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Con Man Who Bamboozled Many Miami Beach Hoteliers Out of Staggering Unpaid Bills Has Long History
October 13, 2013
Oct. 2013--Every night of his adult life, James "Jimmy" Sabatino has laid his sizable frame on the bed of a prison cell or a hotel suite. In his fleeting moments of freedom, Sabatino, 36, lives large. His latest caper found him racking up five- and six-figure tabs for fine Champagne, haute cuisine and posh digs -- that he never paid for -- at swanky South Florida retreats. Life is good for Sabatino as long as he stays ahead of police, which is rare. Since the age of 19, Sabatino has spent all but a few weeks behind bars, in jailhouses from Miami to New York to London, snagged for running one con after another. Police caught up with him
Big Kansas City Conventions Spiraling Downward to the Tune of 30% Despite Major Improvement Spending
October 12, 2013
Oct. 12--Civic boosters are cautiously optimistic about Kansas City's chances of hosting the 2016 Republican National Convention, saying it would confirm its status as a major-league convention town. But when they look at Kansas City's long-range forecast for drawing other top-tier conventions, they see not growth but decline. "We're trending downward," said Oscar McGaskey, director of Kansas City Convention and Entertainment Facilities. "From the city's perspective, I'm concerned." He's not alone. Others agree the numbers don't look good and say it's particularly disappointing because the city has spent hundreds of millions of dollars
Bar Harbor, Maine Businesses Stay Busy Despite Acadia National Park Closure, But Hotels Suffer
October 12, 2013
Oct. 12--BAR HARBOR, Maine -- Eleven days into the closure of Acadia National Park, the local business community is becoming more anxious about what sort of impact a longer-term federal government shutdown might have on the area's tourism industry. According to a national group that advocates for national parks and their employees, the closure of the federal parks through Oct. 10 resulted in an estimated $5.2 million reduction in spending in the Bar Harbor region. The study also criticizes Congress for shutting down the national parks, which reportedly generate 15 times as much revenue in surrounding communities as is spent on the parks
Developer Pritam Singh Has Eyes on Banana Bay Resort & Marina in Marathon, Florida
October 12, 2013
Oct. 12--Pritam Singh, whose company is responsible for roughly $1 billion worth of Keys real estate development, is rumored to have found his latest project. According to city of Marathon Planning Director George Garrett, Singh is under contract -- along with secondary investors -- to purchase Banana Bay Resort & Marina near mile marker 49.5 bayside. According to the Monroe County Property Appraiser's Office, Banana Bay is owned by OB Copperhead LLC from Lafayette, Fla., northwest of Gainesville, and was assessed in 2013 at $4.91 million. It's a 10-acre parcel with 61 rooms, 34 boat slips and various amenities, including a pool and
White Reach Development Moves Mixed-Use Plan Ahead for Jeffersonville, IN Including 250 Hotel Rooms
October 12, 2013
Oct. 12--JEFFERSONVILLE -- Vacant land just to the east of Interstate northbound will soon house a full-service restaurant, two fast food restaurants and at least one hotel with 250 rooms. An agreement on terms of a deal to develop more than 4 acres of property at the corner of 10th and Spring streets in Jeffersonville -- which included a $580,000 purchase price -- was approved at a special Jeffersonville Redevelopment Commission meeting Friday. Redevelopment Commission Attorney Les Merkley said the purchase price was equal to the amount the redevelopment commission had invested in the property. The commission previously chose Lexington
Automatic Tipping: IRS Rules Change Could be Taxing for Hospitality Industry
October 11, 2013
Oct. 11--When Thomas Howard sees an automatic gratuity on a restaurant bill, one thing is for certain: His server won't be getting any more than that amount. If restaurants tack on the charge to his bill, the Indianapolis resident said he doesn't think servers should expect any more. But when it comes to leaving less, he thinks that's not even allowed. "I don't think you can, can you?" Howard said. "You've got to go by whatever their policy is." He's confused -- and a little put off -- by the whole "automatic gratuity" practice, and he's not alone. Even with automatic tipping, customers have always faced a decision over how much to leav
Plans Scrapped for $70 million Resort Hotel and Convention Center in Whitefish, Montana
October 11, 2013
Oct. 11--Plans to construct a $70 million resort hotel and convention center in Whitefish have been scrapped. An unnamed Midwest developer has withdrawn his proposal for the Two Elks Lodge due to personal health reasons, explained Kellie Danielson, president of Montana West Economic Development. The resort would have included a 150-room hotel, year-round ice rink, a 45,000 square-foot water park with a wave pool and splash park, an outdoor amphitheater, jogging trails, restaurants and a retail shopping plaza. The convention center was planned to accommodate groups of up to 1,500 and banquets for 2,000. More than 400 new jobs were projec
Culinary Union Picketer Verbally Attacks Tourists on Strip
October 9, 2013
Oct. 09--Video footage has surfaced showing a picketing Culinary Union member calling tourists "losers" and "jerks" for going into the Cosmopolitan. The Alliance to Protect Nevada Jobs captured the video at a Culinary protest Oct. 5 outside the $4 billion Strip resort and today posted it on YouTube. The alliance called the Culinary's methods "unsavory" and asked elected officials to denounce the union's tactics. "Lawmakers should see that the union bosses at the Culinary Union are engaged in guerilla tactics that give our state a black eye," said Zachary Moyle, an Alliance spokesman. "The irony of Big Labor's approach is that it results