Now, does it mean jobs? Does it mean investment? Yeah, probably so. As I say, I’m not a gambler. I opposed gambling boats coming into the historic town where I lived in Indiana. I wrote letters and offered to come back and testify in the local hearings. It was turned down there. The communities that did vote in the boats in the Ohio Valley have not gotten much out of them. So, I don’t believe this is a ripple effect or economic generator for your kinds of attractions. The people will be there. The disposable income will be there. But the motivation is completely different.

I think your seasonality issues call for some creative alternatives in marketing. (laughter) When you look at the stats, you have more sunny days than a number of cities in the South. The average temperature may be a little lower. But, Montreal has created a wonderful winter festival with ice sculptures and other things.

Did you read about this Burning Man Festival out in the desert? Out in California or Arizona? California. It draws hundreds of thousands of people who come and go crazy and then burn these wooden sculptures in the desert. They’re blistering in the heat. There’s no water. People collapse from heat exhaustion. They stay up all night. I mean, it’s just this depraved thing, made out of nothing. It’s made out of nothing. There are creative alternatives. I’m not sure that’s your audience either, but (applause) it is possible.

And, you know, one of the things that people rib Buffalo about is harsh winters, harsh winters, harsh winters. I don’t think it’s that much colder here than it is in Chicago and people don’t say — oh, I’m never going to Chicago because the winter’s too bad there. This can be overcome. But it is a hurdle you have to clear.

Incremental change is going to take time, carefully spent money, and coordinated efforts. This is not going to an overnight turn-around and let’s just be honest about that. We’re really looking at years of incremental steps from here to there. So let’s admit it now. As I said in the beginning, the tourism industry is significant nationally and I believe it to be significant regionally. But it’s not the only answer. It alone is not enough. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

I also believe that the Erie Canal is a very powerful part of this story. But, it’s not the only part of the story. It’s one of many, many components that are part of the experience of spending time here. So, absolutely focus on the Canal. Celebrate the Canal. Continue to enhance the Canal but don’t focus only on the Canal. There are a lot of other things that are wonderful about Buffalo that it is part of.

Three last observations: I think the arrival of Southwest Airlines to the airport here on October 8th will offer you a great benefit. I don’t have statistical data here with me, but I do know anecdotally, it has done a huge amount for other cities that have gotten Southwest to come in — in lowering prices through competition with some other airlines that have been gouging us for a while but will remain nameless. (laughter)

But, it also opens a tremendous opportunity because they publicize their new destination cities in the magazine. They promote it in their ads.

This is an opportunity, again, being handed to you. Herb Kelleher’s marketing department is going to come here and say, what can I do to tell people about Buffalo that will make them want to take a $75 flight and come up here and check it out?

That’s exactly how John Barrent found Savannah — it was on a cheap plane ticket. He said, where have I not been before that might be interesting? And that’s turned into hundreds of millions of dollars tourists contribute to the Savannah economy. Southwest is coming. They’re coming soon. Use that as an opportunity to market what you have. Also the lower fares that they offer are a great way to build senior and value travel market share. So, three good things happening with Southwest arriving in October.

I believe it’s time to channel your energies into projects, not disputes. Let’s get beyond this. It’s time to keep this conversation going until a plan of action is in place and achieved. Thank you very much. (applause)

Wendy Nicholas

Thank you Tom. That was fabulous. It was terrific. It’s now my pleasure to introduce Elaine Carmichael to you. Elaine founded Economic Stewardship, Inc. just last year and she provides consulting services to public sector entities in need of tourism development strategies, market demand and feasibility analyses, economic action plans, and community revitalization programs. She has a track record in working with stakeholders and developing leadership participation, often in facilitated sessions and that’s always a key component of her work. Please welcome, Elaine Carmichael. (applause)

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