FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Keith Britt
Thompson & Co.
901/527-8000
or  Andrew J. Groveman
Belz Enterprises
901/260-7278

McCarty Travel Inc.
Newest Tenant in Peabody Place

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (May 22, 1997) – Belz Enterprises announces its newest tenant to Peabody Place. McCarty Travel Inc., scheduled to open the week of June 16 - 20, 1997, will be one of only two travel agencies located in downtown Memphis that provides personal, business and group/meeting travel.

McCarty Travel promises the most advanced travel technology in the city. Travelers can link up to McCarty Travel via the World Wide Web and make travel plans without even lifting the phone. Airline, hotel and rental car reservations may be booked by e-mail request on advanced computer travel systems.

McCarty will also offer "resfax" to expedite booking reservations on airlines. The traditional concept of placing a request with an agent and then waiting for a return phone call where multiple options are given over the phone is now streamlined with resfax technology. Now requests are processed and faxed back to the customer within 10 minutes. Flight options are listed on a easy to read grid with up to 36 travel options for one particular destination.

"It is important to combine experienced agents with the latest travel technology," says Beth Arguelles McCarty, president and co-owner of McCarty Travel Inc. "The right combination makes a successful travel agency."

McCarty Travel has also created a family friendly environment which allows employees, to work from home or the office through technology. Job sharing programs will also be offered.

All agents at McCarty Travel have a minimum of 10-years experience in the travel business. McCarty has 15-years experience in the industry and is a downtown resident herself.

"I chose Peabody Place as the location of my new business because I believe it is the best place to be. The other tenants in Peabody Place such as Breckenridge Brewery and Ciao Baby Cucina and I will be working together to create joint programs to cater to downtown residents and employees."

McCarty has plans for special interest vacations such as bird-watching trips to Hawaii and Alaska, sport-fishing off the coast of Venezuela and San Salvador and culinary excursions to nationally acclaimed seminars.

Weekend executive networking trips are also in the planning stages according to Sean McCarty, co-owner of McCarty Travel Inc. These trips will provide weekend getaways to appealing destinations while allowing local executives to relax and make helpful business contacts.

"Advanced solutions" is the agency’s corporate theme. McCarty Travel will be focused on 50 percent business travel and 50 percent personal vacation travel.

"McCarty Travel will be a key component in the creation of the Peabody Place ‘urban village,’" says Andrew J. Groveman, senior vice president of marketing and administration, Belz Enterprises. "Peabody Place will be completely service-oriented allowing downtown residents, employees and visitors to work and play all within a seven-block area."

McCarty Travel will be located in the former Haverty’s building at 50 Peabody Place on the corner of Main St. and Peabody Place Ave., adjacent to Breckenridge Brewery.

Peabody Place is the largest mixed-use development currently underway in the country. The first residential component of Peabody Place, the Gasyso House Apartments, opened in March 1995, and has since remained 100 percent leased. Other substantially completed components include 50 Peabody Place, which houses office space and street-level retail shops, Pembroke Square, with space available for office and retail, and the Grand Lobby of The Gayoso House. Next door to the Grand Lobby is Ciao Baby Cucina, an Italian Mediterranean Trattoria, which has enjoyed great success since its opening in February 1996. The Tower at Peabody Place is currently under construction and is on target for a June 1997 opening. Breckenridge Brewery and Restaurant, located in the former Majestic Theater, and The Flying Saucer, a beer emporium located in The Tower at Peabody Place, opened this month. City Grocery, a specialty grocery store, will also open in Peabody Place in summer 1997.

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