A stray cat born and raised at a Japanese train station has been named its official stationmaster -- and become a tourist attraction that's successfully boosted the local economy by more than $10 million.
"It is rather Tama's irresistible charm which has brought tourists flocking in their thousands to the western city of Kinokawa to see the feline worker patrolling in the uniform of her office -- a Wakayama Electric Railway cap."
"With 55,000 more people having used the Kishigawa Line than would normally be expected, Tama is being credited with a contribution to the local economy calculated to have reached as much as 1.1 billion yen (10.44 million dollars) in 2007 alone, according to a study announced last week."
Thanks to Cate Miller
FULL STORY: Tama is the purr-fect antidote to financial gloom: study
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Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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