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Some hot Baltimore tourist attractions are deep in red ink

Thursday, Dec. 14, 2006

ANNAPOLIS — Several Baltimore tourist attractions are on such shaky fiscal footing that they could collapse if conditions do not improve.

Promotional efforts are not drawing enough visitors to the Maryland Zoo, Sports Legends at Camden Yards and Geppi’s Entertainment Museum to meet expenses, state officials and a private museum operator told the Board of Public Works last week.

The 130-year-old zoo faces an $800,000 monthly deficit in January and February when it closes for the season, said Elizabeth ‘‘Billie” Grieb, the zoo’s president. Meanwhile, the 18-month-old Sports Legends exposition faces a $50,000 monthly shortfall without private donations and special revenue-producing events.

‘‘There is nothing to draw the tourists out our way,” said Mike Gibbons, executive director of Sports Legends. Most pedestrians spend their time — and money — around the Inner Harbor, several blocks to the east, especially when the Orioles and Ravens are not playing.

‘‘Other than a game day, we’re in a landlocked position,” said Steve Geppi, a comic book tycoon who owns Geppi’s Entertainment Museum, which features pop culture exhibits and is on the second floor of Camden Station, above Sports Legends.

Seventy-five thousand people visited the museum in its inaugural year, one-third the projected number. One reason is a decline in attendance at Orioles games, Gibbons said. The estimate was based on an average season attendance of 3 million. This year, the Orioles drew about 2.1 million fans.

Another reason is construction delays at the Hilton Baltimore, which will serve as the nearby convention center’s hotel headquarters and is expected to boost visibility of the Camden Yards venues.

Geppi suggested establishing a consortium with other city tourist sites, such as the Maryland Science Center and Baltimore Aquarium, to give a higher profile to attractions not at the Harbor. He also suggested creating an ‘‘Inner Harbor passport” that would allow people to buy a single ticket giving them admission to all downtown museums.

‘‘We know we have a product that people like. We just have to get them to know we exist,” Geppi said. ‘‘... You can have a $3 magazine with a $10 bill in it, but if people can’t find it, it won’t sell.”

On Dec. 6, at one of their final Board of Public Works meetings, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) and Comptroller William Donald Schaefer (D) were both deeply troubled by the museums’ plight.

Neither the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors’ Association nor the Greater Baltimore Committee has addressed the problem, Schaefer said. It’s a problem that dates to his two terms as governor, he said.