Author Bios (50 Words for each Author)

Natasha is a research associate at the Institute for Hospitality and Tourism Research at the Toronto Metropolitan University. She has a Bachelor of Commerce in Hospitality and Tourism Management and recently completed a Master of Science in Management with a research focus on main streets and the visitor economy. Natasha is interested in local tourism and hopes to soon pursue a PhD.

Tom is an Associate Professor at the Toronto Metropolitan University's Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, and Assistant Director of the Hospitality and Tourism Research Institute. Tom has a PhD in Recreation and Leisure Studies at the University of Waterloo. His research interests include local tourism, Visiting Friends and Relatives travel in general, and specifically residents who host visitors and the implications for community development, individual well-being, and the tourism industry. Tom is also interested in Virtual Reality and the impacts on the tourism industry. His research has been published in various tourism journals and presented at international conferences.

For more than 40 years Walter Jamieson has worked to bridge the academic and consultancy worlds through creativity, innovation and out-of-the-box thinking. His activities have been based on a sound set of responsible and sustainable values and principles. His activities include: early work in Canada using tourism and heritage resources as tools for community and economic development, research and consultancy work in China, extensive community-based tourism work in Asia, exploring the power of tourism as a tool for economic and social development.

Abstract (150 Words)

Main streets are economic and cultural hubs of communities, acting as local destinations which often attract visitors. Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) represent main streets and are associations of property owners and tenants who work to create successful business environments and attract people to them. In many ways BIAs are involved in destination management and marketing practices at the main street level and are important actors in local tourism and visitor economy development, yet few studies have explored this relationship. Therefore, this exploratory study involved a thematic analysis of interviews held with 36 Canadian BIA representatives to understand the role of tourism and the visitor economy in main street recovery and revitalization. Findings show that the visitor economy plays a significant role in the work and function of BIAs, but that its benefits could be greater capitalized on through further attention at the main street level, with implications for practitioners and academics.

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The Role of Tourism and the Visitor Economy in Main Street Recovery and Revitalization

Main streets are economic and cultural hubs of communities, acting as local destinations which often attract visitors. Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) represent main streets and are associations of property owners and tenants who work to create successful business environments and attract people to them. In many ways BIAs are involved in destination management and marketing practices at the main street level and are important actors in local tourism and visitor economy development, yet few studies have explored this relationship. Therefore, this exploratory study involved a thematic analysis of interviews held with 36 Canadian BIA representatives to understand the role of tourism and the visitor economy in main street recovery and revitalization. Findings show that the visitor economy plays a significant role in the work and function of BIAs, but that its benefits could be greater capitalized on through further attention at the main street level, with implications for practitioners and academics.