Commissioner Greene Addresses PBC Tourism Summit

	Commissioner Greene offers opening comments at the first-ever Tourism Summit. « Previous | Next »

On May 16, Commission Chairperson Addie L. Greene welcomed a large, enthusiastic group of tourism and travel professionals to the Kravis Center for the first-ever Palm Beach County Tourism Summit. The gathering was organized by the Palm Beach County Tourist Development Council and the Convention and Visitors Bureau to provide an exchange of new marketing ideas, strategies and industry innovations.

For more than 100 years, tourism has been an important component of Palm Beach County’s economy. Some 2.5 million people visit the county annually, booking 3.5 million hotel nights and spending approximately $3 billion while they are here. Tourism-related activities account for $1.5 billion in wages and more than 53,000 jobs.

Invited speakers at the day-long summit included CVB President and CEO Jorge Pesquera, TDC Executive Director Charles Lehmann, Dr. Dale Brill, director of the Florida Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development, Duane Knapp, president of BrandStrategy, Orbitz Worldwide Vice President Ian Ross, and Berthia Parle, chairwoman of the Caribbean Hotel Association.