Editorial: Let’s not spin our wheels, now

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• Out-of-town visitors boost 2011 Savor event

  Out-of-town visitors boost 2011 Savor event

  Sunset Savor the Central Coast, the four-day food and wine event held in the fall, generated an estimated economic impact of $2.93 million — about $500,000 or 22 percent more than the initial year — primarily because of more visitors from outside the county, officials said.

  The upscale culinary event, hosted by the county Visitors and Conference Bureau and Sunset magazine, drew 8,872 people, or 20 percent more than 2010 — including 5,947 paying guests. The rest were vendors, sponsors, volunteers and media.

  About half the guests traveled from outside the county, with 24 percent from the Los Angeles area, 5 percent from 22 other states, and many from the Central Valley and the South Bay, according to Stacie Jacob, executive director of the VCB.

• Savor a second time: Food-and-wine extravaganza returns to Central Coast

  Savor a second time: Food-and-wine extravaganza returns to Central Coast

  As San Luis Obispo County’s $1 billion tourism industry remains one of the main drivers of the local economy, organizers of Sunset Savor the Central Coast say the second annual four-day food-and-wine event is the most recent — and high-profile — attempt to increase awareness of the region.

  The event, which organizers say generated $1.7 million in tourist spending to the local economy in 2010, kicks off Thursday.

  “Visitors may choose to come to Savor, but the reality is they are probably spending dollars outside of Savor, too,” county Visitors & Conference Bureau executive

• SLO County wants to host Ironman triathlon

  SLO County wants to host Ironman triathlon

  The first full Ironman triathlon race on the West Coast in a decade could be coming to the Central Coast.

  The San Luis Obispo County Visitors and Conference Bureau plans to submit a proposal by the end of January to host the event.

  If successful, it would be the first full Ironman competition on the West Coast, attracting potentially thousands of athletes and their friends and families to the area —and give the area an economic boost.

• Tourism holds strong in SLO County

  Tourism holds strong in SLO County

  Tourism, one of the county’s top economic drivers, fared well this past summer — a sign that it’s helping to lead the local economic recovery, experts said.

  Several cities — including San Luis Obispo, Pismo Beach, Paso Robles, Arroyo Grande and Morro Bay — reported year-over-year increases in transient occupancy tax revenues (bed taxes), which were welcome news to hoteliers.

  “Tourism is doing well and consumer spending overall has been coming back, and I don’t think San Luis Obispo County has been any exception,” said Jordan G. Levine, an economist and director of economic research for Beacon Economics, a Southern California-based forecasting firm that presents the county’s annual economic forecast.

• Bouquets and Brickbats: Cheers for plastic bag ban

  Bouquets and Brickbats: Cheers for plastic bag ban

  We’re delivering a biodegradable bouquet to each member of the county waste management board who voted in favor of the ban on single-use plastic grocery bags. The change may take some getting used to, but any inconvenience is minor when you consider the benefits, including a reduction in ugly litter on roads, parks, beaches and waterways.

  ... and boos to threat of legal action

  Even before the ink was dry on the newly enacted countywide ban on plastic shopping bags, opponents were bombastically threatening to sue within 30 days. In addition to dire warnings about dangerous bacteria lurking in reusable bags, opponents attacked the ban as “tyranny wrapped in environmentalism” and an intrusion on personal choice.