[kaneui]

Yes, particularly since Tucson lacks much in the way of upscale accommodations in and around downtown. Hopefully, the remodel of the Santa Rita will at least provide a nicer boutique hotel.

And speaking of hotels, it appears that Rio Nuevo is no longer talking about building a new city-financed hotel as part of the expanded Convention Center . If they were going to proceed, the owner of the downtown Radisson (the only large hotel downtown) was threatening to convert his hotel to condos and build more condo towers on his site, since the hotel isn't making any money now, and he sees another new hotel as direct competition in a very weak market.

So for now, it seems that Rio Nuevo is supporting an expansion and redevelopment of the Radisson as the main "headquarters" hotel for the convention center. I would think that any immediate expansion of downtown's hotel inventory would be very questionable--at least until the new arena and convention center expansion are approved, and there are a few more commercial office towers to draw in business travelers.