Labor union representatives have asked the city's Election Commission to begin a process that would put the hotel's approval on the ballot next fall. Mayor Wellington Webb says that such a move will make it virtually impossible to sell the bonds for the hotel, canceling the project at this time.

"We currently have eight conventions booked for Denver in 2006 worth $91 million in economic spending and six conventions in 2007 worth $86 million in economic spending that all require the new hotel in order to meet in Denver," says Eugene Dilbeck, president of the bureau. "Without the hotel, these meetings will have to go elsewhere and Denver will lose this money as well as the jobs that this money would support."

Dilbeck says that even if this move to place the hotel issue on the ballot is a political bluff, or if the labor unions fail to obtain enough signatures, Denver still stands to lose this $177 million in business.

"Convention groups generally book five to seven years in advance because that's the only way to ensure that you can get a block of enough hotel rooms on the exact dates you want," Dilbeck explains. "Because of the excitement around the expansion of the Colorado Convention Center and the new hotel, we have been able to convince these groups to hold dates in Denver before the hotel breaks ground. However, if there is any chance that the hotel is going to be delayed yet again or even cancelled, these groups have no choice but to release their dates and try to find openings in other cities. Just the threat of going to a vote on this issue is enough to cost Denver the $177 million in business."

He adds that the $177 million loss is "just the tip of the iceberg." There is another $80 million in tentative convention business holding dates for Denver in 2006 and 2007 that will definitely pull from the city if the hotel is delayed by a vote, Dilbeck says. And then there are definite bookings for all future years that come into jeopardy.

"We have bookings as far out as 2013 that will require the hotel and that might cancel Denver if the hotel is delayed again," Dilbeck says. "That may seem unreasonable to people not in the industry, but each convention group has their own policy. We recently went in head-to-head competition with Las Vegas and Salt Lake City for a major convention in 2013. Denver was awarded the bid based on our having an 1,100-room Hyatt hotel. If the hotel project is cancelled, the group might feel obligated to award that convention to one of the other competing cities. It will be seven years - or 2020 - before we could bid again for that business."

He also points out that most of the business lost for 2006 and 2007 cannot be replaced. "Because groups book so far in advance, there is just not a lot of major conventions out there with open dates for these years," he notes. " When you lose business this close out, it generally can't be replaced."