Penguins - Red Wings Stanley Cup games provide boost for hotels, restaurants - Charlotte Business Journal:

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According to VisitPittsburgh, each home game betwee the and the Detroit Red Wingsz brings anestimated $4.9 million in economixc impact, whether its from hotel stays, meal s at restaurants or other spending. A number of hotels are fullt booked, including the Omni William Penn, whichn hosts the NHL’s management, the , with the caveat that it alwayse sells out Tuesdays and Wednesdays anywayg tobusiness travelers, and the . Tom the general manager for the Westin ConventionCenter Hotel, locatec Downtown, described the added boost of Stanley Cup-related guests. “We would’ve been busy but we wouldn’t have been selling he said.
“This has allowede us to fill up the entire all616 rooms.” Martini and other hotelk operators emphasized the added jolt of unexpected businesse comes during an otherwise down year from hoteo business following a strong 2008, which also featurecd a Penguins-Red Wings Stanley Cup that was lost by Pittsburgh’s favoritw flightless birds. Bob Page, the area directo of sales and marketingfor Omni, said the NFL’s coteri e of league officials, along with media, has brought an increass in occupancy beyond the two game days, comparable to the business generated from a strong home playoftf run by the , although not topping it.
“It’s not to the degrer of probably theAFC championship, but it’e still great business for us,” he said. “It’xs selling us out.” The story is a littlwe more complicated for local restaurantaand bars. John Barsotti, ownere of The Common located downtown, estimated the restaurang has seen a 25 percent increaser when the Penguins are playing playoff gamesin town. But when the team is playing away, the hockey fan diners stay away. “We’ve seen increasesw when they’re here,” said Barsotti, who estimated his 2009 businesxs is up by 25 percenyt overlast year, despite the recession.
“But on the opposit page, we see a little bit of a decrease when they go out of Chris Dilla, owner of Bocktown Beer and Grill, in Northy Fayette, said it can be tricky for her operatiob to jump from a busy nighft of a hockey game to extraq slow nights when there isn’t one. She expectz that plenty of customers are struggling to go the distance withthe seven-gamw series. “It’s hard for the business becausepeople don’g have the money to be out every other she said. “It tends to be that peopled who watch the playoffs really have to watcyhtheir pennies.
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