The nonprofit Recreation Alliance of Winona, in its presentation to city council this week, said there’s so much potential here to attract visitors.

The group supports outdoor recreation in the greater Winona area with the intention of improving quality of life, protecting public lands, and bringing economic growth whether that’s through hiking, ice climbing, mountain biking or another activity.

“The outdoor recreation economy for Winona is largely the most untapped and sustainable economy in Winona,” said Ben Barnard, a member of the all-volunteer board of directors, during the meeting. “It’s the fact that we have these raw materials in Winona — we have the river, we have the bluffs, we’re an island, we have the lakes.”

Among the statistics Barnard and the Recreation Alliance of Winona shared at the meeting was the fact that 70% of Minnesotans participate in outdoor recreation. With outdoor recreation generating $16.7 billion in consumer spending annually, it also directly produces 140,000 jobs and $1.4 in state and local tax revenue.

“I think a lot of times when we talk about outdoor recreation, people don’t understand the value of it. The outdoor recreation economy is…