Two consultant reports and an independent review have found that a proposed conference center and 150-room hotel at the University of California, Davis, would have a short-term negative impact on the local hotel industry, but a long-term benefit, including increased local hotel occupancy and tax revenue. Two economic impact reports prepared by PKF Consulting, as well as a separate review of the firm's findings by Professor Richard Penner of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, are being shared this week with the Davis City Council, Yolo County Board of Supervisors, local business groups and hotel owners for their comment. "We continue to believe that this project will bring significant benefit to the academic enterprise and to the campus community and that the long-term impacts of this project will benefit the community at large," said UC Davis Chancellor Larry N. Vanderhoef. "We are concerned, however, about the temporary impacts identified by the consultants." In order to address the reports' findings, Vanderhoef said the campus will delay issuing an Environmental Impact Report on the project that had been scheduled for mid-April. The campus also will postpone bringing the project to the UC Board of Regents, which had been scheduled for July. Instead, the campus will work with local government and business leaders to explore ways to mitigate the temporary impacts. "Our goal is to find a formula for this project and future projects that can work for everyone," Vanderhoef said. The PKF reports examined potential economic benefits of the proposed university development and the potential impact to the local lodging industry. Key findings of the analysis include: -- Yolo County could expect an increase in room and sales tax income of $4.7 million over the first ten years. -- The hotel and conference center would employ 144 full-time employees with an expected annual payroll of $5 million. -- Restaurant business and revenues in downtown Davis would increase by about $200,000 per year. -- Local hotel occupancy would be projected to drop during the first three years of the campus hotel and conference center operation, with an overall decline of $342,000 in gross revenue from year 2000 levels during the first year the campus hotel is in operation. -- Room tax revenue to the city would experience a corresponding temporary decline during the three-year period. Professor Penner of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration concurred with the findings of the PKF reports. "I believe that UC Davis, because of its high reputation, the variety of colleges and programs, and proximity to the state capital, has a tremendous opportunity to create a first-class conference center that will compete very successfully statewide for educational and other conferences and meetings," Penner wrote in his review. "While [the center's] initial impact may be to lower occupancy percentages in some of the existing motels in Davis, its primary function will be to attract new group business to the community, greatly enhancing the economic vitality of many businesses in the city." The project would be located on five acres of the central campus, south of the University Club and the environmental horticulture buildings and east of the Center for the Arts, now under construction. The first-class hotel and conference center would provide 150 hotel guest rooms, 13,200 square feet of conference and meeting space, one restaurant and pub, and 125 on-site parking spaces. The center, in concert with neighboring campus facilities, would support up to 500 conference attendees. The conference center and hotel are expected to provide a venue for academic conferences and accommodations for visitors, alumni and the business community. The public notice for the project is available on the World Wide Web at .