While the Kitchener Rangers may have captured the Memorial Cup championship on Sunday, Kelowna emerged as a winner off the ice.
Thousands of visitors descended on the Central Okanagan city during the 10-day tournament, providing an early boost to tourism and local businesses ahead of the peak summer season.
“It definitely felt like summer came early,” said Omar D’Souza, owner of Parlour Ice Cream. “We’re only at the end of May, and it already felt like peak summertime on a lot of days.”
The owners of The Train Station Pub also reported a significant increase in business during the hockey event.
“Forty per cent, it was fantastic,” said Rhonda Lindsay, the pub’s co-owner.
“This is a way to really showcase Kelowna, the way we want it showcased and help people understand what Kelowna has to offer. We don’t just have two months of good weather, we’re a place to visit year-round.”
Although the crowds have largely dispersed and downtown has returned to a quieter pace, the city estimates they left behind at least $23 million in economic impact, possibly more based on previous Memorial Cup events elsewhere.
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“It was more in the range of $40 million,” said Kelowna Mayor Tom Dyas. “We know that the CHL, in conjunction with the city and also Tourism Kelowna, will study this and we will have the numbers back sometime early into the fall to let us know exactly where this sits.”
Tourism Kelowna also reported a record 30,000 visitors to its visitor information centre in May, a figure officials largely attribute to the Memorial Cup.
“It was fantastic to see the contingents from places like Kitchener,” said Cassandra Zerebeski, the CEO of Tourism Kelowna. “You had families travelling together along with friends and relatives visiting the community.”
For local businesses that rely on tourism, the tournament’s success is being viewed as a big score.
“Thank you for going after it,” Lindsay said, reacting to the city’s efforts to host the event. “This is what Kelowna needs.”
Dyas said there are a number of major events coming to Kelowna in the next few months.
He added that the city is currently in negotiations to bring another major event to the city this fall but was unable to say what event only to describe it as significant.
“Through our economic prosperity, what we’re trying to look at doing is establishing opportunities that are available during shoulder seasons,” Dyas said.
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