BILTMORE — Biltmore Is Jolted by Move to Put Protesters Across the Street

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The fight over whether to make Pershing Square a designated protest site during the Democratic National Convention in August could well cost the Biltmore Hotel around $250,000, not to mention a priceless amount of publicity.

The venerable downtown hotel has been preparing to reap the rewards of hosting scores of VIPs attending next month’s convention at the Staples Center, including the party’s presumptive nominee for president, Vice President Al Gore. But when City Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg struck a deal to make Pershing Square a protest zone as a condition for her vote to approve a $4 million city subsidy, a potential security nightmare was created right opposite the hotel.

In the wake of the emerging scenario, Gore is now said to be considering staying elsewhere. If he goes elsewhere, he will take more than 100 people and their wallets with him.

For managers at the Biltmore, who have been working feverishly to prepare for the convention, last week was not a good time.

“Suddenly the rug got pulled out from under us,” said Jerome Strack, the hotel’s executive assistant manager. “We have the possibility of losing a quarter of a million dollars on this.”

Like several other hotels around town, the Biltmore will host an official state delegation for the event, which runs from Aug. 14 through Aug. 17, in this case the one from Gore’s home state of Tennessee.

But until recently, Strack and his staff had been operating on the tentative assumption that they would also host the vice president, his entourage and his security detail, and Biltmore officials have been in close contact with Gore’s staff and the Secret Service for several weeks.

Gore himself expressed interest in staying there, apparently seeking to duplicate the success of then-presidential candidate John F. Kennedy, who stayed at the Biltmore during the 1960 Democratic convention at the L.A. Convention Center and subsequently defeated Richard Nixon in the general election.

But the hotel’s proximity to Pershing Square has almost eliminated that possibility. Even though the City Council last week debated whether to withdraw its designation of the plaza as a sanctioned protest site, city officials now expect it to be a center for demonstrators regardless. And the Secret Service is pushing for Gore to stay elsewhere to avoid the brewing mess.

“Seventy-five percent of our rooms would be affected (by demonstrations), by either viewing or hearing the noise from Pershing Square,” Strack said. “I’m going to be faced with rooms I can’t fill.”

And the immediate loss of hotel revenue could pale in comparison with the missed free publicity.

“The economic benefit of having the eyes of the U.S. and the world on the Democratic National Convention is extraordinary,” he added. “If the Biltmore gets mentioned X number of times because dignitaries are staying here, it’s a huge economic advantage to us. We’re a landmark, but you can never rest.”

The City Council put off a final decision on Pershing Square until this week, and as of late last week no decision on where Gore would stay had been determined, contrary to some reports. But Strack was sounding pessimistic.

“(Gore’s resettlement) is not set in stone, and it’s still not entirely off the table,” he said. “Certain dignitaries are very eager to come here. The issue is, if the Secret Service says no, then they’ll go to the Westside.”

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