ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times

DATE: Wednesday, December 20, 1995           TAG: 9512200046
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: B-5  EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press VIRGINIA BEACH

STORM THREAT BLAMED FOR BEACH'S OFF YEAR

The threat of Hurricane Felix caused a slight drop in visits last summer to the city's resort area, according to a new study of Virginia Beach's visitor population.

About 20,000 fewer people came to the beach in August because of the menacing offshore storm, said the Bureau of Research at Old Dominion University's College of Business and Public Administration.

For 1995, the number of out-of-town visitors declined to about 977,500, a drop of a little more than 2 percent from 1994's total. Felix gave the beach its only serious storm threat during the summer, but it did not come ashore.

The visitor figures, issued last week, reflected only hotel and motel lodging and did not include visitors to campgrounds and overnight guests who stayed with family and friends, said James B. Ricketts, director of the Virginia Beach Department of Convention and Visitor Development.

The study also found that a decline in Canadian visitors in 1994 continued into this year.

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