I’ve come to know Tim Gregg over the last several years; I believe he is NOT the kind of individual who would give in to political pressure.
On Thursday evening July 9th, Kevin Molloy (executive director of the LCCCA) told me that the timing of the Brunswick closure is terrible for the convention center; in his words, “We need those rooms”.
On the other hand, Rick Gray IS the kind of individual who has given in to political pressure. And we all know that High has somehow become a formidable political force.
Some years ago, a group of us were taken on a tour of the Brunswick by Mr. Zahedi. He was obviously proud of his facility, and of the work that had been done on it so far.
Obviously there is no simple answer to what happened. I suspect that it was a complex combination of misunderstandings, lack of communications, and poor choices, with perhaps a smattering of political pressure thrown in.
I personally don’t see the owners walking away from the Brunswick, unless they believe that they can extract concessions like the Penn Square Partners did two blocks away. After all, Lancaster City HAS established a precedent by so heavily subsidizing a “private” hotel downtown. And the convention center does very badly need those rooms for overflow.
Admittedly this is purely speculation on my part, but it is entirely possible that the owners of the Brunswick could get their money back out of the building, with Interstate Hotels and Resorts taking over its operation.
