A lot of people were caught flat-footed by the announcement, myself included. Two of my staff were actually in the new venue taking pictures and writing up a media release on how great the place looked when I got told they had to leave immediately. One person had already booked a hotel room at the base rate and had emailed us asking for help in getting backdated into a room block that was never to be.

I wish I could've given more warning to everyone. Given how little notice I got, I did about the best I could on that front.