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GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
Hotel Tax Becomes Law in Phila.

An added hotel tax of 1.5 percent in Philadelphia was approved by the state to promote tourism and pay for the expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

HEADLINE HOTELS
Ritz-Carlton Philadelpia Honored as a "Top 100 Stand Hosts for 2007"
"It is with your dedication, combined with the help of thousands of volunteers acrtoss the country, that $6 million was raised in 2007 to benefit pediatric cancer research." -- Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation

HOTEL DEVELOPMENT

Making Rooms
The expansion of the Convention Center has unleashed a gold rush of hoteliers, with three facilities under construction and as many as five more in the planning stages.

Aloft Hotel to Open in September Near Philadelphia Airport
Aloft, by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., is billed as "an urban-influenced design" brand with "style and social atmosphere."

Valley Forge Hotels Making Historic Leap
A new hotel will try to help it pass Center City as a convention spot.

Crown Jewel for Franklintown
An Intercontinental Hotel will rise amid a giant Whole Foods, Best Buy, other shops in a plan begun in the 1970s.

TOURISM
Phila. Hosts a Record Half Million Global Tourists
Philadelphia hosted 550,000 international visitors last year, an increase of 100,000 from 2006.

CONVENTION CENTER
Convention Center Executive Gets Top Spot
The No. 2 executive at the Convention Center, Ahmeenah Young, was named No. 1 and hailed as the best person to manage the growing center's sometimes fractious leadership and operations.

Delays Hike Cost of Convention Center Expansion

Two years of delayed demolition work on the Convention Center expansion have taken a toll: The project's first-phase costs are at least $20 million higher than anticipated, according to sources close to the project.