Candidates for governor say they’d boost tourism funds

Mashantucket — Five gubernatorial candidates addressed the Connecticut Tourism Coalition’s board Friday, with all of them acknowledging that chronic underfunding of the state’s marketing efforts has left it vulnerable to competitors.

“I’ve talked to Charlie Baker and Gina Raimondo, and I can tell you they’re eating our breakfast, lunch and dinner,” said Tim Herbst, the first selectman of Trumbull, referring to the governors of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, respectively.

“If tourism is going to prosper, you’re going to need a governor who has your back,” Herbst, a Republican, said.

The other candidates who spoke at the meeting, held at Foxwoods Resort Casino, were Democrats Sean Connolly of Hebron, former commissioner of the state Department of Veterans Affairs, and Luke Bronin, the Hartford mayor; Republican Dave Walker of Bridgeport, a former comptroller general of the United States; and Oz Griebel of Hartford, who led the MetroHartford Alliance, an organization of business leaders, for 17 years.

Griebel, an unsuccessful Republican candidate for governor in 2010, is running as an independent on a ticket with running mate Monte Frank, a Newtown attorney and past president of the Connecticut Bar Association.

“We’re in this mess because of the two-party system,” Griebel said, referring to Connecticut’s fiscal state. He said it will take an independent to make the fundamental changes that are needed, such as the tourism coalition’s recommendation that a

“I’ve talked to (Massachusetts Governor) Charlie Baker and (Rhode Island Governor) Gina Raimondo, and I can tell you they’re eating our breakfast, lunch and dinner.” TIM HERBST, TRUMBULL FIRST SELECTMAN

tourism advisory committee be created to provide input to the state Office of Tourism.

“I would be the chief marketing officer for the state,” Griebel said.

Bronin, who has formed an “exploratory” committee for state office, said one of his top priorities as governor would be upgrading the state’s transportation system, including its highways and rail system, which he said would be good for tourism. He advocates tolls to help pay for the improvements.

Stonington First Selectman Rob Simmons, the former congressman, asked Bronin if he’d commit to extending Shoreline East, the commuter rail service, from New Haven all the way to Rhode Island, and completing Route 11, the “highway to nowhere” that starts in Hartford and abruptly ends in Salem. Plans to extend Route 11 to Interstate 95 in Waterford have been stalled for decades.

Bronin said he’d commit to the Shoreline East extension but didn’t know enough about Route 11, adding, “I’d love to do it.”

Walker, a CPA who served in the administrations of Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, said it was “tragic” how little Connecticut spent on tourism promotion. He said he’s the only candidate for governor with a proven track record as a “problem solver” and would make putting the state’s finances in order at the top of his agenda.

Connecticut has to reform a welfare system that’s full of waste and abuse, down-size government, revitalize its cities and invest in its infrastructure, he said.

Responding to a question from the audience, Walker said his contacts in Washington could aid efforts to bring the Coast Guard museum to New London. “I know people,” he said. Connolly said the state was “going in the wrong direction” in funding tourism, citing a statewide marketing budget that has shrunk from $15 million several years ago to $6.4 million in the last fiscal year to $4.1 million in the current fiscal year. With no television advertising, and signs at highway visitors’ centers blaring “CLOSED,” potential tourists are driving through Connecticut on their way to attractions in other states, he said.

Connolly called for $20 million in the next fiscal year to jumpstart tourism.

Stephen Tagliatela, the coalition’s president, said the five candidates were invited to speak because they were the ones coalition members had been able to meet with prior to the meeting. More than two-dozen candidates have filed paperwork indicating they’re running for governor.

Regarding the coalition’s legislative agenda, Tagliatela said it’s opposed to a proposal to hike the state’s highest-inthe-nation hotel occupancy tax from 15 to 17 percent. He called the increase “a direct assault” on tourism that would encourage potential visitors to avoid the state.