Meeting News - February 11, 2008 - (Page 1)

INSIDE THE INDUSTRY PCMA out on an eco-drive p. 10 TRANSPORTATION & SVCS GEP raises risk management p. 19 FIRE AT FOXWOODS Three hotel floors shuttered p. 40 NEWSMAKER Benchmark Hospitality’s Burt Cabanas recognized as influential Hispanic business leader page 12 MeetingNews w w w. M e e t i n g N e w s . c o m February 11, 2008 July 16, 2007 Inferno Chases Attendees From Monte Carlo Resort By Robert Carey Hotels/Resorts FAIRMONT TO LOWER CARBON FOOTPRINT Teams with WWF to lay smackdown on emissions through sustainable energy and conservation moves. see page 13 International GERMANY SHOWS ITS DEDICATION TO GROUPS More than 50 new meetings hotels will debut in the nation by 2011. see page 21 Las Vegas—On Jan. 25, the 3,213-room Monte Carlo Resort & Casino caught fire on its facade from floors 27 to 32, sending one group that was on property scrambling from its meeting room and shutting down part of the Strip. According to Monte Carlo’s website, all individual and group/meeting reservations through Feb. 6 were to have been honored at parent firm MGM Mirage’s other nine Las Vegas properties. The burned facade along Monte Carlo’s roof must be removed or secured before the property can reopen, the Clark County chief building inspector said on Jan. 26. The resort’s facade is made of a foam material that “melted off the side of the building and started a few fires below,” according to Clark County Fire Chief Steve Smith. The foam is highly flammable, requiring an outer coating such as stucco to prevent it from burning. Several other resorts in Las Vegas use sheets or blocks of the dense foam to give the appearance of heavier stone and brick. Thirteen people were treated for smoke inhalation, but the fire caused no major injuries. Gordon Absher, an continued on page 40 MARRIOTT, SCHRAEGER UNVEIL BOUTIQUE NAME First edition of “Edition”-brand hotel is set for Paris; Miami, DC, and Los Angeles to follow. see page 13 LIVERPOOL CC OPENS WITH A ROCKING SHOW Ringo Starr-led act breaks in the brand-new Arena and Convention Centre Liverpool. see page 22 Destination Insider ISLAND INCENTIVES Atlantis in Bahamas, Sandals allinclusive resorts, and Westin in the Dominican Republic make moves. see page 30 MEETINGS AT KIMPTON EQUAL A GOOD CAUSE “Great Meetings, Great Causes” program lets planners choose from five green rewards. see page 13 MeetingNews Exclusive Research On average, per-night hotel room costs are projected to rise in 2008. Have you noticed or experienced this? Corporate Planners Yes 55.1% 38.2% 6.6% No Not yet, but I expect to in 2008 BCEC Swipes Away Convention from Ailing Javits Center By Sari Krieger CVBs PORTLAND PUTS ITS BEST FOOT FORWARD Hires a branding agency to make over its website; other changes to be unveiled later this year. see page 18 MEMPHIS New boutique hotel pays homage to city; Hilton is getting $8M spruce-up. see page 32 Association Planners No 29.8% 56.2% Yes 14.0% Not yet, but I expect to in 2008 Volume 32/Number 3/$10.00 Source: MeetingNews survey of 257 meeting planners The Rising Tide By William Ng Planners are already dealing with higher hotel room costs predicted for this year. What budget-type moves are they making to cope? see page 25 New York—The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees union recently announced it will hold its 39th international convention at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in summer 2010, pulling the event from the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on Manhattan’s West Side. The group moved the biannual event after the Javits’ initial, ambitious expansion plan fell through. “Obviously, with the expansion not moving ahead as planned, there is going to be some lost business coming out of it,” admitted Chris Heywood, director of tourism public relations for NYC & Company, New York City’s convention and visitors authority.“That’s an unfortunate circumstance, but that’s now a reality.” The original Javits expansion plan called for doubling the convention center’s space by 2010, but state officials continued on page 41 ATLANTA Boutiques are diversifying city’s hotel inventory; Coke museum welcomes meetings. see page 34 BERMUDA’S NEW HIRE DRAWS CONTROVERSY Tourism department staffers pan new acting head for North America, who was handpicked by nation’s tourism minister. see page 18 NEW MEXICO Albuquerque’s famed La Posada hotel is set to reopen after two years in the dust. see page 37 http://www.MeetingNews.com

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Meeting News - February 11, 2008

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