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From a conference capital to a ghost town. Hotels in Brussels’ European Quarter fear having to close permanently this winter. The Schuman roundabout, where the European Commission is located, is one of the busiest in Europe, but the situation has been very different since the outbreak. Now there is no traffic, because all events are virtual, reports Euronews.
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Hoteliers associations speak of catastrophic consequences, as only 10% of the rooms are occupied and many hotels are closed. To save this industry, which generates 12,500 jobs and offers 15,000 hotel rooms, the Brussels regional government has announced a series of measures that include the distribution of aid ranging from 200,000 to 800,000 euros per hotel. However, these cash injections can provide salvation in the short term, but in the long term, as explained by the spokesman of a visit to Brussels, Jeroen Rope, solutions must be sought.
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“They are going through extremely difficult times. It is very difficult to measure the long-term impact of the crisis on the European Quarter. Will 50,000 people working for international institutions return to Brussels at the same time? Maybe not. We must adapt the strategy to the outcome. of the crisis with all the actors, the European institutions, the Brussels authorities, the cultural institutions, the trade associations … that is what we will do.
Now the question is whether, once completed, virtual events will replace the permanent conferences that keep this international corner alive. Stuart Alford, head of business at the communications agency Cecoforma, doesn’t think they will be the same as before.
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“They will move to a more hybrid model. They will be more limited and only certain key people will be physically present. Everything will be through an internet connection in a hybrid way, which will probably be better for transparency, as this system highlights the physical This it will allow a better return on the economic investment made by the European Commission in the events, since they will be able to reach a wider audience through the digital-physical hybrid method ”.
For the city of Brussels, which took years to rebuild its image after the 2016 terrorist attacks, authority as the capital of Europe is at stake.
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