Tourists Bringing More Money, Greater Stature to County
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 2, 2006; Page GZ04
When people think of tourism in this region, they think of Washington. Naturally. They think of monuments, museums and the majesty of history. But maybe they should also be thinking Strathmore Hall, Silver Spring, National Institutes of Health.
Visitors to the county left behind $1.38 billion in 2004, according to a new study released by Global Insight Inc., a market research firm, and D.K. Shifflet & Associates Ltd. That's up dramatically from 1992, when the total was about $592 million.
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In 2004, travel expenditures jumped 9 percent from the previous year. Some $350.4 million of the $1.38 billion was on food purchases, $279.4 million for lodging, another $240.7 million for entertaining and $224.5 million for shopping.
"The tourism industry is an important revenue generator for our local economy," said David Edgerly, director of economic development for the county.
Kelly Groff, executive director of the Conference and Visitors Bureau of Montgomery, sees county tourist demand in three categories: leisure travel among those visiting Washington, people visiting friends and relatives, and those attending conferences and meetings.
The county has added several travel destinations in recent years: Strathmore Hall, the SoccerPlex in Boyd and a revitalized Silver Spring, not to mention a growing biotech community that thrives in large part because of its proximity to NIH.
"The county has become really attractive for meetings as well as for leisure traveling," Groff said.
Software Firm Gets Official Boost
County officials welcomed a new business to its incubator program earlier this week: SMBLive Inc., a software development and Web marketing automation firm.
At an event attended by County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D), SMBLive showcased its software products aimed at small-business customers, particularly those running Microsoft's SharePoint platform, which allows teams of workers to share computer space.
One of SMBLive's products allows business owners to more easily administer intranets and extranets. Another provides access to applications for managing several functions, including sales, finance and human resources.
"The innovative solutions and software being developed by SMBLive are perfect fits for the dynamic atmosphere we try to foster in our high-tech business incubators," said Duncan. "When we created our business incubator program, the goal was to attract and to assist entrepreneurs as they develop products that will revolutionize the way we live our lives. Our ability to attract the creative minds at SMBLive and to have them here in our county shows that we are meeting that goal."
Hot Prospects
Economic development officials had a hot January.
Eight companies either relocated or expanded in the county, bringing in 1,060 jobs and 215,674 square feet of leased office space.
Companies expanding in the county included World Space Inc., a satellite radio firm in Silver Spring; Vanda Pharmaceuticals of Rockville and Singapore; Aggregrate Industries Ltd., a British construction firm with offices in Rockville; and the Rockville-based American Speech-Language Hearing Association.
Some 4,500 jobs have been attracted to Montgomery or retained since July 1, according to economic development officials.
Mayorga Coffee Expands
Rockville-based Mayorga Coffee Roasters, a wholesaler and retail chain, is opening three new locations at Pittsburgh International Airport.
Company officials said their move into the Pittsburgh market reflects a growth strategy in the Northeast and the success of a Mayorga location at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
"Starting a business and growing it from humble beginnings has taught us a very important lesson: Define the formulas that have worked in the past and replicate them," said company founder and President Martin Mayorga.