Visitors bureau honors local tourism leaders

Experience Colorado Springs at Pikes Peak, the region's convention and visitors bureau, honored local leaders in the tourism industry at its annual banquet Wednesday night in Colorado Springs.

The Broadmoor Hotel was honored with the "Green Leader" award for its work in environmental stewardship and energy efficiency. The hotel has reduced its energy consumption by more than 13 percent, said Experience Colorado Springs President Terry Sullivan.

Bill Poulin, executive chef at Cheyenne Mountain Resort, earned the "Magnificent Management" award for his 20 years of service at the resort.

Kathryn Bucheger, lead gallery host for the Hyatt Place hotel, earned the "Superior Staff" award as the tourism employee of the year.

Sullivan said the banquet celebrated what was a successful summer tourism season, despite the difficult economic climate. In-state "staycations" were the key to the area's success, he said.

"In these hard economic times, we held our own and we saw huge numbers of Colorado visitors," Sullivan said. "We would say that the summer was very good."