News Release

20 years of blues, community and fighting hunger 

POVA presents honors the
Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival
with Rose City Award

PORTLAND, Ore. (July 2, 2007)—The Portland Oregon Visitors Association's presented the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival with its Rose City Award at its Tourism and Hospitality Awards Celebration on Thursday, June 28. The awards honored businesses and individuals who have made significant, positive impacts on the region's tourism industry.

The 2007 Tourism and Hospitality Industry Award recipients include:

The Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival, recipient of the Rose City Award, was recognized for significant contributions to the promotion of tourism in Portland, including drawing some 120,000 music fans to the city's downtown waterfront each summer. The festival, a fundraiser for the Oregon Food Bank, celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2007.

The Portland Aerial Tram captures the Portland Award, which recognizes the top overall contribution to the region's visitor profile. With its distinctive design and eye-popping views, Portland's sleek new aerial tram has become an instant icon. Since its debut last January, the tram has captured the attention of travel writers and editors in both the United States and abroad - it is also a magnet for visitors looking for Portland's best photo op. As travel publications in Asia, Europe and the United States have featured the tram, thousands of potential visitors have been reminded of Portland's reputation as a progressive, eco-friendly destination surrounded by stunning natural beauty.

The Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center - Lloyd Center, the first hotel in Oregon to earn Green Seal certification, is the recipient of this year's "It's not easy being green" Award. The Green Seal designation, which requires properties to adopt environmental standards and practices in their everyday operations, is the latest step in the Doubletree's plan to incorporate sustainable practices companywide.

From installation of energy- and water-efficient fixtures and lighting in guestrooms and public areas to unique ways to handle food waste to environmentally sensitive purchasing policies, the 476-room Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center - Lloyd Center has educated its staff on the importance of being sustainable in a variety of ways. It also sets a stellar example for other hospitality industry partners.

O'Reilly Media, Inc., was honored for significant contributions to the promotion of convention business in the region with the Twin Spires Award. In 1998 O'Reilly hosted the first open-source (free software) meeting, the Open Source Summit. That meeting has since grown into an open-source convention, OSCON, which annually attracts 2,000 attendees.

Because Portland is a mecca for open-source computing, it was a logical destination for the first OSCON Convention in 2003. Since then, attendance numbers for the convention have grown 300 percent. Based on this success, O'Reilly has committed to bringing  two additional meetings to Portland next year , making a total of 10 meetings & conventions over a six year period, which will represent more than $10.4 million in positive economic impact to the region.

POVA President's Awards recognize valued contributions to Portland's visitor industry. This year's recipients include Portland Center Stage/Gerding Theater, responsible for transforming Portland's historic Armory Building into a LEED Platinum-certified performing arts space; the Portland Indie Wine Festival, celebrating the state's small artisan wineries; and Portland Walking Tours, a local company whose tours introduce visitors to Portland through the city's history, food, architecture, sights and neighborhoods.

POVA is a nonprofit independent association whose mission is to strengthen the region's economy by marketing the metropolitan Portland area as a preferred destination for meetings, conventions and leisure travel. ###