Client News
St. Augustine Record: Tourists: Their families support our own
Monday, December 04, 2017
By: Tom Dolan
Editor: Our restaurant has much to be thankful for this holiday season, including family, friends, coworkers and our local business. Tourists and visitors to our city are also at the top of the list.
Folks outside of the tourism industry don’t always think of visitors as something to praise, but tourists and visitors are exactly what make St. Augustine a beautiful place to live, work and play. As a small business, we certainly appreciate the travelers who comprise nearly half of our customer base. But, more importantly, we are grateful that our guests help employ nearly 70 locals at our restaurant. More than five-dozen people can provide for their families and support our community because of their employment. That number doesn’t include support jobs such as suppliers, advertising partners, buyers, contractors and delivery persons.
When employees receive their paychecks, they share the wealth with other community members by shopping at local boutiques, visiting independent restaurants and grocers, hiring a babysitter and even buying a home. The economic impact reaches many residents and local businesses. This is especially significant after two major hurricanes in a span of 11 months and three days.
Our community generated unprecedented attention during our 450th anniversary in 2015, and we’re still experiencing benefits from the increased visitation nearly three years later. For example, the number of new small businesses significantly increased. Dozens of locals can live out their dream of owning a business — whether an ice cream shop, educational attraction, jewelry store or anything in between.
Tourism also brings more than just jobs and revenue to our city. It helps fund some of our favorite places and programs. Walks on the beach, concerts at the Amphitheatre, neighborhood festivals and historic reenactments are examples of activities partially funded through tourism. Our extended business family is excited to see what 2018 has in store for St. Augustine and believe an increase in visitors will only mean great things for our community.
Tom Dolan
St. Augustine
Note: Dolan owns Meehan’s Irish Pub & Seafood House on the Bayfront.
Read here: http://staugustine.com/opinion/2017-12-03/sunday-letters-letter-dehumanizes-vulnerable-people