According to an article in the Phoenix Business Journal, Scottsdale’s primary industry–tourism–may be in for a rude awakening in 2013. This is contrary to a largely-optimistic piece in the Scottsdale Republic.
Mike Sunnucks of the PBJ leads his article with the headline,
Phoenix-Scottsdale drops to 15 in US travel survey; Orlando and Vegas tops
Mike cites a Travel Leaders Group survey of more than 1,000 travel agents, “… based on November and December bookings for next year and travel agents’ impressions of the top travel spots.”
While a drop from 10th spot to 15th isn’t a huge tumble, if overall spending on travel and leisure continues to decline it could mean serious economic impact. This is especially true in communities which–like Scottsdale–have been built largely on the hospitality industry.
At the same time, Scottsdale has been turning its back on the low-scale physical character that is the foundation of its tourist appeal, and our leaders have compromised our already challenged finances by deficit financing and borrowing. Concerns about our $8 million deficit that Mayor Jim Lane so casually dismissed as “ridiculous rhetoric” during his re-election campaign, will look prescient when the revenue numbers start to come in around the end of the first quarter of 2013.