Is the city of Davenport making the most of tourism? That's the big question Davenport leaders asked Tuesday when the steam boat the "American Queen" was in town. The river boat cruise ship stopped in Davenport for about nine hours. It's a stop Mayor Gluba said the city needs to capitalize on in the form of tourism dollars.
Around 400 people spent the day touring sites in the Quad Cities, including the John Deere Pavilion, Figge Art Museum and East Village. Gluba said a private company, along with the help of Quad Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau arranged the tours, but he thinks local business need to be more involved. That's why he met with the captain of the boat, to figure out ways the city can really roll out the red carpet and cash in on the steam boat's stop.
"Each and every one of our passengers are contributing to our local economy," Captain John Sutton said.
Sutton proudly steers the "American Queen", a luxurious steam boat, up and down the Mississippi River. He said his ship is full of tourists, eager to spend their dollars at local attractions.
"Nearly all of our passengers seem to be coming back with packages from local communities as we stop in these towns."
That is something Mayor bill Gluba wants to see happen more often in Davenport, especially in the downtown and East Village. Business owners agree they could be doing more to cash in on the hundreds of potential customers.
"I hadn't even heard of it and I actually live close to the village," said Desiree Border, Owner of Three Gypsies Designs.
Border sells her handmade jewelry at the shop. She said she just opened up in the East Village three weeks ago, and if she would have known all these people were in town, she might have done more to make her store stand out.
"Everybody needs new customers whenever you can, its great to get added exposure, especially with people who are serious buyers, who are interested in looking at what we have down here."
The Soap Box Owner, Connie Scott, said some of the passengers stopped in her store Tuesday. She said while she always gives all her customers a warm welcome, there should be people at the dock greeting passengers as they hit ground.
"I think if we had some reps down on the dock to say this is what we have to offer with brochures that would have been helpful."
The "American Queen" will be back in two weeks and Gluba said passengers can expect a warm welcome. He said he would like to have a band as well as reps from the local shops at the dock promoting attractions. The steam boat will make a total of four stops in the Quad Cities this year.
