“Carlton Proctor: Hotels took more guests during June”

Carlton Proctor: Hotels took more guests during June

Posted: 24 Jul 2010 11:16 PM PDT

Now that there's a cap on the Deepwater Horizon well, and it seems to be working, there's a fragile feeling that maybe, just maybe, the worst is behind us.

Yes, July's figures will be disappointing and way down, but there's still time left to salvage some summer business.

Ad executive Ellis Bullock, who handled the marketing for the Pensacola Convention and Visitor's Bureau said the phones are starting to ring again with folks at least thinking about getting in a trip to the beach before school starts.

But, even if there is a mild recovery of business this summer, clearly the damage has been done. And for many, it's not a matter of recovery, but survival.

What lies ahead is a huge task of regaining the markets that fed the Pensacola area's tourism economy, and the vast bulk of that market is families.

Luring families

How are we going to get mom and pop and the kids back to Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key and Navarre Beach?

During the peak of the tourist season, families typically make up as much as 90 percent of the lodging revenues on Pensacola Beach, and a major part of business of mainland hotels.

Bullock believes the BP-funded national marketing campaign is having a positive effect, and getting families to at least consider coming back to the Gulf Coast.

A lot of damage was done to this region of the Gulf, and it's going to take a sustained effort to recapture the lucrative Southeast-Midwest markets that have put heads in beds here for decades.

More on spill

n Despite the start of Southwest Airlines service to Panama City in May, Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport's passenger counts were up 5.5 percent in June.

But Fort Walton Beach's airport was not as fortunate in June. That facility clearly felt the effects of Southwest's arrival, reporting a 10 percent drop in passengers for June.

For the year, Pensacola's airport's passenger counts are up 3.5 percent, aided by the arrival of United Airlines earlier this year, and new service offered by Delta, US Airways and American.

n Small businesses affected by the oil spill are eligible for low-interest disaster assistance loans from the Small Business Administration, even if they have received money from BP.

SBA spokesman Michael Peacock said $3.5 million has been loaned so far to small businesses in the eight-county disaster area in Northwest Florida.

"We're expecting that number to increase significantly in the next few weeks," Peacock said.

For more information, contact SBA's Customer Service Center at (800)659-2955, or disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

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