Tourism gives big boost to city coffers

Noaki Schwartz

NEWPORT BEACH -- Tourism-generated dollars exceeded property tax revenues

by half a million this fiscal year, putting visitors at the top of the

city’s agenda.

“I think it’s great,” said Mayor John Noyes. “[The Conference and

Visitor’s Bureau] does a good job. It points out that we are, in part, a

good tourist city.”

Rosalind Williams of the Conference and Visitor’s Bureau presented the

City Council last week with a check facsimile for $21 million. The large

sum inspired Noyes to jokingly ask if the council could actually cash it.

Last year, the check was for slightly more than $20 million, Williams

said. A larger advertising budget and a hike in hotel rates were

responsible for the increase, she said.

“The average rate people are paying to stay in hotels has increased to

$140,” Williams said, adding that this means more revenue for the city.

The Conference and Visitor’s Bureau is already gearing up for the new

fiscal year, which begins in two months. It is currently developing a

marketing plan and ironing out a budget.

“We’re planning to do more,” she said. “We’re generally trying to further

develop upper-class tourists for Newport.”

And this, Noyes said, is what the city needs -- the “good tourists” that

stay in the city’s hotels and eat at its restaurants, as opposed to the

annual summer wave of beachgoers.

The city is currently focusing on out-of-town visitors, in part, because

it is National Tourism Week.