OKC nabs the Conference of Mayor's in 2010
Nice job Cornett!
By Steve Lackmeyer and Bryan Dean
Staff Writers
Forget about economic impact.
Greater Oklahoma City Chamber officials say the dollars spent by the estimated 1,200 visitors expected when the city hosts the 2010 U.S. Conference of Mayors will be minor compared with the potential for status and the national spotlight.
Imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger swapping jokes with Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett, policy discussions ranging from immigration to global warming by some of the most influential city leaders from across the country and stump speeches by presidential candidates. It's all possible when the U.S. Conference of Mayors comes to town.
Roy Williams, chamber president, is among those surprised that Oklahoma City won the bid on its first attempt. The conference was held last week in Los Angeles, and was in Las Vegas last year and Chicago in 2005.
"This is pretty phenomenal, Williams said. "This is quite an audience that gets invited to all the premier locations in the United States.
Cornett, who has attended the conference since his election in March 2004, said the city could not have contemplated hosting the conference a few years ago.
In the past decade, downtown's hotel room count has climbed from 395 at the Sheraton Hotel to 1,615 rooms when downtown's seventh hotel, the Bricktown Hampton Inn, is expected to open next year.
Cornett said he has fielded calls from shocked predecessors, including Ron Norick, whose push for the 1993 Metropolitan Area Projects is credited with downtown Oklahoma City's resurgence.
"I got an e-mail from Ron, and he said he never thought they would even consider us, Cornett said.
Last week's conference was visited by a who's who in presidential politics, including U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Cornett said the conference also featured a political "celebrity California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Saturday night in Los Angeles, the mayors had dinner at Hollywood's Kodak Theater, where the food was catered by Wolfgang Puck and entertainment provided by Melissa Etheridge.
Cornett said he had high hopes of luring the conference to town but was prepared for a rejection.
"I thought we had a chance, and if not, I thought at least we tried and could have a chance at it next time, Cornett said.
Why the big deal?
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is almost routine in the number of visitors and its estimated $3.5 million economic impact when compared with other upcoming conventions. An estimated 1,000 people attended the Huntington's Disease Society of America national convention at the Cox Convention Center last month. Expect about 3,400 visitors when Sonic Corp. holds its annual convention in Oklahoma City in September. Pre-Paid Legal Services Inc. draws about 12,000 people every spring to the Cox Convention Center.
"They are here, year after year, with thousands of delegates, said Barb Denny, interim executive director of the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau. "When you look strictly at room nights and delegates, (the mayors conference) is a nice piece of business for Oklahoma City. But it's not the biggest. When you look at it in influence and the impact it can have nationally and internationally in exposure, you can't compare it with other events.
Meeting the standards
Cornett described the U.S. Conference of Mayors as being in a tier just below national political party nominating conventions considered the top prize in the world of political gatherings.
All mayors of cities with a population of over 30,000 are invited to the annual event, with more than 1,000 such mayors in the United States. Alan Sims, the convention bureau's sales director, said the city "barely met the standards required by the U.S. Conference of Mayors starting with the conference's desire for a minimum of 650 rooms, all in one hotel.
The city had to convince planners they could successfully host the conference with three downtown hotels within a block of the Cox Convention Center.
Still in surprise
Efforts to lure the conference date back several months and include a letter signed by all six of Oklahoma City's living mayors Cornett, Kirk Humphreys, Ron Norick, Andy Coats, Patience Latting and Jim Norick.
"I don't think we had what we needed to have to get that kind of conference until now, Ron Norick said. "I went to several mayors conferences, and they were always in big cities. We're in what I would call the big league of the cities getting a conference like this.
While a chorus of voices credit Cornett for landing the conference, Cornett heaped praise on the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau for putting together a solid proposal that won over the selection committee.
Denny said her group put the proposal together largely with Cornett's help. The proposal championed the growth and the partnerships between local government and the private sector that followed MAPS.
Denny said MAPS for Kids was also a selling point because cities across the country are looking for ways to improve education, and Oklahoma City's effort through the MAPS for Kids sales tax and bond issue is considered a model.
Cornett said geography also helped. This year's conference was in Los Angeles. Miami, Fla., will host the 2008 convention, and Providence, R.I., hosts in 2009. A site in the middle of the country made sense for 2010.
"The timing worked for us, Cornett said. "It's only natural that 2010 wasn't going to be on the East Coast. We're not going to follow Chicago.
Cornett thinks Oklahoma City can out-hustle cities like Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
"Those cities are so big that it's not necessarily as big a deal to them as it is to us, Cornett said. "It can get lost. It will mean more to our community for the same reasons that our Big 12 events and Softball World Series are big events here.
And once the mayors leave, Cornett thinks Oklahoma City will be one step closer to achieving its goal of leaving tier-three status for good.
"This is validation. They wouldn't be coming here if they didn't think this was a city worth of their presence and attention, Cornett said. "They could go anywhere and be welcomed with open arms.
Originally Posted by metro
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