Criticism of councillor's US trip
NOTTINGHAM City Council has been criticised for funding a nine-day tour of visitor attractions in the US.
The local authority spent £5,000 on the trip taken by the Sheriff of Nottingham, Coun Leon Unczur and five others researching how to maximise the Robin Hood legend to benefit the city.
The TaxPayers' Alliance described the trip as an "excessive and unnecessary expense."
A spokesman said: "The practice of running tourist attractions is well documented.
"If they did feel the need to visit successful attractions there are plenty in this country they could have visited for far less."
The delegation jetted between New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston and Plymouth. They took six, including those to and from the country.
The tour took in 24 sites including New York's Statue of Liberty and San Francisco's Alcatraz Island in a bid to discover what makes a tourist attraction successful.
A city council spokesperson said half the £10,000 budget for the trip, which was completed last week, was contributed by regeneration agencies.
Coun Unczur said: "People will say you can do it on the internet but you have to talk to people, talk to customers, get feedback from them, meet the politicians.
"We went to learn how to make a big attraction with 'wow' factor. The Americans know how to do it."
Nottingham is planning a Robin Hood attraction which would attract up to one million visitors a year.
15 Comments
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by The Equaliser, La La Land
Saturday, September 26 2009, 6:56PM
“I prefer Arnold Schwartzenegger myself.
He could go in guns blazing and rid us of the obvious aliens in the Council House.
They might as well be from another planet!”
by Dave, South of The River
Saturday, September 26 2009, 6:21AM
“I reckon this is an underhand plot to twin Nottingham with Alcatraz...might just work, perhaps Clint Eastwood (no pun intended) could be recruited as a tour guide”
by Ian, Carlton
Friday, September 25 2009, 1:15PM
“Not well enough - I saw the £5,000 quoted in the second paragraph & lost it.”
by Paul, Up Here
Friday, September 25 2009, 10:25AM
“Ian, it cost £10,000, can't you read?”
by Ian, Carlton
Friday, September 25 2009, 9:43AM
“Can someone please tell me which travel agents Notts City Council use ?
I plan to go the US next year & would also like to travel for about 1/4 of the real cost.
£5,000 for 6 people to visit 6 US cities is way too cheap. I don't believe this cost for one minute.”
by Bunch Of Scammers, Nottingham, Nightshift
Friday, September 25 2009, 6:00AM
“Labour S C U M going on jollies at the taxpayers expense while people lose their homes and jobs. Robin Hood must be rolling in his grave.”
by FARK, USA
Friday, September 25 2009, 3:21AM
“Hmm... If only there was a folk hero who would stand up for the common man in situations like this...”
by Have A Go Hero, Nottingham
Thursday, September 24 2009, 5:25PM
“It reads
The delegation jetted between New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston and Plymouth. They took six, including those to and from the country.
WHY,WHY, WHY.
They could have gone to Drayton ManorPark, Skegness,The House's of Parliment, Madam Tussards etc ect.
There they would have seen the attractions and how they promote them and it would have not cost the rate payers £5000 .
This was just a poor excuse to waste good money from the people of Nottingham' s pockets No wonder we are annoyed.
That £5000 would have paid for house repairs or roads and pavements or Better still to clean out all the drains that are packed solid with rubbish and leaves where I live.
I'm annoyed and very angry that the Labour Controlled Council can just dip the bottomless Council coffers and go on a Jolly.
Have we forgotten the Jolly to France and the luxury Yacht trip not to long ago.
SACK COLLINS”
by Dave, Notts
Thursday, September 24 2009, 12:15PM
“"The tour took in 24 sites including New York's Statue of Liberty and San Francisco's Alcatraz Island in a bid to discover what makes a tourist attraction successful."
Having a 300+ million population, 60 million tourists, and having something tangible when you get there rather than a myth does of course help.
The cities visited are massive and so can sustain such attractions. Nottingham is just a market town (surrounded by sink estates) and cannot pretend to be a world player. Until the City Council accepts that fact, and stops pretending it is something that it is not it will not move forwards.
If people are not coming to Nottingham it's because they don't want to.
Bull Ring or Vic Centre?, Tower of London or Castle Rock?, Tate Modern or the bunker on Weekday X?, Wimbledon or the tennis centre?. Get the picture.?”
by Simon, Nottingham
Thursday, September 24 2009, 11:21AM
“Glad to see our elected leaders prudently watching how every penny of public money is spent. Doubles all round!”