IS IT TRUE the City County Observer was recently able to get a look at the entire Hunden Study that the Winnecke Administration paid good money to have an outside consulting firm advise them on the feasibility of building a convention hotel in downtown Evansville on the site of the former Executive Inn parking tower?…the 9 chapter report was found to be fair and comprehensive?…that means we think that Hunden Strategic Partners did a good job on the report and as consulting fees go however high they are this group earned their fees?…the rest of today’s IS IT TRUE will deal with what the conclusions and advice of this study were?…we will assume that someone within the Winnecke Administration and the powerbrokers who support putting taxpayer dollars into a convention hotel read it also?
IS IT TRUE Hunden states clearly that “Evansville is not competitive against the larger and more amenity filled cities surrounding Evansville like Louisville, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Nashville, and Bloomingtonâ€?…it also stated that putting new supply into place could lead downward rate chasing by both the existing hotels and any new one which would have the unintended consequence of “hurting the entire market and lead to quicker cycling down of hotel propertiesâ€?…the Hunden Study also pointed out that Evansville has “struggled†to maintain population growth rates similar to the state and nation as a whole?…the CCO must point out that when it comes to keeping up with population growth that the City of Evansville has not exactly “struggled†over the past 60 years, and that a better description would be abject failure?…even though the county has grown it has not even come close to keeping pace with the nation and state in that department?…the study also states that “The Centre has not necessarily generated increased demand for a new hotel and that most events are attended by locals who go home after the eventâ€?…that the kinds of events that attract out of town visitors has been on a decline since 2007 and that the Centre only generates a need for 3,000 room nights per year which is only about 3% of the room nights that building the proposed hotel would add to the inventory?…with a new privately funded 120 room Marriot Courtyard under construction it is a foregone conclusion that the words of the Hunden Study do not make a compelling case that market forces indicate that there is a need for a new convention hotel with or without taxpayer support?
IS IT TRUE a fairly extensive SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis was included in the study?…the strengths identified were visibility, the Centre, the Ford Center, downtown Evansville entertainment, downtown business, lack of a downtown competitor, and the community?…with all due respect that is a money losing weak set of strengths that could have just as easily found their way into the WOT part of the SWOT analysis?…the weaknesses were identified as location (as in Evansville), being dependent on room block guarantees from the Centre (which loses money), the local hotel market health, completion from other areas, and non-downtown hotel clusters such as the intersection of I-164 and the Lloyd?…the opportunities and threats were pretty much repeats of the strengths and weaknesses?…under recommendations the Hunden Study includes “the private hotel market based on performance suggests that the ONLY truly feasible hotel from a private investment perspective would be a 120 – 150 room limited service hotel similar to the Marriot Courtyard currently under development on the Eastsideâ€?…it also states that “too large of a hotel in downtown Evansville even if it receives upfront taxpayer subsidies will need additional reinvestmentâ€, supposedly to cover operational losses?
IS IT TRUE that based on the Hunden Study the 30,000 foot conclusions are that first the kind of hotel proposed by the RFP issued by the Evansville Redevelopment Commission is not needed, secondly that it will necessarily damage the existing hotel inventory that competes in the same markets, thirdly that it will require over $20 Million of taxpayer dollars to really interest a savvy developer, and that it will require additional public investment to cover operating losses for many years into the future?…we hope and encourage that every member of the Evansville City Council absorb this study as they start the decision process on providing funding for this project as the gap funding of at least $20 Million will essentially vaporize to nothing when valuation in the market is considered?…that translates into “a vote to fund this is a vote to toss $20+ Million taxpayer dollars into the incineratorâ€?…we hope our elected officials on the City Council have better sense than to torch $20 Million of the taxpayer’s dollars?
Charles Dickens’ classic tale “A Christmas Carol†comes to life in this exciting musical extravaganza! This Broadway sensation ran for 10 years and spawned the NBC Hallmark Entertainment special starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge, and an array of modern stars including Jason Alexander, Jane Krakowski, and Jennifer Lover Hewitt! Civic will bring out an enormous cast of our local stars to tell one of the most beloved Christmas stories ever written. “A Christmas Carol†retains its emotional power and pure joy thanks to this marvelously told story and beautiful score. Spend this holiday season with Ebenezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, Jacob Marley, and Tiny Tim. Bring the whole family to one of the largest undertakings at Civic Theatre to date!
