About the only thing I have today to throw out there for discussion is this QCTimes article, which talks about how the CVB hired a secret tourist to evaluate the QC area from an outsiders perspective. It sounds pretty interesting, as over the last 5 or 10 years I've tried to imagine my QC surroundings from a visitor's point of view on many occasions.
The guy who did the evaluating is going to present his findings at a breakfast meeting on February 23rd, which costs $15 and requires registration by February 16th. I'm kind of considering going, but it'd be another of the many meetings where I'm surrounded with people going, "Who's this guy?" At least I've still got 9 days to make up my mind.
Other than that, its just an open thread. I'm going to TRY not to rant about detours or bad drivers at all today.
22 comments:
I've used these type of services in the past for my business. You've heard of the term 'Mystery Shoppers"? It gives great insight from a third party to see what really goes on and the customers, in this case the visitors, perspective.
Be prepared for scathing remarks, as well as praise, in the areas you might least expect. It's a great practice if you really want to know the good, the bad and the ugly.
Here's the website for Bill Geist:
http://www.zgeist.com/about.html
You should go to the meeting. I'll be one of those guys who goes alone and everyone wonders 'Who are you?' as well. It will be interesting to compare notes against others and the inevetible QC Times article that follows.
Tuesday must have been a slow news day for channel 6, as they aired a short clip about a homeless man who couldn't get into the downtown library because of the water main break. They filmed him walking right into the locked door.
He thought it was Don's Big 10 Tap. :)
My experience is that out-of-towners generally have a better perception of the Quad-Cities than the people who live here.
I grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and still have many friends up here. They love visiting down here - always ask to go on the Channel Cat, check out the lock-and-dam museum, enjoy The District of Rock Island, taking walks on the Ben Butterworth Parkway, have enjoyed a few good meals in Davenport (big fans of Shogun and Centro) and watching eagles.
Considering Madison is consistently ranked as one of the most "livable" cities in the Midwest, the fact my friends from there enjoy visiting here seems like a good sign.
I serve on the Board of Directors of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition and we recently published a study based on "secret shoppers" and financial institutions. The results are now the basis of further investigations by the U. S. Department of Justice.
A well managed, ethical study can really show the truth and a lot can be learned. I have been hoping to duplicate this type of study locally to back up the data that consistently shows lack of investment in SOLO neighborhoods.
I think the results should be interesting. The QC does have a lot to put on a plate. They just seem to lack plating and serving technique.
I agree with that completely. Folks over in Des Moines, a mere 2 and a half hours away, generally don't know about most of our amenities. People on AbsoluteDSM are fairly knowledgeable, but very few of them knew we had a zoo, for example. Even a guy from Dubuque didn't know about it. We need to advertise better, but as someone who lives here, I don't know what is currently being done as far as regional ads.
Oh yeah, and Ok, Fly... I assume the check's in the mail?
Shelly: What do YOU think is the reason for the lack of investment in our solo areas?
I'll be there. Be happy to share what I learn, and look forward to reading dave's take on the presentation as well. You know I'll be looking around the room wondering who is "dave"....., and if you decide to go, who is "Quad City Images"?....
My husband frequently has out of town guests comming into Davenport for business. They always report how impressed they are about Davenport. And, yes they often mention the sky bridge.
I brought a number of NYC friends to the Quads during Bix weekend in 2005. They had a great time, visiting John Deere Commons, watching the Bix 7 race, walking around downtown during the Bix Fest, touring the Figge museum and the Iowa 80 Trucking Hall of Fame, and even shopping at Wal-Mart (a couple of my friends had never been to a Wal-Mart). They also found their accommodations at Jumer's Castle Lodge (or whatever it's called now) quite, well... amusing.
Overall Quad City infrastructure is really quite good. The airport (as we've discussed here before) gives a very good first impression, and has very reasonably priced fares and dirt cheap rental cars. Parking is free in most parts of town, there are no tolls on the roads, and traffic is a breeze compared to any big city. Signage is also quite good. You haven't experienced bad signage until you've tried to navigate states like New Jersey and Massachusetts, where roads change names every few blocks--kind of like the Moline/Rock Island street numbering confusion to the extreme.
To 9:49 AM
How dare you talk about the sky bridge in such a positive manner!!!
Don't you know that is a sin in this town??
It is not that the skybridge is positive or negative, it is just wierd for the price that we paid for it. I believe the only supporter of its price tag was Wally Skovronski, and he is a convicted fellon that wants to be the new 5th Ward Alderman. Hell, he can't even vote for himself but he wants us to vote for him. What a joke.
Dan's back !
It was a good thing that Todd from the River City Reader was paying attention, and got the council to slow down on the proposed new council schedule. We don't need less imput, but more opportunity to voice our opinion.
Why do we need more? Do you need to repeat yourself at multiple meetings? Are you for some reason unable to contact your Alderman when the cameras aren't rolling?
QCI- Have you tryed calling Hammerlinck, Van Fossen, Howard, and Dumas? No answer and no return calls. That is why we need more chances to voice our opinions. Plus, if we don't do it in public, it never happened and the alderman can deny any such talk.
The thing is that the citizens are often not listened to by staff and our leaders. We just want the opportunity, whether we use it or not. We don't get the respect we need. There are far too many times when the tax payers are blown off.
Its not like they're taking away the opportunity for public to speak to the council. How many times do you need to speak to them about the same topic?
And Hamerlinck has always called me back. I haven't tried calling the others.
Ditto on the Hammer! He has always returned my calls if I leave voice mail. He is approachable and listens. Always explains the situation if I have a questions.
Go Shawn Go!
Shawn for Mayour 2007!
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