By Stephen Seitz
KILLINGTON—As reported last week in The Mountain Times, Amy Morrison, executive director of the Killington Pico Area Association, is stepping down to take over as the new head of the Stowe Area Association. Her last day at KPAA is Friday, Oct. 14. The Mountain Times caught up with Morrison this past week to hear her reflections.
“ I have enjoyed my time at the KPAA and town, and I feel that we have accomplished a lot,” Morrison said. “The Stowe Area Association is a very dynamic membership organization with a greater breadth of responsibility. They are the destination marketing organization for Stowe, and under their umbrella are charged with marketing, events, group sales, and to manage a central reservations system.”
The Stowe Reporter reported that Morrison will take over from Ed Stahl, who served the Stowe association as executive director for nine years. The paper quotes Stowe Area Association president David Woflgang as saying of Morrison, “she came prepared, she thought on her feet, and she was extremely enthusiastic.”
Morrison said she looks forward to new challenges.
“I am excited for what is to come as I make the transition, and look forward to being a part of such a strong organization,” Morrison said. “This was a very hard decision to make, but I am excited with the possibilities that lay ahead. The SAA has a very strong reputation and I look forward to working with the staff, trustees, members and community.”
Morrison is also moving on from her position as events and marketing coordinator for the town of Killington.
“We’ve had an opportunity to work together for six months,” said Killington town manager Debby Schwartz. “While I’m sorry to see her go, I’m happy for her new opportunity. She’s arranged more than 100 events.”
Morrison said having both positions made it possible to better promote the town.
“Although the town and KPAA are separate positions, we are all working together to grow Killington’s tourism-based economy,” Morrison said. “ Having the complementary roles allowed for operational silos to be broken down, and helped to facilitate improved efficiency and effective collaboration.”
Morrison said some of the highlights of her three-year tenure included being “able to align and coordinate tourism development efforts with Killington Resort, the Town, and the former Killington Chamber of Commerce under the Killington Pico Area Association. We are now all working towards one common goal – to improve this community.
“There has been steady growth in the organization and the reach of the KPAA continues to grow, which helps to attract new members and bring more investment to Killington,” she added. “We produced and recruited a series of events to help reignite summer and fall tourism, which contributed to a consistent, multi-year increase in Options Tax revenue during event investment periods.”
Morrison said she won’t forget Killington and will be keeping an eye on her former position.
“I look forward to seeing the continued progress of Killington,” she said.
