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Industry Happenings
OPINION: Tourism Matters: Leaders lead by example (Caribbean News Now, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands)
June 3, 2013
By Adrian Loveridge, Caribbean News Now, Grand Cayman, Cayman IslandsMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News June 03--Since time immemorial, it has of course always been important to protect a brand. A successful brand not only makes promises, but matches them with consistent delivery. From a tourism perspective, regardless of whether that brand is an individual hotel, chain, destination or other singular or group entity. Years ago, it was far more difficult to inflict damage on an image and reputation that could have taken generations to build. But nowadays it can be destroyed in seconds just by using the social media, at absolutely no cost to the c...
Cabela’s project in Cheektowaga to include a hotel (The Buffalo News, N.Y.)
June 3, 2013
By Jonathan Epstein, The Buffalo News, N.Y.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News June 03--Say goodbye to Walden Village shopping center. Say hello to Cabela's Crossing, the soon-to-be-rebranded retail plaza featuring not only the nationally known outdoor retailer but also a new Hilton-flagged hotel aimed at the regional and Canadian shoppers who flock to the Galleria mall area. Benderson Development Co. said Monday it is putting in a 105-room, all-suites hotel on the western tip of the Cheektowaga shopping plaza on Walden Avenue, where it also confirmed plans to replace a former Wegmans Food Markets store with the first Cabela's store in New York s...
Atlantic City casino revenue down nearly 11% in March (The Press of Atlantic City, Pleasantville, N.J.)
April 11, 2013
By Donald Wittkowski, The Press of Atlantic City, Pleasantville, N.J.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--Atlantic City gambling revenue fell nearly 11 percent in March, marking the third straight month of double-digit declines in a market still hurting from Hurricane Sandy and intense competition from casinos in surrounding states. Altogether, the 12 casino hotels took in $238.5 million from their slot machines and table games, down 10.5 percent compared to $266.5 million a year ago, according to figures released Wednesday by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. Only the Atlantic Club Casino Hotel posted higher revenue in Marc...
DCA: Hotel/motel taxes can be used for salaries, with some exceptions (The Albany Herald, Ga.)
April 11, 2013
By J.D. Sumner, The Albany Herald, Ga.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--ALBANY, Ga. -- The Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the government arm that oversees administration of hotel/motel tax revenues, says that the Albany Convention and Visitors Bureau can use tax proceeds to fund part of an executive's salary, but only if the position meets certain conditions. Earlier this week, City Attorney Nathan Davis questioned $86,000 in expenses paid by the CVB toward the salaries of a marketing executive, an accountant and a senior executive, all of whom also work for the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce. Chamber President Chris Hardy,...
Hotel proposed in Farmington; Home2 Suites targets business travelers (The Daily Times, Farmington, N.M.)
April 11, 2013
By Chuck Slothower, The Daily Times, Farmington, N.M.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--FARMINGTON -- A development group plans to build a Hilton-affiliated hotel and residential condominium project at the intersection of Browning Parkway and Wildflower Drive in Farmington. Mark Robinson, a local developer involved in the project, said the hotel will be built first. "As quickly as possible, we're planning to start on the hotel," he said. The hotel is slated to be a Home2 Suites by Hilton. The all-suite concept targets business travelers and extended-stay guests. The project has not broken ground. Mary Holton, the city's director of com...
Key deadline for small hotels is Thursday (Sun Sentinel)
April 11, 2013
By Arlene Satchell, Sun SentinelMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--Thursday is the last day for small hotels and inns in Broward County to request an inspection as part of the qualification process for 2013-14 Superior Small Lodging designation. The designation is awarded to qualifying lodgings with 50 rooms or less who score at least 82 percent on the inspection and meet other criteria established by Hollywood nonprofit Florida Superior Small Lodging Association (FSSL). Properties are inspected and selected based on their cleanliness, personalized service and charm and participation in the SSL program is an "earned privilege," accordi...
Add $5 a night to your bill: The Venetian and Palazzo up their resort fees (Las Vegas Sun)
April 11, 2013
By Ed Komenda, Las Vegas SunMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--The reign of the resort fee continues. This time it's a change at the Venetian and Palazzo, where resort fees have been upped from $20 to $25 a night. But don't fret: there's a way out. According to the Venetian website, the fees are not reflected in the total price quoted in a guest's reservation because patrons don't have to accept the fee. "You may decline the Resort Fee and the services included in the fee at check-in or check-out," a description on the website reads. "If you decide to decline the Resort Fee, the services included in the fee are charged whenever you use...
What makes the perfect Las Vegas casino? World-class restaurants, no smoking, crunchy cannolis … and 3:2 blackjack payouts (Las Vegas Sun)
April 11, 2013
By Andrea Domanick, Las Vegas SunMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--With Resorts World Las Vegas, the Gansevoort and SLS on the way, the Strip is preparing itself for a new wave of hotel-casinos, each promising a unique Las Vegas experience to top their predecessors and draw tourists the world over. Novelty, however, isn't enough to guarantee that a casino will thrive. Greenspun Media Group staff members from Vegas Magazine, Vegas Inc. and the Las Vegas Sun weigh in on the elements they'd like to see, as journalists and Las Vegas residents, that would make for the perfect casino: -- A brand new model I'd like to see everything turned u...
New $1 hotel tax gains support in Mitchell (The Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.)
April 11, 2013
By Chris Mueller, The Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--City leaders say there is now sufficient support for a $1 tax on occupied hotel rooms to help fund a second indoor ice sheet and kick-start the creation of a local sports authority. According to a petition presented Tuesday night to the Mitchell City Council, 13 of the city's 17 hotel and motel owners support a $1 tax on occupied rooms in the city through the creation of a business improvement district (BID). A BID is a self-taxation arrangement in which businesses agree to pay a fee, with the money going toward a specific project. The council review...
McAllen may re-examine Convention Center’s focus (The Monitor, McAllen, Texas)
April 11, 2013
By Dave Hendricks, The Monitor, McAllen, TexasMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--MCALLEN -- The City Commission may re-examine the Chamber of Commerce's contract to book major meetings for the McAllen Convention Center. McAllen opened the Convention Center six years ago, hoping the $62.2 million building would attract out-of-town visitors and boost the local economy. Convincing meeting planners, though, hasn't been easy. Drug-related violence across northern Mexico transformed McAllen's biggest tourism asset into a major liability. And without an adjacent hotel, some meeting planners have turned down the Convention Center even when the...
Mayor-elect Renner meets with city manager, talks downtown hotel (The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.)
April 11, 2013
By Rachel Wells, The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--BLOOMINGTON -- By 8:30 Wednesday morning, Tari Renner had kicked off his efforts to attract a hotel to downtown Bloomington by calling the local tourism office. The incoming mayor, elected Tuesday with about 51 percent of the vote in a three-way race, will take office May 1, but during his campaign he promised to start hotel discussions the day after the election. "If we have a hotel across from the (U.S. Cellular) Coliseum, we'll get more events, more conferences, more revenue, and we'll have more money to divert from that to fix up our streets," Renn...
Tensions take toll on tourism in Lebanon (The Daily Star, Beirut, Lebanon)
April 11, 2013
The Daily Star, Beirut, LebanonMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--BEIRUT -- The World Travel & Tourism Council estimated the tourism industry's direct contribution to the Lebanese economy would decline by 2.1 percent this year, as industry sources said the hotel occupancy rate fell by 30 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2013. Luxury hotels such as the Hilton, Le Gray and The Four Seasons told The Daily Star they had taken drastic measures to economize in 2012 and 2013, including laying off employees, putting projects on hold and shutting down complete hotel floors to save on energy costs. The Tourism Ministry, however, has ...
Holiday Inn $1.3M overhaul complete (The Record, Stockton, Calif.)
April 11, 2013
By Reed Fujii, The Record, Stockton, Calif.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--STOCKTON -- KFP Lodi Management of Lodi has announced the completion of a $1.3 million renovation and reopening of a Holiday Inn Express in Stockton. The 73-room hotel at Arch Road and Highway 99 was converted from a Hampton Inn. "The hotel went through a complete renovation; everything is brand new," said Beth Kim, operations manager and co-owner of KFP Lodi. The family business, which also operates the 65-room Quality Inn and Suites in Lathrop and the Holiday Inn Express in Lodi, with 94 rooms, acquired the Stockton hotel in 2008. It was first opened as a H...
Grover Beach lodge and conference center project gets approval (The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.))
April 11, 2013
By Cynthia Lambert, The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--A unanimous vote by the California Coastal Commission on Thursday evening allows Grover Beach to move forward with a decades-old vision to build a lodge and conference center next to the beach. However, commissioners also dealt the city and a group of equestrians a setback by narrowly denying a request to allow a horse facility on the south side of West Grand Avenue. That won't stop the overall project at Highway 1 and West Grand Avenue, but it will prompt city officials -- who say they are committed to ensuring equestrians have access to the be...
Holiday Inn redux: Approved replatting first step in hotel area’s rebuilding (The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.)
April 11, 2013
By Sue Loughlin, The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 11--TERRE HAUTE -- The Vigo County Area Plan Commission approved a replatting of property Wednesday that will pave the way for redevelopment of the Terre Haute Holiday Inn and surrounding property. Those plans include renovation of the existing Holiday Inn five-story structure; demolition of its two-story structures; addition of two new restaurants and potential future construction of a third hotel on the site. One definite is a Panda Garden Express that will be located on property south of the current hotel. The Area Plan Commission approved a request b...
Environmental issues hurting China’s tourism industry (China Daily, Beijing / Asia News Network)
April 10, 2013
By Jin Haixing, China Daily, Beijing / Asia News NetworkMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--BEIJING (China Daily/ANN) -- Environmental issues such as poor air quality and water pollution have turned away inbound tourists during the first quarter of the year, according to the Chinese tourism authority. The number of overseas tourists to China was estimated at 31.66 million in the first three months, a drop of 1.8 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to a report released on Tuesday by the China Tourism Academy, affiliated with China National Tourism Administration. Chen Xu, a researcher from the academy, added that ...
BRIEF: Springhill Suites company seeks tax deduction from city council (Herald-Times, Bloomington, Ind.)
April 10, 2013
By Jon Blau, Herald-Times, Bloomington, Ind.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--The company planning to open a Springhill Suites on College Avenue will come before the Bloomington City Council Wednesday night seeking a tax deduction for its location in an urban enterprise zone and the city's tax increment finance district. Urban Hospitality 1 LLC is applying for the enterprise zone investment deduction, similar to a tax abatement, which could take an estimated $317,690 per year from the tax increment finance district and give it back to the business for a period of 10 years. Wednesday's 7:30 p.m. session at City Hall will be a discussio...
Southern Nevada tourism takes a dip in February (Las Vegas Sun)
April 10, 2013
By Richard N. Velotta, Las Vegas SunMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--A shorter month and the rotation of some convention and trade shows out of February resulted in a 1.3 percent dip in visitor volume that month, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported today. The organization that markets Southern Nevada said 3.03 million visitors were in Las Vegas in February compared with 3.07 million in the same month a year ago. February 2012, however, had an extra day as a result of Leap Year. The LVCVA said based on daily averages, visitation would have been up 2.2 percent if this February had the same number of days as last Fe...
Atascadero OKs hotel fee to fund tourism efforts (The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.))
April 10, 2013
By Tonya Strickland, The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that the Atascadero City Council approved allowing hotels to tax themselves to fund tourism promotion. Rather, the hotels will be allowed to charge customers more. Atascadero will be the fifth city in San Luis Obispo County to allow hoteliers to charge more money specifically to help fund tourism promotion, the City Council decided Tuesday night. Starting in June, the new assessment -- separate from city coffers -- will be 2 percent of the hotel charge, collected on top of a 10 perce...
Hotel, restaurant changes coming to southside near I-70 (The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.)
April 10, 2013
By Sue Loughlin, The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.McClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--TERRE HAUTE -- Some major changes are in store for the Terre Haute Holiday Inn and surrounding property, including renovation of the existing five-story structure, potential construction of new hotel and two new restaurants. The developer, General Hotels Corp., has a request before the Vigo County Area Plan Commission to plat nine parcels of land into five buildable lots to better meet existing and future needs. The plan commission will consider the request when it meets at 7 p.m. tonight. "It divides up the property into lots to match up with the ex...
J’Ville council to look at feasibility of new convention center (Tyler Morning Telegraph, Texas)
April 10, 2013
By Kelly Gooch, Tyler Morning Telegraph, TexasMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--Terri Underwood supports the idea of a new multi-purpose arena in Jacksonville. She said her children, who do team penning and ranch sorting, currently compete in Henderson, but she would be pleased to watch them in Jacksonville. "I think it'd be a great thing..." she said. "I would love to see Jacksonville have something like that." Her wish could become a reality if city officials approve a two-phase master plan that includes a convention center, as well as a livestock expo center. The proposed project was addressed during a Tuesday meeting, when city co...
Va. Beach buoys preservation hopes for Cavalier Hotel (The Virginian-Pilot)
April 10, 2013
By Gabriella Souza, The Virginian-PilotMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--VIRGINIA BEACH -- The city is offering incentives to potential buyers of the Cavalier on the Hill in hopes of preserving the historic Oceanfront hotel. Staff and Mac Rawls, who heads a task force that aims to preserve the Cavalier, presented the incentives to the City Council on Tuesday. The council later approved an ordinance with the recommendations. Staff will now attempt to meet with potential buyers before April 25, the bidding process' start date. The package includes indications that the city would consider changing the zoning of the parcel containing the ...
Stakes high for an urban casino (Boston Herald)
April 10, 2013
By Frank Quaratiello, Boston HeraldMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 10--Get ready for an urban casino because the rural option looks like a nonstarter. Foxwoods has hit the same wall of community resistance in Milford that derailed Steve Wynn and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft in Foxboro, so it's going to come down to Everett vs. Suffolk Downs for the grand prize: the Greater Boston resort casino license. That's sweet redemption for Wynn, who now has a second chance in Everett, where residents love his plan. Maybe Foxwoods doesn't care. Some say Foxwoods' $400,000 up-front fee bought the Mashantucket Pequots a chance to sue the ...
Hotel occupancy, revenues remain flat in Mumbai (Mint, New Delhi)
April 8, 2013
By Moulishree Srivastava, Mint, New DelhiMcClatchy-Tribune Regional News April 08--MUMBAI -- More hotel rooms in Mumbai were occupied in fiscal 2013 than in the year before but revenue per available room (RPAR), a key industry metric, fell because of increased competition, a new study shows. RPAR for hotels in Mumbai dropped by 2% in the previous 11 months, as against an increase of 4% in the previous three fiscal years, property advisory Jones Lang LaSalle India said in a report released on Monday. This was because average daily rates declined by 8% to Rs.8,450 a room due to recent supply additions, though occupancy strengthened to 64% in 20...
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