Collaborative Web site promotes tourism, economic development

Visitors planning their next trip and business leaders looking for a place to relocate their companies now have a one-stop resource to learn about Columbia County, officials said Thursday.

The Columbia County Convention and Visitors Bureau and the county's development authority launched a collaborative Web site highlighting the county's history, arts, restaurants, hotels and other tourist areas, in addition to its industry. The site, www.choosecolumbiacounty.com, is the former site of the Development Authority of Columbia County.

During a ceremony at the Savannah Rapids Gatekeepers Cottage, James Dee, with Mass Media Marketing, the company that designed the new site and a new visitor's guide publication, said the site would be "constantly changing and constantly evolving into a great product" to promote the county.

Development Authority Executive Director Zack Daffin said the site reflects the state's goal to pair economic and tourism promotion.

"The client can do one-stop shopping there (on the site) and that's one of our goals," he said.

The launch did not go off completely as planned, as the development authority side of the site suffered some technical difficulties. Officials with the site's designer Mass Media Marketing said the site should soon be operating normally.