CVB shelves plans for visitors center

Plans for a new Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau facility are on hold for the foreseeable future.

Citing the weakened economy, the CVB Board of Directors voted at its Aug. 20 meeting to delay building a new Tourist Information Center at U.S. Highway 65 and Chestnut Expressway.

"We knew all along that we'd either have to raise the money or mortgage a portion of it, and we have intended all along to do that," CVB President Tracy Kimberlin said of the estimated $3 million project. "We just don't feel it's prudent at this point, with the tourism industry getting hammered this badly, to proceed."

The number of visitors to Springfield is down so far this year, according to CVB data. Visits to the CVB information centers are off by more than 8 percent through July, while hotel room demand is down 6.5 percent and revenue per available room is down 4.5 percent through June.

After contracting with Bates & Associates Inc. and Hufft Projects for design work, the CVB had planned to move into the new facility by early next year. Kimberlin said the move is now likely delayed by three to four years. The board plans to revisit the project before August 2010.

"I think we'll always keep our eye on it, and as soon as we see the economy turning around, we'll get very serious about the project again," Kimberlin said.

The CVB purchased the 1-acre parcel on which to build the facility in December 2007 from Jim Morris of Morris Oil Co. Morris sold the land for $250,000, about $350,000 less than its appraised value.

With the decision to delay construction, the CVB will continue to operate visitors' centers from leased space at Highway 65 and Battlefield Road, where it has operated since 1990, and from its administrative offices in the Jordan Valley Car Park.

The decision to postpone the new building came just a few days before the state's tourism agencies found out that they face significant budget reductions from the state.

The Missouri Department of Economic Development, which oversees the state's Division of Tourism, is proposing to cut its fiscal 2010 budget by $11.3 million, 64 percent of which would come from tourism.

The Missouri Hotel & Lodging Association estimates that the proposed $7 million funding reduction, equaling 35 percent of tourism's total budget, would cost 2,500 state hotel jobs.

While Kimberlin said the state's proposed funding reduction was not a factor in the decision to delay the new visitor center, it doesn't help the CVB's situation.

"In light of that decision, and in light of the fact that there could be future withholdings that could affect co-op advertising dollars we receive from the state, it makes the decision to postpone the project look a little better," he said.

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