Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities H T Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities
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H T Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities H T Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities Report of an International Symposium held in Charleston, South Carolina, USA February 6–8, 2013 sponsored by PRE SE RVATION SOCIET Y OF CHARL ESTON Established 1920 in cooperation with C R E S T Center for Responsible Travel Acknowledgements is publication reports on the proceedings of Harboring Tourism: An International Symposium on Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities, held February 6–8, 2013, in Charleston, South Carolina. e event was hosted by World Monuments Fund (WMF), the Preservation Society of Charleston, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, in cooperation with the In- ternational Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST), and the Coastal Conservation League. e report was developed and edited by Erica Avrami, former WMF Research and Education Director. Graphic design of this report was by Ken Feisel, WMF Art Director. Editorial assis- tance was provided by Brittany Brown, WMF Senior Program Associate, and Ben Haley, WMF Communications Manager. Both the symposium and this publication were made possible through the generous support of the Butler Conservation Fund, Inc. Special thanks go to the Preservation Society of Charleston for coordinating the event and the Francis Marion Hotel for providing the symposium venue. Sponsors World Monuments Fund World Monuments Fund is the leading independent organization devoted to saving the world’s most treasured places. Since 1965, working in more than 100 countries, its highly skilled ex- perts has applied effective techniques to preserve important architectural and cultural heritage sites around the globe. rough partnerships with local communities, funders, and govern- ments, WMF inspires enduring commitment to stewardship for future generations. Headquar- tered in New York, WMF has offices and affiliates worldwide. wmf.org National Trust for Historic Preservation e National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded nonprofit organization, works to save America’s historic places. PreservationNation.org Preservation Society of Charleston Founded in 1920, the Preservation Society of Charleston is the oldest community-based membership historic preservation organization in the United States of America. Our mission is to inspire the involvement of all who dwell in the Lowcountry to honor and respect our material and cultural heritage. PreservationSociety.org ISBN-10: 0-9858943-7-7 ISBN-13: 978-0-9858943-7-5 is report in its entirety may be freely circulated; however, the texts and images contained herein may not be used independently without the permission of World Monuments Fund and the author or photographer. Table of Contents Acknowledgements Introduction Cruise Ship Tourism Impacts and Trends: A Literature Review An Industry Perspective Economic Dynamics e Cruise Industry’s Business Model: Implications for Ports Lessons on the Value of Cruise Tourism in Central American Ports Cruise Ships in Historic Ports: Victoria as a Port of Call Ensuring Community Benefits Policies for Maximizing Positive Impacts for Cruise Tourism: A Destination Perspective Destination Stewardship and the Cruise Industry Protecting Vulnerable Communities A Lesson from Mayport, Florida Implementing Cruise Tourism Policies that Work for Local Communities Maintaining Environmental Balance and a Strong Product Cruise Ships and the Environment: A Brief History Grading the Cruise Industry’s Environmental Footprint Volume vs. Value e Fjords of Norway: Iconic and reatened Isla Cozumel and the Sustainability of Tourism Growth Cruise Tourism as Part of Urban Policy Tensions between Cruise Tourism and Land-Based Tourism: e Case of Key West and Dubrovnik Key West and Venice: A Cruise Industry Perspective Venice: A Challenge of Integrated Planning Cruise Tourism and Sustainable Mobility in Valletta, Malta Management in the Historic Port City of Valparaiso, Chile e Case of Charleston Cruise Ships in Charleston: A Brief Overview e Economic Impacts of the Cruise Industry in Charleston Cruise Ship Code of Conduct Health Concerns in Charleston No “One Size Fits All Solution” for Historic Ports Appendix A: Annotated Bibliography Appendix B: Conference Program Appendix C: Contributor and Speaker Biographies Introduction of an ongoing debate about the impacts of the cruise industry on historic ports. e Charleston Historic District was included on Cthe 2012 World Monuments Watch to highlight these concerns and prompt discourse about how best to balance heritage management and cruise ship tourism. To advance the dia- logue, World Monuments Fund partnered with the Preservation Society of Charleston and the National Trust to host a conference in February 2013, titled Harboring Tourism: An International Symposium on Cruise Ships in Historic Port Communities. e aim of the symposium was to explore and advocate for cruise tourism policies and prac- tices that benefit historic communities. By ensuring an effective balance of economic, environ- mental, and social concerns, while also stewarding the important heritage resources that make these places appealing to visitors, port communities can protect both the value of their tourism product as well as preserve quality of life and quality of place for residents. is symposium gathered experts from around the world to examine various approaches to cruise tourism in historic port communities with the intent of exploring best practices as well as challenging issues. While some cases demonstrated well-managed cruise tourism destinations, there were an alarming number of cases illustrating the negative impact of cruise tourism on port communities, especially smaller historic cities and towns that are challenged by the influx of visitors arriving by ship. Large city ports, such as New York and Los Angeles, have the capacity to absorb thousands of passengers headed to shore. e few smaller city success stories shared a common theme of community collaboration in setting guidelines for cruise ships entering their ports to ensure a return to the local economy, protect natural and cultural resources, and mitigate social and environmental impacts. However, most of the cases presented during the symposium echoed a common theme of costs outweighing benefits due to poor coordination and manage- ment of the cruise tourism-port community relationship. is is compounded by the fact that, more often than not, negotiations regarding cruise terminal development and ship dockings are undertaken by port authorities at state, regional, or national levels, rather than by the municipali- ties directly affected. e international trade and security issues associated with port manage- ment understandably require higher government engagement, but failure to include community- level stakeholders often results in the exploitation of local resources and values. Decision-making about where, when, and how cruise ships call on historic port communi- ties should be participatory, recognizing that there will always be conflicts between meeting the needs of those who live in a place versus those visiting. Tourism and heritage will forever be linked, despite inherent tensions between protecting and allowing access, preserving and pro- moting for consumption. In negotiating these differences, communities can forge a common vi- sion for how best to balance tourism interests and to preserve the qualities that draw visitors to their port. Author Tony Hiss, who served as the symposium rapporteur, eloquently noted that “historic preservation is a misnomer. It sounds as if we are facing the past, when in fact it is all about the future. It’s about what we want to pass on to the next generation. It is not only about our heritage at risk but our ability to transmit across time and not lead single-generation lives.” Many who attended the symposium are preservationists; their primary charge is the steward- ship of cultural heritage—tangible and intangible. But more and more there is a realization that such stewardship cannot be divorced from broader social, environmental, and economic issues. Preservation is a tool that helps to improve quality of life for communities, a tool that must be balanced against a variety of other societal concerns regarding sustainable development. ere are, in many cases, direct impacts on heritage resulting from cruise tourism, but these must be understood within the larger dynamic of socio-economic conditions, ecological con- cerns, land use planning, politics, and more in order to work toward positive change. An impetus behind this symposium was a common concern for heritage, but the approach has been to cast a e oldest cruise ship in the Carnival fleet—moored here in Charleston, SC—carries 2,675 passengers and a crew of 920 much wider net—to engage a variety of professionals and researchers so as to better contextual- ize the commitment to preserving historic places within a broader agenda. At the same time, these historic places and this discourse about cruise tourism must be framed in a global context. Many communities rich in heritage resources are grappling with similar is- sues and looking for effective solutions. By raising the dialogue and sharing experiences from around the world, the aim was to shed more light on some of these complex issues and to foster better connections, not only between different disciplines, but also between communities. A constant thread throughout the symposium was that positive change