Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Scanned the study, because I wondered why the TBJ article used "small city destination" in the headline, then compared Greensboro to Dothan, AL (pop 65,000), Bend, Ore (pop 91,000) and Lake Charles, LA (pop 77,000).
The headline is misleading. The Large/Medium/Small tiers in the study are related to the number of visitors per year, not the size of the city.
'Large *DESTINATION* Rankings' - is the terminology used in the study: 10m+ visitors per year
Medium Destination Rankings - 5-10m visitors per year
Small Destination Rankings - 3-5m visitors per year
There is a big difference between 'small city' and 'small destination (range),' as intended by the study. The writer of the TBJ article should have done better.
3 million visitors to Greensboro per year? Impressive. Some cities around Greensboro's population rank in the Medium tier (Cincinnati 296k; Buffalo 259k), and some don't rank at all (St. Paul 290k; Newark 277k; Lincoln, NE 265k).
The numbers are impressive for Greensboro. The city is underated. A lot of that has to do with sports and other events that come to the city. But Greensboro has a number of cultural and recreational attractions such as the Greensboro Science Center and Wet n Wild. The city is the convention destination of the Triad so there are people from out of town that come to conventions. Its no surprise that we are seeing an uptick in downtown attractions/hotels. Even though Greensboro has a ways to go, its not the sleepy city it once was 20 or 25 years ago. Again its been years since Ive heard Greensboro called Greensboring. Greensboro use to be resistant to change and now it welcomes it.
The numbers are impressive for Greensboro. The city is underated. A lot of that has to do with sports and other events that come to the city. But Greensboro has a number of cultural and recreational attractions such as the Greensboro Science Center and Wet n Wild. The city is the convention destination of the Triad so there are people from out of town that come to conventions. Its no surprise that we are seeing an uptick in downtown attractions/hotels. Even though Greensboro has a ways to go, its not the sleepy city it once was 20 or 25 years ago. Again its been years since Ive heard Greensboro called Greensboring. Greensboro use to be resistant to change and now it welcomes it.
I agree with you on the tide changing in attitudes toward new development and growth, though it's a slow change. I guess when you've been asleep for so long, it takes a while to wake up.
Do you think people really travel to visit the Science Center and Wet 'N Wild - like beyond 50 miles? I'm not talking about a random outlier or two, but enough people to impact a statistic?
I thought about the coliseum, college visits, etc., but not about KCC until Mutiny mentioned it. That's a big one. I wonder if Grandover does a significant bit of convention business? I've seen Grandover advertising prominently positioned in travel magazines.
Yes because of the deep sleep Greensboro was in back in the 1980s and 1990s, the city is playing catch up. But there is momentum in Greensboro.
Its been a challenge for Greensboro over the years. We dont have natural features like the beach or the mountains to draw in tourists and visitors. Conventions and national/regional events at the coliseum have been key although id like to see even bigger conventions come to our city. That would require more airline flights, more hotel rooms added to the city's inventory, more attractions and an expanded convention facility around 500,000 square feet. The Koury has half that square footage. Its been brought up about a downtown convention center on the News and Record site but that could be a challenge because it would likely require public funds and that would be a tough sell to taxpayers considering the city already has a privately owned facility. I personally think the city could support two facilities. But if that doesn't happen the Koury needs to be expanded via elevated walkway over Pinecroft on the large grassy land Koury Corp owns along with a second anchor highrise hotel.
Selfishly, I kinda like that there are only 0-4 people being processed by TSA every time I pass through PTI outbound. But, you're right.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
