One Orlando developer watching the numbers closely is Harris Rosen. His planned $28 million, 159,000-sf Rosen School of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida's main campus in east Orange County is scheduled to open for its first classes in January 2004.

Funding the project--the only one of its kind in the Southeast--are Rosen, $18.2 million; Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, $5 million; Darden Restaurants Inc., $2 million; Walt Disney World, $2 million; Universal Orlando Foundation, $1 million; and Anheuser-Busch Foundation/SeaWorld, $500,000.

County Comptroller Martha O. Haynie notes the March figure is 8.5% below March 2002 levels. "The war in Iraq, coupled with Easter being observed during different months the last two years (March in 2002; April in 2003) may have contributed to the decline in March collections," Haynie says.