The recent announcement of Cochrane Currency has some people saying....why bother?!

T of C, Economic Development recently announced Cochrane Dollars will be available May 19; store owner Karrie Peace is hopeful to be proved wrong but she believes the launch will have little to no merit.

"We will do it; from the beginning most of us (store owners) didn't think it was going to fly. There are two other communities in Canada that are doing it, it's been around for a really long time and it is not something that does a lot. If it was a great thing other communities would be doing it."

The Heavenly Outhouse owner feels the time, energy, and eventually cost could have been better spent.

"Is having some paper money with someone's face on it a great souvenir?! Probably not. People rarely use currency anyways, it complicates things, and it limits people. There are other ways to support shopping local, and the town has done some great things. Personally I would rather see that money informing newcomers to our town (maybe through Welcome Wagon) what is available in our town because I think that will get way more local shopping than trying to get people to put currency that can only be used in Cochrane in their wallets."

Peace says the only real benefit she can see is for the tourist who comes to town, but even then there is 'a lot of hoopla, for not a lot.'

Peace is not the only one to chastise the roll out, social media commenters also wondered why the town would waste time on an initiative that is so limited. Suggestions of an APP or Cochrane cash card seemed to win more people over than the idea of local currency.

 

Read More:

Cochrane Gets Its Own Currency

 

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