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Tag Archives: NC Travel News

Scott And Zelda In “Jazz Age” Bermuda

scott zeldaTheir romance defined the “Jazz Age” — so it’s perhaps not surprising that “Great Gatsby” author F. Scott Fitzgerald and mercurial wife Zelda found themselves in Bermuda during that free-spirited period when the island’s tourism industry was enjoying an unprecedented vogue among America’s literati and rich and famous.

Married after the publication of his first novel, “This Side of Paradise”, Princeton-educated Scott Fitzgerald and his Alabama-born, Southern belle bride became embodiments of the Roaring Twenties.

Scott Fitzgerald’s term the “Jazz Age” came to describe the years between the end of World War One and the onset of the Great Depression when there were revolutions in musical taste, fashion and social mores; generally regarded as one of America’s greatest 20th century writers, both his life and work both have come to be associated with the joys of young love, wealth and success — as well as the tragedies which come with excess and failure

Youthful, beautiful and supremely talented, following their 1920 marriage Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald [pictured above] were dubbed the “golden couple” by American newspapers which covered their every move as assiduously as they did the movie stars

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Backers say BMX center will put Rock Hill on the map

City leaders, sports tourism supporters and a local bicycle shop owner say Rock Hill’s plan for a new BMX racing center will draw out-of-town visitors and put the city on the map.

John Gettys, former Rock Hill City Council member and current chairman of the Rock Hill Sports Commission, told the council this month the BMX track is a “fabulous project” that could eventually host Olympic trial races.

The council unanimously gave initial approval to borrowing $6.25 million to pay for the BMX Supercross track in the developing Riverwalk outdoor center.

The council likely will vote again for final approval on April 8.

Rock Hill plans to use the money collected in hospitality tax receipts to pay back the $6.25 million loan.

Money coming in from Rock Hill’s hospitality tax – a 2 percent levy on prepared food and drinks – has more than doubled over the past 10 years. Collections are expected to continue to grow by at least 5 percent every year over the next five years, said Steven Gibson, the city’s budget director.

The $1 million track and its supporting facilities will account for about 19 percent of the city’s recreation and tourism-related debt, paid

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April’s big events

As April is the Smithsonian Institution’s Jazz Appreciation Month, we’ve noted several opportunities to get your musical mojo working. But sports enthusiasts can get a workout, too, with fun runs in Minnesota, marathons in London and Vienna and a bike tour of New Zealand.

Through June 9: “Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe,” Princeton, N.J.; 609-258-3788; artmuseum.princeton.edu. Portraits of mysterious travelers, 1480-1610, at Princeton University Art Museum.

April 3-Oct. 27: Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario; 800-511-SHAW; shawfest.com. Stage-stoppers, from Shaw’s “Major Barbara” to Stoppard’s “Arcadia.”

April 5-13: Cully Jazz Festival, Cully, Switzerland; 212-757-5944; cullyjazz.ch. Myriad themes, including “Viva Cuba,” “Turkish Vibes” and “Women in Jazz.”

April 11: Opening of Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen; 212-885-9700; visitcopenhagen.com/see-and-do/tivoli-gardens/382. The sky’s the limit with new rides at “world’s second-oldest amusement park.”

April 12-13: Pear Blossom Festival and Pear a Fare, Medford, Ore.; 541-840-7327; pearblossomparade.org; pear-a-fare.com. Two celebrations pair up at Oregon food and wine fest.

April 14: Vienna Marathon, 212-575-7723; http://www.vienna-marathon.com. 30th annual long-distance runners’ waltz.

April 17-21: Seabreeze Jazz Festival, Panama City Beach, Fla.; 800-595-4849; seabreezejazzfestival.com. Average White Band and Tower of Power anchor a fleet of performers at Pier Park.

April 17-May 5: Silver Dollar City World-Fest, Branson, Mo.; 800-475-9370; silverdollarcity.com. International

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Dare Co. jobless rate tops 20 percent again

OUTER BANKS

For the second straight year, Dare County’s January jobless rate hit 20 percent despite signs of an improving economy.

Before 2012, Dare County unemployment was previously that high in January 1993, according to statistics from the North Carolina Employment Security Commission. During the boom of a few years ago, January rates were under 10 percent.

Jobs are typically harder to find during the cold months after Christmas and before the spring brings more visitors to the Outer Banks. In past years, construction work has picked up in winter months and helped ease off-season unemployment. Activity is up in tourism and construction, but it is not translating into jobs.

“It’s a mixed bag,” said Lee Nettles, executive director of the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau. “They are saying we’re recovering, but it doesn’t feel like that to people.”

The gross occupancy receipts for lodging in Dare County reached an all-time high of $385.2 million

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Kohn: We should heed low comfort level for fracking risks

In his inaugural address, Gov. Pat McCrory noted North Carolina’s vibrant and diverse economy, “Agriculture, manufacturing, finance, the military, travel and tourism, and many more.” Ironically many sectors of our economy particularly agriculture and tourism could be jeopardized by the governor and General Assembly’s move to implement crash energy exploration programs of the type not seen here before.

Proponents of fracking argue that it would bring jobs and prosperity to North Carolina. However, the experience of states where it has already been implemented, as well as the caveats in statements by local environmental advisory groups, present a more complex and decidedly less romantic picture.

North Carolina, like the East Coast generally, does not have a history of drilling for gas and oil like other parts of the country. As a result, we do not have in place workers with the necessary skill sets or the equipment they require. So they would have to be imported from out of state. As Susan Christopherson, professor of City and Regional Planning at Cornell has noted, “Evidence from already developed shale plays indicates that shale gas drilling relies mostly on out-of-state workers.” The local

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Smoking ban, sand top list of concerns

The Wrightsville Beach smoking ban, Room Occupancy Tax formula and Coastal Storm Damage Reduction project funding were among the topics discussed at a meeting leaders from Wrightsville, Carolina and Kure beaches held with North Carolina Representative Ted Davis Jr., R-New Hanover. 

Held on Friday morning, March 22, at Shell Island Resort, an update on the Wrightsville Beach smoking ban was the first item on the meeting agenda. 

In his efforts to secure a local act from the North Carolina General Assembly that would clarify Wrightsville Beach’s enforceable jurisdiction on the beach strand for the ban, Davis said the North Carolina State Constitution prevents any local bills dealing with health, sanitation or nuisances. The smoking ban would qualify under all three.

Since learning this, Davis said he began to pursue a statewide bill that would allow local municipalities to enforce these ordinances

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Ticket demand up for NCAA ‘Sweet 16’ games

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis tourism officials say Louisville, Michigan State and Duke basketball fans are driving up demand for hotel rooms and tickets to the NCAA men’s regional basketball tournament.

Louisville plays Oregon and Duke plays Michigan State on Friday. The winners play Sunday for a berth in the Final Four.

Local ticket brokers tell the Indianapolis Business Journal that Duke was sparking interest not only from Duke alumni and supporters in North Carolina but also from Indianapolis and central Indiana.

Officials for the Hyatt Regency in downtown Indianapolis say reservation requests from the Louisville and East Lansing, Mich., spiked after the top-seeded Cardinals and Michigan State won their games last weekend.

A National Society of Black Engineers convention also is expected to draw more than 9,000 people to Indianapolis beginning Wednesday.

 

©2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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