As the city moves forward after the Marathon Monday bombings, hotels and convention centers are figuring out how to accommodate previously scheduled events and guests.
Of all things, a surgical conference was scheduled at the Hynes Convention Center this week, as WGBH News first reported Tuesday.
"I run a small a medical laser company," said John Mooney of Portland, Ore. "We import and distribute surgical lasers.”
Mooney is one of about 2,000 attendees. He says he only had mild trepidation about coming to Boston.
“Other people were more worried about it than me, but my response was Boston’s a big town," he said. "It’s not like the whole place is going to be shut down, and you can’t just stop doing things, but it’s a horrible situation, but life goes on and that’s why I’m here.”
And his presence is welcome. The Hynes and the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center both decided to keep events on schedule this week. That meant bomb-sniffing dogs, bag searches and heightened security. Laurie Roderiques, a nurse from New Hampshire, says that all makes her feel safer.
“I believe the city did a great job in getting together, making it safe, also helping to beautify it so to say, to not make it fearful for those of us coming in or other people," she said. "We have members from across the country flying from California, Florida. It’s beautiful and look at the weather. Somebody’s smiling on us.”
Some hotels are still closed – the Lenox and Charlesmark. And there is an immediate economic concern following Monday's tragedy. A four-day biology meeting at the Boston Convention Center has seen several hundred room cancellations in the Back Bay, but it’s not clear if visitors booked rooms closer to the Convention Center, and further from the crime scene, or if they canceled their trip to Boston altogether.
But the Copley Plaza remains open - there will even be a wedding there this weekend.
