Nashville Seeing Growing Success Despite Country's Recession Worries

In a time where a slowing economy is on everyone's mind, Nashville continues to see positive travel industry growth.

Tourists and business travelers continue to flock to the famous Music City, notes Butch Spyridon, President of the Nashville Convention and Visitor's Bureau (CVB).

"Nashville is in a great position to minimize any impact from an economic downturn,' says Spyridon. 'Our diverse economy has created a very stable economic environment--health care, automotive, education, government, music and hospitality are all significant economic engines for the area. In addition, we are experiencing one of our best sales years ever and have just received initial approval for a new $600 million downtown convention center."

From the perspective of a Nashville airport hotel, the Nashville Airport Marriott continues to steady increase in group proposals through the CVB.

'We've seen a 148% increase in the number of group bookings we saw in January, verses the same time last year,' notes Jim Kintzler, Director of Sales and Marketing at the Nashville Airport Marriott. 'In addition to draw of the Nashville market overall, our clients are very pleased with our multi million dollar renovation and once again we rank in the top 10% of all North American Marriott hotels in guest satisfaction. We're proud to show our guests the kind of hospitality for which Nashville is known."

There's no wonder that even in the midst of a time when travelers are hesitant about spending money on hotels, dining and travel, the Airport Marriott's Nashville accommodations are booked, and out-of-towners are happily experiencing all that Nashville has to offer.

Read the entire Press Release.

New Convention Center in Nashville

Should we fund a convention center before we know the size, design and cost?

This is a question I ask over the last week in a poll on my blog and all the votes were along the same lines of my feelings for the project. The people of Nashville should not have to pay for something, via taxes, until we know the size, measurements, cost and planning ahead of time.

There were some people who voted for the idea of having it be planned, owned and funded privately and I again agree with a lot with the way of thinking. I just don't think taxpayers money should be taken without our agreement and without us knowing what we are getting into.

No city should plan on something and begin the taxation process without first letting the people of that city know what is involved.

Do you agree? Let me know what you think and what you feel the best way to handle it is...