Tourism In The New Urban Economy

Tourism in the New

Urban Economy March 25, 2014

UP6550

Justin Lyons

Agenda

Introduction

Tourism: who and what is at stake?

NYC

Pure Michigan

Impact

Traditional Role of City Gov.?

Provide public services for

Safety

Health

Civic Education

NOW

A Place To Play

Why Tourism?

Post-Fordist Economy

Urban settings are much less

dependent/cannot rely on traditional

manufacturing to drive local economies

Need for tax revenue and increase jobs for

unskilled workers

Culture of the City

Urban culture itself has become a commodity

and cities have a competitive advantage over

suburbs - Fainstein

Manufacturing of Tourism

DTW Airport

Metro Car/Taxi

Downtown Hotels

Bars/restaurants

Riverwalk

Jazz Fest Workers

New York City

50 million visitors in 2011

35.2 million in 2002

$47 billion in spending

Fifth largest industry

Ahead of media and

fashion

7.36% of NYC economy

320,000 jobs

NYC & Company

Bloomberg Administration merged departments to

create a full service marketing, PR and ad agency

$103 million budget over 5 years

Created an “upscale image” of NYC

Cohesive brand message across all gov. agencies,

taxis, etc.

State Of Michigan

$17.7 billion in tourist

spending in 2011

$995 million in state

taxes

200,000 jobs

Travel MI Plan

Travel MI (MEDC) created strategic plans with visions,

goals, objectives

Collaboration, Funding, Product Development, Marketing,

Public Policy, Research, Resources, Service Excellence

Collaboration across multiple state agencies

Pushes funding for Pure Michigan campaign

Pure Michigan

$13 million budget in 2013

$4.3 million in Great Lakes

region

$8.7 million rest of nation

4 million trips to MI by out of

state visitors

$1.2 billion economic impact

Pure Michigan Ad Spend

Domestic vs. Global

East Coast travelers

Average stay: 2.7 nights

Spend/trip: $432

International travelers

Average stay: 7.3 nights

Spend/trip: $1,700

Global Tourism

Most important travelers to local economy

World economy decentralized, which makes business

travel more necessary

People are more educated

Travel is easier than ever

People seek places that are different than home

Resort Cities

Created expressly for

consumption by visitors

Not always stable

Ex: Cancun, Las Vegas

Converted Cities

Infrastructure built for tourism

Tourist areas insulated from

“urban milieu” = uneven

development

Ex: Atlanta, Dallas, Times

Square

Tourist-Historic Cities

Manipulated to improve on

actual offerings

Shift from authentic self to keep

up with imitation

Ex: Barcelona, Venice, Paris

Socio-cultural/Economic/Spatial

IMPACT ON CITIES:

Regulations of Tourism

Protect the Tourist

Surveillance cameras, special police, transportation

Protect the City

Higher tax on hotel rooms, immigration laws

Labor regulation (immigration, safety, marketing)

Cluster related tourism businesses

Exploit relationships as part of urban fabric

Attract and retain talent

Effects of Tourism

Can cities provide a shared and distinct experience?

McDonaldization vs. unique

Avoiding unpleasantness in “leisure”

Welcome travelers vs. unrealistic facade

Social justice of tourism

Absorbing unskilled workers vs. low pay

Is there an economic bubble ahead for tourism?

Sources

Text

Tourism and the Commodification of Urban Culture, Susan S. Fainstein. The Urban Reinventors, Issue 2. November 2007.

The 2012-2017 Michigan Tourism Strategic Plan, Dr. Sarah Nicholls. Travel Michigan, MEDC, December 2012.

2012 Michigan Tourism Advertising Evaluation and Image Study, Longwoods International. Michigan Buisiness, March 2014.

And Another Fifty Million People Just Got Off of the Plane, Michael Idov. New York Magazine, November 27, 2011.

The Politics of Bread and Circuses: Building the City for the Visitor Class, Peter Eisinger. Urban Affairs Review, Vol. 35, No. 3,

January 2000.

Photos

2013 Lollapalooza Day One, Keri Wiginton, Chicago Tribune, August 2, 2013.

Highline Park Photos, The Highline, Iwan Baan, 2009.

Photo Gallery, Detroit Eastern Market Corporation, 2009

Getty Images, 2014