The Federal Reserve reported yesterday that tourism in New York City “has been exceptionally strong in early 2005,” and it attributed much of the spike to “The Gates.”

The findings were part of the Fed’s Beige Book, a study of national economic conditions produced eight times a year. The book is usually released two weeks before meetings of the Federal Open Market Committee, at which federal monetary policy, including interest rates, is adjusted. The next meeting is scheduled for March 22.

An economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York who produced that district’s section of the Beige Book, Jason Bram, said it is unusual to mention specific events – a World Series, for example – in describing a region’s economic condition.

The apparent effect of the exhibit at Central Park was included, however, “because it was so pronounced, and because there was such a large increase in tourism,” he said.

Mr. Bram said he has found that hotel occupancy is the best proxy for measuring the nebulous concept of “tourism,” because fluctuations in other measures, such as restaurant revenues or attendance at Broadway shows, can often be attributed to the patronage of local residents.

While “The Gates” was on display, he said, hotel occupancy in the city rose significantly. The Fed reported that hotel revenues had increased by roughly one third over the same period last year.

A weak dollar has lured increasing numbers of European visitors to American shores in recent months, and, indeed, the Fed reported that Richmond, Atlanta, Kansas City, and San Francisco also saw upticks in tourism. But New York City hotel revenues in January increased by only 15% over 2004 levels, according to the Beige Book. “We couldn’t just say tourism was booming and let people infer that it’s a reflection of a really strong economy,” Mr. Bram said.

Hotels and the park were not the only city institutions to report increased visitation.

The senior vice president for external affairs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harold Holzer, said yesterday the number of visitors to the museum during “The Gates” nearly doubled from the comparable 16-day period last year, to 350,000.

Lines at cafes within the Met were long, Mr. Holzer said, and “Gates”-related events were packed.

“A book-signing with Christo and Jeanne-Claude sold out four hours before it began. It was like the arrival of rock stars at a backstage door,” he said of the exhibit’s creators.

As for the Christo merchandise, the museum executive said: “Everything from tote bags to scarves flew off the shelves.”

While the Fed’s Mr. Bram said it’s possible the increase in tourism in February may have siphoned visitors from January and March, Mr. Holzer said he hopes the heightened interest in the museum will last after the orange bloom is off the park. “We seem to be doing better on a day-to-day basis than we were before ‘The Gates,'” he said.

The economic benefit to the Met is included in the $254 million Mayor Bloomberg estimated “The Gates” brought to New York, a sum he announced last week. The methodology behind that estimate, and how it made sure to exclude increased economic activity unrelated to “The Gates,” remains unclear. What is clear is that not everyone is buying the number.

A Democratic strategist, Howard Wolfson, said: “I think obviously the mayor has a self-interest in coming up with the best possible numbers.” While Mr. Wolfson acknowledged that the Fed is a “more neutral arbiter” of the economic effects of “The Gates,” that impact is ancillary to his larger complaint.

“I think New Yorkers expected their mayor to be talking about education, and jobs creation, and improving transportation – not saffron sheets in Central Park. His priorities are out of whack,” the strategist said.

Mr. Bram said the Fed’s study was conducted before, and independent of, the city’s and did not project specific numbers. Coming up with that kind of detailed amount, the Fed economist said, is an “imprecise science.”*