At a time when Hong Kong is struggling with a persistent decline in its economically vital inbound tourism, any measure aiming at boosting the sector is undoubtedly a welcome one. Indeed, players in the sector have responded favorably to Hong Kong Disneyland's HK$10.9 billion expansion plan unveiled on Tuesday.

But if past experience is anything to go by, the expansion proposal is likely to face instant objections, as did almost every other mega project launched in the city. Already, some legislators from the opposition camp have expressed reservations about this idea, prompting worries that the government might have a hard time in securing the necessary Legislative Council approval for the funding.

After 11 years of operation, the novelty of Hong Kong Disneyland is wearing thin for local visitors, who accounted for 39 percent of total attendance in 2015. Mainland visitors, who contributed 41 percent of total attendance last year, meanwhile, are also finding it less attractive compared with Shanghai Disneyland, which is three times bigger but selling tickets at about the same rates. Hong Kong Disneyland also faces strong competition from other theme parks in the region such as Tokyo Disneyland, Universal Studios in Singapore and Legoland in Malaysia.

Hong Kong Disneyland announced large-scale layoffs earlier this year after the park suffered an operating loss of HK$148 million in 2015, the first annual loss in five years, due mainly to a 9.3 percent drop in visitors. While the fall in the tally of Disneyland visitors was in line with the general slump in local inbound tourism - as evidenced by the decline in overall visitor arrivals and retail sales in the city during that period - the park's declining attractiveness was also to be blamed. There is no way Hong Kong Disneyland can boost or even merely sustain its attractiveness and competitiveness other than by massively expanding its features and offerings.

Questions raised on the expansion proposal have so far focused on the worthiness of further government investment in the park, given that the park is losing money. The Hong Kong government, as a major shareholder of the park, is required to contribute HK$5.8 billion of the total expected expenditure for the proposed expansion.

Obviously, the skeptics have ignored the huge economic benefits a successful theme park brings. Ticket revenues for the Disneyland are just a small portion of park visitors' total expenditure in Hong Kong. They normally spend many times as much money on other items during their stays in the city, including hotel room charges, food consumption, souvenirs and transportation. More importantly, their demand for services creates a large number of jobs.

(HK Edition 11/24/2016 page9)