NRA convention will infuse city with cash

Dick Cheney is scheduled to be Saturday's keynote speaker.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- With a quarter of its members living within 300 miles of the site of its 133rd annual convention, the National Rifle Association is expecting a strong showing when the event convenes this Friday.
If the five-day event draws 60,000 people to Pittsburgh, as the 4 million-member NRA expects, it will be the largest convention the city -- let alone its new David L. Lawrence Convention Center -- has ever hosted.
Hotels up to 20 miles away could be full, restaurants could be packed and parking could be scarce -- not a common occurrence for financially strapped downtown Pittsburgh on a weekend afternoon.
Money for city
The "Freedom's Steel" convention, which runs Friday through next Tuesday, could pump as much as $7 million into the Pittsburgh economy, Joseph R. McGrath, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Pittsburgh Convention and Visitors Bureau, said Monday.
"This promises to be a great showing of what a large convention can do for the region," said Joe Kane, the general manager of the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh, which sold out all of its rooms for the weekend 60 days ago. "Just wait 'til they see how much money the sales tax brings in."
George Romanoff, the owner of Ace Sporting Goods Inc., buys, sells and trades firearms out of his Washington store and hopes to do a bit of marketing at this weekend's convention by passing out fliers advertising his business.
Like other business owners, Romanoff expects NRA members from neighboring states to drive in for just the day, boosting the NRA's estimated attendance.
"No matter what your political leaning is, you would think you'd be positive about an event of this size," Romanoff said.
NRA members have many interests, including history, collecting and hunting, and a convention is a good time to communicate that to the public, said Buddy Savage, the owner of Braverman Arms Co. Inc. in Wilkinsburg.
"The NRA is not the big, bad ghost that everyone thinks. People will see the people who attend this convention and see they look and act like everyone else," Savage said.
Gun shop and shooting range owners aren't the only ones who are getting excited about the event.
Restaurants
Restaurants such as the Ruth's Chris Steak House are asking more servers and cooks to work over the weekend. Mark's Grille, which sits next to the convention center, will stay open Saturday and Sunday, even though it typically closes on the weekends.
The Grand Concourse, a former train station located near the Station Square retail and entertainment complex, will have a booth at the convention, where workers will pass out coupons for free desserts and appetizers, general manager Ken Macieski said.
Rocker Ted Nugent is listed on the schedule. Vice President Dick Cheney is scheduled to be Saturday's keynote speaker, but NRA officials said they would not confirm the name of the speaker until Thursday.
Events include a prayer breakfast, a game call challenge, and sessions on women's wear and wilderness gear, methods of concealed carrying, and hunts in Africa.
Exposure for city
In addition to the financial benefits, most community leaders and business owners agreed that the convention will expose people to a city they have never visited before or have not seen in a long time.
"It's not the city that people would ever remember," said Barbara Kocinski, the manager of the downtown restaurant Common Plea. "There's a lot of new museums, the cultural district is looking good and we've got great sports teams. Few people know how beautiful the city is and how much there is to do here."