Detroit Has a Lot to Offer New Hotel Guests

18 October 2000

By David Waddell

Recently, Bill Marriott, Chairman and CEO of Marriott International Inc., told a group of Detroit area business people at an Economic Club of Detroit luncheon that casino hotels should not be built in Detroit. This opinion was based on his apparent belief that the casinos would not draw enough out-of-town guests to an already struggling hotel market. What Mr. Marriott fails to recognize is that without additional accommodations Detroit will never be able to entertain the influx of visitors who will be attracted to stay overnight in Detroit to gamble, attending a professional sporting event, participate in a conference or tradeshow, or take part in one of the 100 other unique attractions Detroit has to offer and want the luxury of an attached hotel.

Also, hotel industry consultants in the Detroit area elude that metro Detroit is a prime meeting area for large-scale conventions and other venues, but the limited accommodations prevent area businesses, and the city as a whole, from benefiting. Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer even had to forego bidding on the 2000 political nominating conventions two years ago declaring Detroit unready for such a large-scale event because of the lack of accommodations and massive construction in the downtown area. However, he now plans to bid for the 2004 Democratic and Republican national conventions stating that the city will be ready by then.

According to a survey by the Metropolitan Detroit Convention and Visitors Bureau, there are 31,879 hotel rooms in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, including 4,442 hotel rooms in Detroit