Controller: More businesses report losses during papal visit

Dozens of businesses that were inside the secured perimeter of the papal festival grounds in Center City saw a significant loss of revenue, according to a report released Thursday by the City Controller's Office.

Of the 108 businesses that responded to the controller's survey, 90 said their yearly projections were behind because of a lack of business during the papal visit, according to the report. Fourteen businesses were either not affected or were ahead of yearly projections. The four others were closed.

"One restaurant stated that what would have been a normally busy week of service was quite a dismal week," Controller Alan Butkovitz said. "It actually put the restaurant in the red, and they had to borrow money to make payroll."

The 108 businesses that responded to Butkovitz included 64 restaurants, 23 shops, and seven hotels. Seventy-five percent of the respondents indicated that the event coordination by the city administration hurt their business.

The controller's report follows a less comprehensive survey the office released two days after the papal visit. In that report, 19 restaurants reported that business was off by 45 percent compared with a typical weekend. Fifteen retailers said they rang up just 21 percent of typical weekend receipts.

Hotels reported an 88 percent occupancy rate on average, typical for a solid weekend, according to the controller's preliminary survey.

The chamber of commerce said earlier in the week that while it had not conducted a full survey of its members, business owners mostly offered positive feedback on the papal visit.

"We didn't hear complaints, but we also didn't hear, 'Wow, this was a blockbuster,' " Matt Cabrey, spokesman for the chamber, said.

Mayor Nutter's spokesman, Mark McDonald, criticized Butkovitz's report, saying the respondents were self-selected and "therefore the sample is in no way representative to the total experience." The administration estimates that there were 1,550 hospitality-sector and retail businesses within the festival grounds, and that preliminary hotel data suggest Center City hotel revenue was up $3.6 million for the weekend.

"This 'report' is an example of a politician playing politics," McDonald said in an email.

In a news release Thursday, Butkovitz said that the city needed to better coordinate event details and updates with neighborhood business improvement districts, neighborhood associations, and faith-based organizations to help local businesses stay up to date on future big events. The controller also suggested the Mayor's Hospitality Advisory Board meet more frequently and be involved in big-event planning.

"As Philadelphia prepares to host more large-scale events, the huge and growing hospitality sector needs to be central to the planning and discussion," Butkovitz said.

cvargas@phillynews.com

215-854-5520

@InqCVargas