Sports competitions are expected to score big points for the Spokane-area economy this year, but if investments arent made in new venues soon, the region could be warming the bench rather than hosting more events in the future, an expert claims.


All eyes this week might be on the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, but thats just one of several sporting events slated here in 2007 that are expected to generate a combined roughly $70 million in economic impact for the Spokane area.


Thats not peanuts. Sporting events rank in the top three largest gatherings to be held here this year, according to the Spokane Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau. In general, athletic competitions now account for roughly 20 percent of room nights at hotels in the Spokane and Coeur dAlene areas each year, says Eric Sawyer, executive director of the Spokane Regional Sports Commission (SRSC).


07 will be one of the biggest years weve had as far as sports go, Sawyer says. Some of these events are going to set the stage for some pretty significant influence on the region.


The U.S. Figure Skating Championships and perennial heavy hitters such as the Bloomsday road race, the Hoopfest three-on-three basketball tournament, and the Coeur dAlene Ironman triathlon make up a large portion of the estimated economic impact from sporting events this year, Sawyer says. The regional NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament to be held here this spring and the growth of the annual Pacific Northwest Club Volleyball Qualifying Tournament in recent years also will contribute significantly, he says. In fact, Sawyer predicts the volleyball tournament will produce 6,000 room-night stays at Spokane-area hotels this year.


To estimate economic impact, the SRSC relies on surveys conducted at past events to find out visitors spending habits, he says. Through those surveys, the SRSC has arrived at a $105 per person per day figure for youth events and $250 per person per day for adult events. The SRSC takes the number of visitors attending an event and multiplies that by the number of days the event is held, the daily spending average, and a 1.2-times multiplier to arrive at a final estimate, he says.


The biggest sporting events to be held here this year include:


This weeks U.S. Figure Skating Championships, which the CVB, using statistics provided by the events Spokane producer, Star USA Inc., ranks as the Spokane regions largest gathering in 2007. The championships were expected to attract 150,000 people and generate an estimated 3,060 room nights and an overall economic impact of $30 million.


The Coeur dAlene Ironman competition, to be held in June, will have an estimated impact of $4.2 million.


The regional mens NCAA basketball tournaments this March are expected to generate roughly $3.4 million in impact.


The Pacific Northwest Club Volleyball Qualifying Tournament, which has been held annually here since it was launched 10 years ago, is expected to serve up $3.3 million in economic impact this spring. Thanks in part to the new Group Health Exhibit Hall at the expanded Spokane Convention Center, which has doubled the number of volleyball courts on which the tournament can be played, the event could draw 400 teams this year, compared with 200 last year, Sawyer says.


The Washington state B Basketball Tournament for high schools is expected to bring in $2.2 million when its held here again this March.


Hoopfest, held in June, had an estimated $16 million impact on the economy here last year, the events Web site says. Meanwhile Bloomsday, held in May, has an annual economic impact of nearly $10 million, says founder Don Kardong.


Other events slated here this year include the Washington state high school track-and-field championships, valued at $1.2 million; the National Junior Disability Championships, at about $740,000; and the USA Gymnastics Junior Olympic Level Nine Championships, at $630,000.


Venues


Three of the biggest factors that help a community stick the landing on its bid for a sporting event are its resume, its local organizational support, and its venues, Sawyer says. While Spokane has done a good job of building its resume and has strong community support, its trailing in the area of adequate facilities, he asserts.


We are woefully behind other like markets in developing sports venues, and weve got to change the tide if were going to compete against them, Sawyer says. We have Gonzagas new arena and the Spokane (Veterans Memorial) Arena, but the reality is that those are limited-use venues and we have not been doing a very good job in investing in public sports facilities.


Having adequate venues is becoming increasingly important as more cities across the U.S. compete to host events, he says. Fifteen years ago, eight cities formed the National Association of Sports Commissions; now the organization has 400 members, including sports commissions in Seattle, Portland, the Tri-Cities, and Wenatchee, he says.


The Spokane area needs athletic facilities that can both support the growth of local youth- and adult-league sports programs and are designed so they could support larger tournaments and events, Sawyer asserts. Among the facilities the area needs are more soccer fields, indoor gym space, softball and baseball fields, an upgraded track complex, and a major aquatics center, he says.


If we build these facilities so that they satisfy quality of life needs and design them in a way that we can market them for tournaments, eventually these facilities will pay for themselves, Sawyer says.


A committee appointed by Mayor Hession late last year is in the midst of a master-planning process to consider how to develop more than 100 acres surrounding Joe Albi Stadium into additional baseball and softball fields, and how to improve soccer fields there, says Sawyer, who sits on the committee. Meanwhile, the SRSC also is seeking state funding for roughly $8 million in upgrades to Avista Stadium, home of the Spokane Indians minor-league baseball club and host of American Legion baseball games.


Volunteer base


While venues might be lacking, the Spokane region has a particularly large volunteer base, which is a big draw to selection committees, Sawyer says. For instance, Ironman and Hoopfest, which each require roughly 8,000 volunteers, occur during the same weekend every year.


When were able to pull off two major events in the same weekend, that says something about our community, he says. Were well-known as a community that embraces sports.


Spokanes reputation of supporting long-distance running events was a major factor in the USA Track & Field Associations decision to choose the city over others such as Seattle; Portland, Ore.; and Reno, Nev., to host the National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships, says Andy Martin, an Indianapolis-based spokesman for the association. The event, held at Plantes Ferry Park in Spokane Valley, last month, brought 2,500 athletes, 5,000 family members and friends, and about $2 million in economic impact, Sawyer says.


Other assets that attracted the USA Track & Field Association to Spokane were its volunteer base, the Plantes Ferry venue, and the efforts made by the SRSC and the USA Track and Field Inland Northwest Association, Martin says.


It all came together for Spokane, he says. The venue, the volunteer base, the support from the local community, and the way the local sports commission works with our local association is really important to us.


Another factor that selection committees take into account when considering holding an event in Spokane is the communitys size, Sawyer says. Spokane is large enough to support a major event, in terms of hotel accommodations and other amenities, but doesnt have any major-league professional sports teams that would detract from attendance at an event, he says. As an example, ticket sales for the figure skating championships here, which had reached 118,000 last week, are closing in on the record set in 2002, when the event was held in Los Angeles, a much larger city, he says.


Governing bodies know that they can come in and own the city, and that theyll be the only thing going on, Sawyer says. They know theres a niche in second-tier markets like ours that are big enough to have a market but not so big that theyre competing with more established sports.


The national spotlight that comes along with major sporting events also helps market the city for future events, says Keith Backsen, the CVBs vice president and director of convention sales.


Anytime we can get an event into this community that has the national exposure that these will bring, its a home run for us, Backsen says. It definitely helps us when were calling on people in other cities to bring future events here.


Walt Worthy, who with his wife, Karen, owns the recently completed Davenport Tower, as well as the Davenport Hotel, which is the official headquarters hotel for the Figure Skating Championships, agrees that sporting events contribute significantly to the regions economy.


I think its pretty obviously a big help, and would love to see more of them, Worthy says. Every little bit you can do helps, and we need all the help we can get to put Spokane on the map.


Contact Emily Brandler at (509) 344-1265 or via e-mail at emilyb@spokanejournal.com