Visitor fees?

[PAL]

Let's not. It's always about the money and I know that's the reality. It's gitten so you have to have a pass to live on the planet.
It would be better I guess than them stopping the speeders on highway 20 going through town. Can't do that, as that would cause us to be known as a speed trap. Plus no local or statey enforcement. State Patrol short staffed.
Eh, and people might park elsewhere they didn't have to have a pass. Could create a real cluster. But why on earth charge the visitors? Unless it is indeed to discourage over toursim.
As Erin Bosco has said on Facebook, "time to bring in the grizzlies".

[mister_coffee]

One way to do it would be to have a parking pass for parking in Winthrop or Twisp.

Annual passes would be available for free in town in the month of November, March, and April. But cost $20 in other months and perhaps $25 in peak times.

A lot of business owners would scream that this will drive away business. I don't know if I believe that. Or at least not enough to really matter, since I think more people bypass Winthrop because they can't find a place to park on busy weekends. And I doubt everyone staying here on a weekend is going to drive to (the otherwise quite good) bakery in Pateros to save $20.

Given that the highway sees about 600,000 vehicles passing through our valley every year, a $20 annual fee could easily raise millions of dollars.

[Jingles]

FunCH
You mentioned 2 trails where visitors park on the road rather than pay the fee, well look at 99% of the other places where a Discover Pass is required. I.e. Rizor lake Gunn Ranch road is a parking lot while the actual parking lot is virtually empty is but 1 example

[Fun CH]

This recent article in the Seattle Times (maybe paywalled) discusses that San Juan county is considering an annual tourism fee ($10-$15 per vehicle) for both residents and visitors. For obvious reasons that would be tougher to implement here but still is an interesting idea.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-ne ... red%20User

It also doesn't sound very popular at the moment.

wouldn't that just be another regressive tax?

And from that article it reads like they want to use the money to build more tourist amenities like more campgrounds and trails.

Here there should be a large tax on the tourism that has the most social and environmental impacts, like heli-skiing. A $500 tax per skier would generate enough money at $500,000 per year to build and operate a seasonal pool. That's not a sport that the poor can afford anyway so not a tax on the poor. How about that one Bo, would you support that tax? Or do you prefer taxing our Valley's low income families as is the current plan?

Another example, visitors can impact the Maple Pass loop or Blue lake trail without paying for a parking pass by parking on the HWY. Trail fee with low income wavers.

[mister_coffee]

This recent article in the Seattle Times (maybe paywalled) discusses that San Juan county is considering an annual tourism fee ($10-$15 per vehicle) for both residents and visitors. For obvious reasons that would be tougher to implement here but still is an interesting idea.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-ne ... red%20User

It also doesn't sound very popular at the moment.