Federal tax law allows a 10% investment tax credit for the rehabilitation of a non-historic building placed in service before 1936. To be "non-historic" a building cannot be individually listed on the National Register. A building located within a National Register historic district is presumed to be historic; to use the 10% tax credit, the Park Service must determine that the building in question is not historic. READ MORE

For ten years, MFHA has been promoting the concept of diversity and inclusion as a key management strategy in the hospitality and foodservice industry. During this time, we have seen significant progress made in the areas of minority worker recruitment, diverse and under-leveraged community marketing and minority franchising. According to NABHOOD (National Association of Black Hotel Owners, Operators and Developers) there are more than 200 African-American owned hotels. Consider that it was less than a dozen just ten years ago. Why has Black hotel ownership increased so dramatically? I believe that there are seven reasons for this success. READ MORE

Hotels are facing ever increasing competition and challenges, and must continually identify new ways to grow market share. For the past few months I've told you about the opportunities that lie with targeting the gay and lesbian travel market, and how to be successful in your efforts. I'm sure you've been thinking how interesting it all was, but wondering if it works. So this issue I've decided to let you see first hand the process, experiences, and results a small luxury, three property hotel company went through to reach the gay and lesbian travel market. READ MORE

Management of diversity initiatives in the hotel and lodging industry must be inclusive and proactive in order to be successful and sustainable. Taking an inclusive approach to diversity management involves looking at the entire company and its stakeholders. Being proactive suggests that an organization seizes opportunity as opposed to reacting to a problem. For example, the hotel industry was forced to react to the NAACP Hotel Survey when it was initiated in 1997. This widely publicized survey was viewed by many as a challenge to the industry's commitment to African-Americans and other minority groups. Despite the fact that the lodging industry has long been a good place for Blacks and other minorities to find employment, not enough has been done to help minorities advance to higher levels of leadership. By not having a clear industry wide strategy for leveraging diverse talent and perspectives, the lodging industry is open to scrutiny by minority special interest groups. READ MORE

I need to first acknowledge that this article was inspired from an email I received in response to one of my previous articles. The author of that email, let's call him Mr. Smith, was very upfront and critical of some of my suggestions on how hotels can attract the gay and lesbian market. He was blunt, but I appreciated his comments. Not only did it give me a title for this article, but it made me really take a step back and validate everything that I've been promoting. I decided, as I was responding to his letter, that I should actually share my comments with all of you. If Mr. Smith had these strong concerns, others must as well. I've incorporated bits of his email into this article, which by the end will hopefully give you a better sense of whether or not marketing to the gay and lesbian consumer has truly "gone too far". READ MORE