at the Greater Muskogee Area Chamber of Commerce, said that ecotourism is an idea introduced by a consultant.

“This started in 2004 when the city hired Seth Davidson; he was all about ecotourism,” she said. “He came and reminded us of all the wonderful resources we have. Out of that, ‘Birds, Blooms and Butterflies’ was developed as a tourism product. It has been ongoing ever since.”

Ruttman said all the pieces are coming together. Bird-watching already is popular and growing, the flowers at Honor Heights already are a big tourism draw each year, and the butterfly garden will complete the concept.

“We already have all three products; all we have to do is package and promote them,” she said. “Ecotourism is successful because a large part of tourism is learning. More people are taking vacations not just for the enjoyment. They want to see, touch and feel their vacation.”

Ruttman said many outdoor activities fit completely or partially under the ecotourism heading, including fishing tournaments.

“We have signed a letter of intent with BASS/ESPN to hold their elite series bass fishing tournament at Three Forks Harbor in 2010,” she said.



How to help



To get more involved with the teaching gardens and butterfly sanctuary at Honor Heights Park, call Matthew Weatherbee at 682-9276.



Ecotourism growing



The International Ecotourism Society says the American public has a rising interest in ecotourism, whether they know what the word means or not. Some of the information the IES has published includes:

• In the United States, LOHAS (“Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability”) estimates that ecotourism (including eco-travel networks, green tourism, eco-volunteering trips, active sports trip programming, and environmentally responsible tourism) are among the fastest growing travel trends, and are estimated to be a $77 billion market.

• Over 55 million U.S. travelers are classified as “geo-tourists” or interested in nature, culture and heritage tourism.

• In the U.S. on federal lands alone, there are an estimated 900 million visits per year to national forests, parks, monuments, historic sites, recreation areas, protected areas, wildlife refuges, reserves, and management areas—most of these visits include sightseeing, hiking, wildlife observation, swimming, snorkeling or other forms of ecotourism.



Source: International Ecotourism Society



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