THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, March 25, 1995 TAG: 9503240013
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 43 lines
Could any business other than the Army lose $1 million on a hotel at Disney World while turning away 50,000 room nights in a year?
Why the Army is in the hotel business in Orlando is a good question. But it has leased, and soon must decide whether to buy, ``Shades of Green,'' a resort that reserves rooms at a (comparatively) cheap rate, and on a sliding scale by rank, for any service member, dependent or retiree.
Demand is double that for private industry, military columnist Tom Philpott reported Wednesday, but mostly among the lower-paid, and lower-paying, ranks. That is an entirely predictable situation the Army failed to predict.
And that is in large part why the Defense Department's inspector general reports the resort, which the Army projected would produce $1.1 million in profit in its first year, is $2.6 million in the hole. The IG recommends that rates be raised and more rooms reserved for higher ranking personnel.
The Army rejects those recommendations. ``The Army,'' said an official, ``is willing to accept a minor cash loss for a short period to advantage those junior soldiers and their families.'' The Army prefers to buy the place for something less than $45 million rather than fulfill the high-rent 100-year lease. Meantime, it can cover the loss at ``Green'' with profits from Army hotels in Hawaii, South Korea and Germany.
Maybe, then, the Army can run hotels. Maybe there is a tolerable rationale for Army hotels abroad. Maybe they are paid for not by taxpayers but in part by the Morale, Welfare and Recreation Fund, a repository of quarters, nickels and dimes that service members drop in vending machines.
Shades of Goofy: This losing proposition jeopardizes the fund for all by providing fun for a relative few, which won't do much for morale for long. And running a losing proposition - in Orlando - doesn't do much for the Army's reputation. Somewhere outside Fantasyland are enterprising, practiced hoteliers. How about the Army fund issues them a mailing list, discount coupons and bidding rules on a 99-year lease, cheap? by CNB