Volume 3, No. 8. April 25, 2003
Empty space
All Florida attractions
have suffered the near disappearance of international tourism, the downturn
in national tourism and the delay in Snowbird visits. All Florida attractions
are struggling with rising insurance and worker’s comp costs, plus other
operational costs. Many Florida attractions endured unusually cold winter weather
early this year.
But only one Florida attraction felt the impact of a disaster occurring February
1 above the Southwest desert skies and played out over national television.
On the morning of the Space Shuttle Columbia’s breakup during its descent
back to earth, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex had to switch from welcoming
celebration site to a bereavement center, even as it dealt with its own sense
of shock and loss.
The disaster itself did not impact the Visitor Center’s numbers, though
some people may have thought the complex was closed in the days following the
incident, said Susan Burrell, public relations manager for the Kennedy Space
Center Visitor Complex. “If there’s a silver lining in the clouds
of Columbia, it’s the increased awareness of the space program and the
importance of the space program and the bravery of the astronauts,” she
said.
However, the longer term impact of the disaster has hurt. “The interruption
of the Shuttle program has had a pretty significant effect on us,” Burrell
said. “We do have a lot of visitation around launches. That definitely
hurts us not having those.”
She said the Center’s numbers this year are “running flat to slightly
down” compared to last year, and last year the complex saw a 15 percent
drop from 2001. Running flat is good news when considering all that the Center
has endured this year, but it is still running behind projections.
The Visitor Complex is hoping for a boost in June when the Mars exploration
rovers launch from Kennedy Space Center for an early 2004 rendezvous with the
planet, and the Astronaut Hall of Fame inducts several new members, among them
Sally Ride.
THE LOOP is written and produced by Eric Minton, Minton Enterprises, LLC. To see more examples of Eric Minton's work and Minton Enterprises services, visit www.ericminton.com.
©2003, Minton Enterprises
LLC
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