HERITAGE TOURISM IS BENEFIT LUNCHEON’S FOCUS

The Cleveland Restoration Society (CRS), in partnership with the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland and with the support of Sandvick Architects, Inc., will hold its 33 rd Annual Community Luncheon on November 22, 2005 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Public Auditorium, 500 Lakeside Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio. Dennis J. Roche, president of the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland, will introduce keynote speaker, Cheryl M. Hargrove, president of the HTC Group, a company specializing in cultural heritage tourism and marketing and development. Ms. Hargrove’s talk, entitled Heritage Tourism: Why Place Matters, will highlight Northeast Ohio’s potential for Heritage Tourism and how it can help us revitalize our region.

In an era when too much seems phony and contrived, Greater Cleveland is the real thing. Structures such as Cleveland’s Public Auditorium, constructed in 1922 as part of the Cleveland Group Plan of 1903, have the authenticity and cultural relevance that today’s travelers prefer. The Group Plan buildings are the most concrete and practical example of the City Beautiful Movement in America; and, together, these buildings create a sense of place that is uniquely Cleveland.

Since September 11, 2001, interest in America’s cultural heritage has grown. American travelers are seeking new ways to connect with their roots and become better educated about their country’s past. A 2003 Travel Industry Association of America (TIA)/Smithsonian magazine study reported that 81% of all Americans taking a trip the previous year included a visit to a cultural heritage site or event. When a community sustains and nurtures its singular, irreplaceable cultural assets, the potential for economic development through Heritage Tourism is created.

A travel industry veteran, Ms. Hargrove is best known as the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s first director of heritage tourism where she developed the key steps and principles for sustainable tourism focusing on history and culture, and produced the publication Getting Started: How to Succeed in Heritage Tourism. She currently serves as a member of the US Cultural & Heritage Tourism Summit Advisory Committee and the America’s Byways Review Panel. Ms. Hargrove is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers, Historic Hotel of America’s Business Development Committee and the International Association of Business Communicators, and former chair of the Travel Industry Association of America’s Communications Council.

The community luncheon raises much-needed unrestricted funds for the Cleveland Restoration Society’s programs and operations. Individual tickets for the luncheon range in price from $40 to $125 each. For reservations and more information, contact the Cleveland Restoration Society at (216) 426-1000 or e-mail dbremer@clevelandrestoration.org.

The Cleveland Restoration Society/Preservation Resource Center of Northeastern Ohio is the region’s largest non-profit preservation organization and is a Local Partner affiliate of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Founded in 1972, the Society is dedicated to the preservation of greater Cleveland’s historic resources.

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