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Unlike Fidelity, a hotel presumably can't just move jobs to New Hampshire
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F that..
Fine, build another hotel for me to sit in front of, just don't ask me to kick in for it. There's plenty of private money to go around nowadays. When schools and emergency services are being cut everywhere, the last thing we need is kicking towards another hotel.
That's my . . .
. . . instinct on this as well.
is job growth the governemnt's problem
Every time you elect the government to create jobs, you create these loopholes.
The problem is that government protects the interests of established business over new business. As long as you are putting job growth into the bailiwick of the government, you're going to see this kind of soft graft.
Convention centers, what a drain
These convention centers are a mistake that just keeps on taking...
There's plenty of hotels within 10 minutes walking distance, if you are willing to walk across a bridge.
How about taking $200 million and improving the T? Including that Silver Line service to the airport that goes by the convention center.
Whatever the practice, the
Whatever the practice, the theory is to invest the money and get a return on it in job growth. When you put money into the MBTA, there is no return - passengers don't pay full fare, so more passengers means greater losses.
The point of the MBTA is to
The point of the MBTA is to support general commerce in the city. That's why it's a public service, and not a profitable business. Riders on the MBTA are worth more to the city than the fare they pay. The fares could go up to cover the full costs, but that would diminish ridership, and lead to negative effects overall on the city, including additional automobile traffic clogging the roads.
The marginal expense of carrying each additional passenger is far smaller than the marginal benefits to the city of each additional passenger. If that passenger does not ride the MBTA, what happens instead? Either another car is driven into the city, causing a burden on the roads, or that person simply chooses not to do business in the city.
Putting the money into the MBTA not only promotes commerce in the city, it can directly address the concern here that there is insufficient access to the convention center from hotels. The Airport Silver Line runs from downtown via the convention center area.
In the past, trolleys were operated by multiple competitors as a profitable business. But those days are long gone.
Because everything turned out
Because everything turned out so well when money was loaned to build the W Hotel. The Intercontinental Hotel is also doing so well in that area it might actually not go bankrupt this month, but perhaps later in the year!
To be fair
The hotels are doing just fine.
It's the "luxury condos" at 300K for a measly studio that are not.
Who pays to live in an financial district ("neighborhood" hahaha) with nothing open after 4:30PM and no supermarket? The 20% stupid enough to buy into the W/IC/P
W hotel is not in the financial district
It's at Tremont and Stuart streets, in the theatre district, and a six-block walk from a large 24-hour Shaw's supermarket.
Do we really need more hotel rooms?
Seriously, has anyone ever tested the presumption that always accompanies these proposals, that "Boston loses X convention or event to Y city with Z hotel rooms"? What kind of event, that wants to come to Boston, has ever avoided it because of the presumed shortage? Mac World? Democratic National Convention?
Actually, Boston does need
Actually, Boston does need more hotel rooms. The problem is that hotels only want to provide high-end, high-profit rooms, while the city needs moderate priced rooms. Think of scientific societies holding their annual conventions. Many of the attendees will be grad students and postdocs, who can't afford to stay at luxury hotels.
In my field, the US-hosted
In my field, the US-hosted conferences and symposia dropped after 9/11 and foreigners started getting harassed at the airport.
Who wants to be treated like a terrorist.
And now at Logan you have to choose between getting groped or the skin cancer peep show machine?
What's amazing is that there are ever any significant conferences here at all. We're already losing our science advantage. With our international financial schemes also falling apart, we'd better not let science go, or we stop being of use to anyone.
The times are changing . . .
. . . and for the worse. It would behoove Boston to preserve itself as a center of free thinking and free spirit- just as an economic draw. Because the rest of this country is rejecting - well- basically the Enlightenment and pretty much the notion of the rule of law itself.
Someone call Fallon...
Someone call Fallon...
I worked in a hotel for 4
I worked in a hotel for 4 years and 9 months.
Demand is seasonal. There are 17,500 rooms in greater Boston. This is not nearly enough for Sept.-Nov. and March-June.
Other months can be sold at a discount.
January and February can't be sold even with discounts.
With Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline et al on iPhones and Droids guests can research rates without consulting hotels or travel agents thus keeping rates stable.
This same technology has reduced the number of people attending conventions.
What hotel owners want is to profit during peak occupancy and be subsidized by the public during off-peak seasons.
The seasonal variations of the lodging industry are not a compelling public need to be addressed with public funds.
hotel space
Couldn't we just put some luxury double wides down in a Fort Point parking lot somewhere during convention season?