‘Don’t base tourism decisions on fears’

The former mayor of Honolulu shared yesterday with the CNMI the success story of Hawaii’s tourism industry, which he said would not have been realized if not for the implementation of some unpopular policies.

Muliufi Francis “Mufi” Hannemann said that Commonwealth’s leaders should take risks and not base their tourism decisions on fear if they want the CNMI to experience the same results as Hawaii.

“You cannot base tourism decisions on fear. If you do that, you will never do what is right. Like what I did for our sewage system, you have to make unpopular decisions in anticipation of a problem,” he told government officials and tourism officers and partners during the bi-annual meeting yesterday at the Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan.

Hannemann said a major decision he made during his first year in office was to address the municipality’s sewage problem, which was projected to overflow if not immediately worked on. “It was a scary decision but proved to be a right decision.”

Like Honolulu, the CNMI government must also “stand up” for the industry, he said. In raising government taxes, careful assessment has to be made to balance the action and that government “priorities” should also be clear in all angles, he added.

Hannemann said that fiscal years 2007 to 2009 were “struggling years” for his municipality. It was only in fiscal year 2010 when Honolulu began seeing visitor arrivals swing the other way and the trend has continued since then.

He considers it a turning point when the Federal Bureau of Investigation rated Honolulu as a safe destination. He pointed out, for example, the importance of having firefighters who are internationally accredited. Increased police visibility in almost areas frequented by tourists is also a major boost. Having a safe environment for tourists, he said, will open great opportunities for any place.

In 2007, Hawaii had 7.9 million visitors; in 2008, 6.7 million; and in 2009 and 2010, 6.4 million. This fiscal year 2011, he said they hope to hit 7 million arrivals and is optimistic that they will meet this target. Honolulu expects to host the next Asia Pacific Economic Conference where national leaders are expected to participate.

Hannemann identified four components that any government has to put in place to achieve its tourism goals: public safety, infrastructure, planning and zoning, and adequate funding for promotions. Of these elements, he said that only planning and zoning are in place in the Commonwealth and these need to have “teeth.”

Hannemann said that they always remind lawmakers of the impact whenever the state government attempts to cut monies for marketing Hawaii.

He said the visitor industry generates $1.3 billion a year in tax revenues for the state, which represents 45 percent of state’s annual general fund appropriation for education and the University of Hawaii.

Hawaii hotels pay $226 million a year in transient accommodation taxes that are not paid by other industries, he added.

Lt. Gov. Eloy Inos, who was among the guests in yesterday’s meeting, said he welcomes Hannemann recommendations.

“We should take the lead on those recommendations. Obviously, the former mayor had some similar experiences in the industry during its ups and downs and he was able to come up with some solutions and recommendations. We welcome those recommendations and we will pick the ones that will work here,” he said.

Inos was scheduled to meet yesterday afternoon with lawmakers to discuss the amendments that need to be made on a bill that proposes a $15 fee from non-U.S tourists for tourism promotion.

“It looks like we’re all looking forward toward the early implementation of this legislation to provide help for marketing and promotions.”