Northwest Backroads Comes To Dayton

DAYTON - Television host Grant Goodeve agrees with local business owners and planners. Dayton doesn't have to dress itself up and pretend to be something it isn't. Dayton is a carefully preserved piece of Washing­ton history.

"It's almost like a (Hol­lywood) set, and I mean that as a compliment," Goodeve said Tuesday morning while visiting the Dayton Historical Depot. "So much is already here and offered that you don't have to set anything up. It's authentic, and everything is so darn clean and beauti­fully kept." Goodeve visited Dayton this week with a crew from Northwest Cable News and Belo Broadcasting to film an upcoming episode of Northwest Backroads fea­turing Dayton and its many culinary, agriculture-based tourism attractions. Segments were shot at the Monteillet's Fromagerie goat and sheep cheese farm, the Weinhard Hotel and Café, as well as the depot and the courthouse. "We were pointed in this direction by the Washington State Tourism folks," said Northwest Backroads pro­ducer Anne Erickson. "We came down, took a look and decided it was perfect. There are so many hidden treasures here, all close together and combined with great local food."

And Erickson herself was thrilled with the idea of shooting in Dayton because it was off the beaten path. "Everybody knows about Walla Walla," she said. "This was more of a discovery." Lisa Ronnberg, director of the Dayton Chamber of Commerce, was excited as well. In a meeting just this August, Ronnberg and other community members agreed that Dayton was ready for more publicity and market­ing. This television spot could be just the ticket. "(Dayton's) historical sites, combined now with the growing trend in agri-tour­ism,

make Dayton a unique destination," Ronnberg said. "People want to get back to the basics and learn more not only about our history but where their food comes from as well."

The Dayton episode is part of a series of Northwest Backroads show focusing on culinary and agri-tourism sites in Washington. The se­ries was inspired by intense effort on the part of the Wash­ington State Department of Tourism and the Department of Agriculture to promote what's been called one of the fastest growing tourism categories in the state and nationwide.

Tourism is a key com­ponent of the economy of Southeast Washington, spe­cifically Columbia, Asotin, Garfield and Whitman coun­ties, generating $6.5 million in state and local taxes in 2008 and contributing over $93.9 million in total rev­enues to the regional econ­omy, according to the state tourism department.

The Dayton episode of Northwest Backroads is scheduled to air on KING TV in Seattle at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 18, and repeat on Oct. 2. Northwest Backroads is also carried on KONG TV and Northwest Cable News, KREM in Spokane, KGW in Portland, and KTVB in Boise.