E-mail Story
Print Friendly
Send E-mail
Reprint story
Journal North: Home | Sports | Opinion | Obits | Entertainment
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Hopefuls Talk Tourism at Mayoral Forum Convention center problems discussed
By Kiera Hay
Journal Staff Writer
Thinking about a trip to Paris? Try Santa Fe instead.
That's the gist of one idea — putting the City Different in competition with world-class travel destinations — that was raised during a mayoral candidate forum Wednesday morning that focused mainly on tourism.
Other candidate suggestions included promoting local arts and crafts, making Santa Fe a UNESCO World Heritage site, and imposing a freeze on hotel construction.
The event was hosted by the Hospitality Network at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center.
The hourlong forum attracted about 60 people, most of them from the industry, who came to hear candidates Miguel Chavez, David Coss and Asenath Kepler.
Kepler jumped right in with some criticism aimed at the Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB).
Asked whether she found the city's current marketing efforts effective, Kepler responded, "The short answer is no, I don't."
She pointed to reports that the Santa Fe Community Convention Center's revenues in 2009 were far less than the annual cost of running the center and paying off its construction debt.
"If we're running this kind of deficit and you're all hurting, it is not working. We need to go back to the drawing board," Kepler told attendees.
Both Coss and Chavez said they want to find ways to increase local use of the convention center. Chavez noted that he's sponsored a resolution to review the convention center's price structure and make rental rates more accessible to Santa Feans.
Asked if the city's roughly 15 percent tax rate on hotel rooms was too high, Coss said, "You gotta look at Santa Fe as a city on the world stage." Its competitors for tourism are places like New York and San Francisco, and, "if we work at it," Paris and Shanghai, he said.
"I think we need to set our sights higher. We're 400 years old. We're the coolest city on the continent. Our competition is not Albuquerque or Pojoaque," Coss said.
City collaborations with entities such as hotels and galleries are also important, he said.
Chavez said Santa Fe needs to focus on supporting and promoting locally made arts and crafts, which he said at least one CVB study indicates is a primary interest for Santa Fe's visitors.
That includes finding a way to certify authenticity, he said, and making the feature part of the city's branding efforts. It also means educating the public.
"We're blessed to have ingredients that other communities would die for. We don't have to create anything. We don't have to fabricate anything. Let's go back to our roots and build on that foundation and make it stronger," Chavez said.
Chavez, who called himself the most progressive candidate in the race, said he is intimately connected to the issue because of his work as a furniture maker and his long family ties to New Mexico.
"What would it take to shift gears and move from just being a creative city to being a UNESCO Heritage site?" he wondered. "It would take more effort to do that, but I think that's the direction we need to go."
Kepler outlined a multipronged approach to the hospitality industry that included targeted marketing, a focus on arts and culture, bolstering public safety, finishing a wayfinding project started by the city a few years ago and a possible freeze on new hotel construction.
Kepler said she felt marketing efforts should be directed regionally, to places within driving distance of Santa Fe, with some emphasis on Europe.
She also suggested the city should consider putting ambassadors on the Rail Runner who could talk to people and hand out information and coupons.
"The sky's the limit. Creativity is key and we will de dependent on you for more ideas," she told attendees.
Coss touted accomplishments completed during his term such as the construction of the convention center, inauguration of Rail Runner service to Santa Fe, and the restoration of commercial airline service to and from the city.
A question about whether the candidates support a state bill seeking to establish a one-quarter of 1 percent tax on restaurant sales for New Mexico Tourism Department advertising efforts stumped both Kepler and Chavez, who said they weren't really familiar with the legislation.
Coss said, "If I was a state legislator, I would have to consider that carefully.
"If the restaurants and hotels are supporting it, and we can put in an extra $10 million for advertising in New Mexico, it might be a good idea," he said.
The city election will be held March 2.
You also can send comments via our comment form
|
|
