Some downtown Cincinnati merchants already struggling through recession and economic boycott say the suspension of plans to expand the convention center is another disappointing blow.

        “It's very scary for us as a company,” said John Wynn, general manager for Central Parking. “We're simply not looking at Cincinnati as a growth market for us.”

        Mayor Charlie Luken wants to pull the plug on the $198 million plan to expand the Albert B. Sabin Cincinnati Convention Center. City leaders hoped expanding the center would draw larger — and more lucrative — conventions.

        But Delta Air Lines announced it could no longer afford the more than $15 million it had committed for naming rights.

        The area's largest airline lost $583 million in the first half of the year alone.

        Downtown Cincinnati's vendors have lost business since the 2001 riots and subsequent boycott called by some leaders in the African-American community.

        Taxi drivers Papa Come and Ousmane Faye said the city's problems are too deep to have been fixed by expanding the convention center.

        “The convention center is never full,” said Mr. Come, waiting for fares at Sixth and Race streets. “If they cannot fill it, what's the need of expanding it?”

        Plum Street Cafi owner Mike Crowe also said he wasn't convinced an expanded convention center would have sparked a downtown business boom. He wasn't even convinced the expansion would ever happen, and wasn't surprised by Wednesday's announcement.

        “I've been here 18 years, and heard so many things over the years,” he said.

        Central Parking's Mr. Wynn, however, had hoped that a larger building would indeed have lured bigger conventions.

        Central Parking and its subsidiary, Allright Parking, own three lots and garages adjacent to the convention center. Revenue from visitors to the center can mean the difference between profit and loss at those, and about 10 more nearby, Mr. Wynn said.

        “We were certainly hoping it would have had a positive impact,” Mr. Wynn said. “We're disappointed, in a nutshell.”

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