Following my trip to Fort Wayne, Indiana earlier this year, I was inspired to call the city my “hidden gem” of accessible travel in 2024, due in large part to the community’s focus on improved accessibility. I observed active partnerships between private businesses, non-profit organizations, and the destination marketing organization to advance inclusion.
Last year, Visit Fort Wayne’s leadership team unveiled a bold Tourism Master Plan that aims to position the city as a premier tourism destination in the United States, with accessibility being a key pillar of the strategy — a priority that is not set apart, but woven into the vision for building an inclusive community.
Q&A with Jessa Campbell, Visit Fort Wayne’s Director of Destination Development and Communications
I recently spoke with Jessa Campbell, Visit Fort Wayne’s Director of Destination Development and Communications, to learn more about the Tourism Master Plan and how it came together. Her leadership and community engagement will be critical in realizing the accessibility goals outlined in the plan.
What inspired Visit Fort Wayne to identify accessibility as a priority in its 10-year Tourism Master Plan? Who will be involved in, or responsible for, the work to come?
Visit Fort Wayne’s Tourism Master Plan is a result of the amazing growth our community has experienced in the past 10-15 years. We are often asked in conversations with Greater Fort Wayne Inc., the City of Fort Wayne, and Allen County to provide input on tourism-based development opportunities, but we didn’t have an answer based on research, analysis, and community input from residents. Until now! We know that any development or opportunity we suggest would need to be rooted in what residents want because what is good for residents is good for visitors.
Visit Fort Wayne’s Tourism Master Plan is a 10-year vision and roadmap outlining tourism-based growth that builds upon and enhances Fort Wayne and Allen County’s quality of life for residents and continues to position Fort Wayne and Allen County as a premier destination for visitors of all walks of life.
We’ve identified around 16 organization partners who are leading some of the 20 recommendations, and then there are many other support organizations identified throughout the plan that all play a role in supporting efforts, thinking big, and owning the plan as a shared responsibility to build a community that is reflective of the diverse and authentic experiences our area has to offer.
Some of the work to come includes addressing how we can be a more accessible destination, how we grow our convention and sports tournament offerings, what regional assets we can grow around our culinary scene and unique retail and commercial areas, focusing on riverfront development, and identifying products we can develop during the winter, around our music scene, and family-friendly offerings.
Is Visit Fort Wayne’s commitment to accessibility just a statement, or is it something more? What should visitors and residents expect to see over the next ten years?
Through hundreds of conversations with stakeholders and survey responses (2,200 residents and 670 visitor surveys), a throughline was established that our community celebrates and wants to support becoming an accessible destination. It is an underlying basis for what we believe in Fort Wayne and our goal is to make it the underlying basis for all we do. While Accessibility serves as its own recommendation and how we can transform our community to be a globally recognized accessible destination, accessibility is also weaved into the other 19 recommendations from including individuals with lived experiences in every conversation to including universal design principles into any products we look to develop or grow. Our commitment to accessibility is more than just a statement it is something many of our community organizations and nonprofits like AWS Foundation and Turnstone work towards every day, and it is something we are already excelling in with destinations like Promenade Park and hosting international adaptive sport competitions.
Over the next ten years, visitors and residents can expect to see more adaptive sports competitions, more universally designed facilities and renovations, and more of a concerted and collaborative effort in progressing towards being an accessible destination. We are not striving for perfection, but we are working towards progress, awareness, and growth in being a place where all abilities can find adventure.
Although you are just beginning to embark on this ten-year journey, have there been any achievements thus far?
Consistent progress is key, and we are already seeing partners in the community wrap their arms around identifying opportunities to be more accessible and promote their accessibility. At Visit Fort Wayne, we’ve set out to include more Accessibility information on our website and collect information from our partners on their facilities. We also have shining examples in our community that even before the Tourism Master Plan’s release included or were built with Universal Design principles, including Promenade Park, the Fort Wayne International Airport, and other organizations that are currently planning renovations and seeking input from the community and incorporating opportunities to ensure our built environment is more accessible.
Visit Fort Wayne is also looking to support a community-wide assessment in the next year or so to identify accessibility opportunities and outline an action plan and specific strategies to achieve our goals.
How can the leaders of other destination marketing organizations work to make accessibility a priority in their communities? What can they learn from your experience?
It can be daunting to figure out where to invest precious resources like time and money, but we think the most important factor is to just start! Start small, start with collecting information on your destination, start with learning, and start with a conversation with someone with a lived experience. It is more about wanting to make progress than worrying about being perfect.
Fort Wayne has been fortunate that accessibility has been at the core of our community for a very long time because of the many wonderful non-profit organizations supporting resident needs. However, what other communities can learn from our experience is to tap into these resources in your backyard, tap into the individuals with lived experience, and tap into the organizations that also want to be more accessible – to think differently and to work together!
Final Thoughts
Too often, local governments and destination marketing organizations shy away from discussing accessibility or tackling what are considered to be complex projects, but that is not the approach in Fort Wayne. Visit Fort Wayne and local businesses understand clearly the importance and opportunity in accessible development. Although there is much work necessary to achieve full accessibility, Visit Fort Wayne’s and Jessa’s commitment to “just start” is an inspiring example that other destinations should follow.
