by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
It’s a minor consideration compared to a death toll that could reach tens of thousands with hundreds of thousands of lost homes, but when Hurricane Katrina plowed into three of the Southeast’s top convention cities last week it left thousands of conventioneers looking for a home as well.
John Reyes, the president of the Jacksonville and the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau, has already been in contact with his counterparts in New Orleans, Biloxi and Mobile. Reyes’ first priority was to offer support. Second, he offered help in placing conventions scheduled for the coming months in those storm-ravaged cities.
It’s a delicate situation for the Jacksonville CVB. The damage to facilities and infrastructure in those cities means many of the conventions will have to be held elsewhere and presents an undeniable business opportunity for other convention cities across the Southeast. But given the huge financial blow that Katrina has already dealt to those cities, Reyes wants to be sure that the CVB responds appropriately.
“We want to be professional and collaborative in our approach,” said Reyes. “Our first desire in contacting the other offices is to make sure that everyone there is okay. And then, when it’s appropriate, to let them know we have information on availability of hotels and meeting space if they have customers who want to stay in the Southeast.”
Reyes said he has discussed partnerships with the affected convention bureaus. Absorbing some of their displaced businesses could help them soothe relations with customers and allow those cities to recoup some of the money that would otherwise be lost.
One of the CVB’s contacts with the New Orleans Convention and Visitor’s Bureau has been Kitty Ratcliffe, the former head of the Jacksonville CVB and current executive vice president with the New Orleans CVB.
Jacksonville CVB Vice President of Sales Rod Hampton spoke to Ratcliffe recently and told Reyes that she is healthy and focused on rebuilding New Orleans’ convention business, which has long been one of the city’s economic foundations.
The New Orleans CVB website reports that Ratcliffe is working from Dallas for the next week.
Many of the New Orleans conventions have been diverted to Las Vegas and Atlanta, said Reyes. But Biloxi and Mobile cater to the same size conventions typically targeted by Jacksonville. All three are second-tier convention cities, said Reyes.
Jacksonville might appeal to those conventions due to similar availability of hotel rooms, approaching fall weather and easy access to the water, said Reyes.