A Washington Island business owner believes the town will see a long-lasting positive impact of COVID-19. Despite virus concerns, businesses like Joel Gunnlaugsson’s motel are flourishing again this year on the island. The biggest difference according to Gunnlaugsson has been the type of people that have been coming to the island. The usual visitors to Washington Island have taken the year off and in their place have been new, younger couples and people from nearby states and parts of Wisconsin. Even without the events, Washington Island has also been kept busy because Rock Island State Park was closed this year, leaving people to experience outdoor activities locally. Gunnlaugsson says this could spell good news for island businesses and the rest of the peninsula for years to come.
One other trend he did notice this year was the visits were more transient, which means people either spent just the day on the island or stayed in hotels for shorter periods of time. Room tax collections for the island for January through July are off about 30 percent according to the Door County Tourism Zone. Door County Administrator Ken Pabich told DoorCountyDailyNews.com earlier this month that sales tax numbers were actually up in 2020 compared to 2019 thanks to a strong start before the pandemic hit.
Picture courtesy of Door County