Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s “WOW Wagon” has hit the road.

The Whidbey on Wheels informational booth is no longer located at Deception Pass Bridge, but chamber Director Christine Cribb says the move turned out to be a “win-win” for everyone involved.

Island County Commissioner Jill Johnson, however, said she is concerned that the chamber lost a major referral point for tourists and believes the organization may not be living up to its grant obligations.

Cribb explained that the chamber still has an important presence at the bridge, but now she can bring the wagon to all kinds of special events. It was on hand to greet participants at Whidbey Island Race Week, for example, and the chamber handed out a huge amount of information about local businesses, she said.

“Any exposure is good exposure,” she said, adding that the WOW Wagon will be at the popular Pigfest this weekend.

Deception Pass Tours and the Deception Pass Park Foundation now jointly run a kiosk at the pass. Cribb said the chamber provides tourist information and members’ brochures — from hotels to restaurants — at the structure.

Chamber interns still work at the kiosk on some days.

Johnson, a former Oak Harbor chamber director, said the chamber received lodging tax money from the county because officials recognize the importance of the Deception Pass location as a referral point.

An estimated 2.7 million people visit Deception Pass Park each year.

“I’m glad to hear the Deception Pass Foundation has taken on that responsibility on behalf of the community,” she said, “but the county is currently paying the chamber to do that work and it concerns me that we are paying one organization for this service and we’re not paying the one actually providing it.”

Park Manager Jack Hartt said the chamber had a presence at the bridge for decades, but he only recently discovered that there was no agreement between the chamber and parks.

In addition, Hartt said he realized the chamber was charging others for the privilege of having a presence there, which he said is against park rules because there’s no agreement.

“We can’t do this improperly,” he said. “We have to do it right.”

In addition, the Deception Pass Park Foundation board wants to have a permanent presence in the park, he said. The nonprofit provides information about the park and raises money for such things as interpretive services and construction of an amphitheater.

The foundation currently shares the small kiosk with Deception Pass Tours. He said the plan is to build a larger structure.

Cribb explained that she got a grant funded by the county’s lodging taxes to provide trained interns at the WOW Wagon three days a week during the tourist season.

The interns currently split their time between the WOW Wagon — when there’s an event to cover — and the kiosk at Deception Pass, she said.

Cribb said the funding was specific to the WOW Wagon and tourism promotion of Oak Harbor; Johnson said the understanding was to fund promotion specifically at the bridge.

“Losing control of the referral point is a big loss for Oak Harbor and the businesses that pay the chamber for that referral service,” she said.

“I am sure the chamber has a plan for how to pull from the bridge into town,” she added. “I can’t imagine they would give up the bridge location without a plan.”

The Deception Pass Park Foundation may be the group providing this service in the future.

Terica Ginther, of Deception Pass Tours, is also a board member on the foundation. She said the foundation will likely move to a model in which chambers from the region can be involved at the kiosk, for a fee.

Also, she said, the foundation may apply for lodging tax funds in the future to provide tourism outreach services at the park.

“This is really a positive change for the park and the foundation because of the additional exposure,” she said.