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New Alpine California Welcome Center at Viejas
By Jo Moreland
The Alpine Sun
ALPINE ---- Amid the fragrance of a
traditional tribal purification blessing, officials, dignitaries
and curious shoppers explored the new California Welcome Center
March 17 at the Viejas Outlet Center in Alpine.
County Supervisor Dianne Jacob and representatives from
the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau, the California
Travel & Tourism Commission and the Viejas Tribal Council were
there to help celebrate the center’s grand opening.
“We love our visitors, and I love the sales tax
revenue, too,” Jacob said.
One of 14 California Welcome Centers statewide, the Alpine
center is the first on tribal land and the second such center in
San Diego County. Oceanside also has one.
The Alpine California Welcome Center will be an
important gateway to more than 8.9 million people who annually
travel on nearby Interstate 8 into San Diego County, officials
said. About 60,000 of those travelers are expected every year at
the Alpine center.
Jacob noted that the new center will serve some of the
1.8 million overnight annual visitors from Arizona. Eighty-seven
percent of them travel here on I-8, the supervisor said.
The California Welcome Center is important because
tourism is the third largest employer in the county, with the
military first and commercial/industry first and second, said
Joe Terzi, president and chief executive officer of the San
Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau, known as ConVis.
The 1,000-square foot California Welcome Center in Alpine is
part of a collaborative merger agreement of ConVis and the San
Diego East Visitors Bureau.
“We’re looking forward to having an opportunity to find
out more about what’s going on in East County,” Terzi said.
Eric Lund, vice president of community relations and
membership for ConVis, announced on Feb. 22 at the installation
of officers and board members of the Alpine Mountain Empire
Chamber of Commerce that Alpine would have a California State
Welcome Center.
At that time Lund said the state would provide about
$150,000 to promote Alpine as a destination. That should triple
the number of Alpine California Welcome Center visitors and
eventually provide much broader business opportunities locally,
he said.
New marketing plan
The annual $300,000 budget of the San Diego East
Visitors Bureau will be matched by ConVis to support a new
strategic marketing plan for East County to bolster tourism for
the region and the economy, according to ConVis.
The goal is to make visitors more aware of East County
as a place to visit, shop, dine and enjoy as well as drive
through, Terzi said.
Alpine Honorary Mayor Carlette Anderson of Save-A-Heart
said the new center “will give information to visitors to San
Diego that there is more than just (what’s) west of Interstate
5.”
“East County offers so many opportunities for tourists to
experience the lovely mountains, the warm welcome of the
businesses of East County,” Anderson said.
Robert C. Welch, vice chairman of the Tribal Council of
the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, said that locating the
Welcome Center on Viejas recognizes the strong partnership and
community relationship the tribe has established in the county.
“We are proud to show local and out-of-state tourists
all that East County has to offer,” Viejas Tribal Chairman Bobby
L. Barrett said in a statement.
Local allure
One of the most diverse areas in San Diego County, East
County’s majestic mountains, sparkling lakes, deep canyons and
the stark beauty of the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park draw
people from throughout the region, state and elsewhere.
The area boasts vibrant communities with attractive
shopping centers and stores, helpful businesses, popular
casinos, the Viejas Outlet Center, relaxing resorts, historic
sites and annual friendly festivals and events.
“It’s the culture of a destination that makes it a
destination,” said Jonelle Tannahill, tourism development
manager and California Welcome Center liaison. “Welcome Centers
promote the entire state. It’s a wonderful opportunity for
people to extend their stay beyond a few days.”
The Alpine California Welcome Center offers free
brochures, maps and San Diego Official Visitor Planning Guides.
Discounted attraction and tour tickets can be bought.
Professional, multi-lingual staff and volunteers help visitors
make the most of their time in the region.
The center also has handmade Native American arts,
crafts and jewelry; Historic Highway 80 logo items and
educational books about the surrounding area. Interpretive
displays highlighting the Viejas Band and East County parks are
also available.
Open daily year-round except for Thanksgiving,
Christmas and New Year’s Day, the Alpine California Welcome
Center’s hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Suite H110 in the Viejas Outlet
Shopping Center, 5005 Willows Road.
For more information about the California Welcome Center, phone
(619) 445-0180 or toll-free (800) 463-0668 or visit
www.visitcalifornia.com or www.sandiego.org.
 E-mail
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