MARION - The Williamson County Tourism Bureau is calling on area residents and business owners to participate in a series of town meetings beginning next month to help develop a countywide tourism development plan.

The meetings will start in Marion on Jan. 11, and continue with town meetings in Johnston City, Carterville and Herrin. The tourism bureau will follow up the four community meetings with a countywide meeting in March at the pavilion.

"This is about creating new jobs, improving our quality of life, community development, historic preservation, whatever," said Jon Musgrave, Williamson County's new tourism director. "These meetings will be as broad or as focused as the people of this county want them to be.

"You see, there's not much difference between tourism development and community development," he said. "First, we are putting together a plan to get people to come visit our communities. Second, we're trying to get people to stay and settle," Musgrave said.

The Williamson County Tourism Board set a goal in November for a 50 percent increase in tourism expenditures over the next five years.

In 2005, the latest year the statistics are available, tourists spent $84 million in the county. In terms of employment tourists already support 840 jobs in Williamson County according to state estimates.

"There are a number of new developments taking place in the region and educating everyone about those will be the first part of the community meetings," Musgrave said. "Next, we'll break into small groups and brainstorm, both to identify existing problems hampering or preventing tourism development, as well as generate ideas for new proposals.

"We won't be looking at feasibility or costs in the first round," he said. "At this point we're just looking for ideas, and that's something in which everybody can participate."

While the tourism bureau will be working to attract representatives of the area's tourist service providers - lodging operators, restaurants, tour guides, artists, etc. - to the meetings, Musgrave stressed members of the general public should feel welcome to attend.

"We need that. We need input from everyone," he said. "The bike trail we might propose for tourism is also the bike trail that would be used and enjoyed by local residents every day."

Meeting dates and locations are as follows:

Jan. 11 - at the Williamson County Pavilion in Marion.

Jan. 25 - at the Johnston City Community Building.

Feb. 1 - at the Carterville Community Center in Cannon Park.

Feb. 15 - at the Herrin Civic Center.

March 1 - at the Williamson County Pavilion in Marion.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. with the meetings to start at 7 p.m. Everyone is welcome.

Following the first countywide meeting, a committee will be formed to help pull the proposals together for the overall tourism development plan. Once that is finished, a second countywide meeting will be held to unveil the proposals.