Tampa is entitled to some basking. Welcome, 2012 Republican National Convention.
Tampa finally landed that quadrennial political gathering that had been eluding this town for too long. You host multiple Super Bowls — and you’re the keystone of the ultimate battleground state — and the GOP chooses the Democratic stronghold of Minneapolis, Minn.? But that was then — 2008 — and this is not.
In two years Tampa will see an influx of 40,000 to 50,000 people during the visitor-challenged month of August. It will also gain international exposure and reap more than $100 million in economic impact. By some calculations, a lot more. And more to the point, the city — as well as the state — won’t be on the hook for a dime. (As part of its 2008 bid, Tampa estimated its out-of-pocket costs at more than $12 million.)
And thank you, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele — as incongruous as that sounds politically — for underscoring the reality that Tampa was not chosen by “default.” Recall that a number of pols and pundits had speculated that Phoenix was too intolerant of illegal Hispanic immigrants, and Salt Lake City was “too white” and “too Mormon.”
As Steele himself said: “It was strictly a business decision. We were well into the process with our site-selection visits even before the immigration issue. By default? Not at all. Our decision was based on the capacity and capability of cities to meet the demands of 50,000 people.”
Minimum criteria mandated a convention facility seating at least 18,000, access to at least 15,000 hotel rooms, 350,000 square feet for media and parking for up to 300 buses and 1,500 cars. Not a problem. Beyond that, Tampa has a better amenity package to offer — including hotel accommodations, museums, the Riverwalk and tourist attractions — than it did in previous bids. Channelside Bay Plaza and Ybor City should see their share of off-time visitors. This isn’t the beach crowd that is coming in to venerate Sarah Palin and nominate Mitt Romney.
Steele emphasized that the RNC also wanted its delegates to get “the full experience of Tampa” — not just be satisfied “sitting in the convention hall.” The RNC, he said, wanted to “take the flavor of Tampa and make it part of the convention experience.”
That had to please a whole host of civic movers and shakers — from Pam Iorio to Joe Redner.
The time for basking, however, is just about up. Now comes the prep work. And then it’s gearing up for that fifth Super Bowl pitch. And some 2018 World Cup matches.