tourism grad student network

160 become sick after eating at Indianapolis Olive Garden

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16223079/

The future of the Taco Bell brand is being questioned following the recent food-borne illness issues. An interesting case study would look at other brands that have faced similar issues in the past (for example, Jack-in-the-Box and Chi-Chi's are two polar oposites in the consequences of dealing with this type of situation) in order to identify effective crisis management strategies.

Recently Baltimore's publically financed convention hotel has been in the news. A Google search suggests that quite a few cities in the past few years have used public funds to either sudsidize or completely fund the construction of hotels. This opens a number of questions regarding equity, competition, ROI, etc. A typical arguement in favor of this use of public funds is that these properties will result in more convention business. However, others question the equity and efficiency of using public funds in this manner.

I'm currently trying to pull together a study group to look at this issue since two nearby cities have made (Trenton) or are in the midst of making (Baltimore) this type of investment (additionally some of the hotels built here in Philly prior to the 2000 RNC received substantial public subsidy). If you're interested in working on this topic, drop me an email.

A recent survey finds that residents of Hawaii understand the role tourism plays in the economy but hesitant to support more development.

76% of locals don't want more hotesl
http://starbulletin.com/2006/12/08/business/story02.html