Soo Greyhounds Hockey Club will tell city council next week that hosting the 2024 Memorial Cup might be just the ticket to local recovery from the COVID-19 doldrums.
"Building on the success of other successful hockey mega-events such as the CARHA World Cup (first time hosted outside of a major urban centre), the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and the Telus Cup, Sault Ste. Marie is no stranger to hosting successful hockey tournaments," says Tom Vair, the city's deputy chief administrative officer for community development and enterprise services.
"We have experienced firsthand the short- and long-term benefits of sport hosting. It should also be noted the ongoing and lasting impact and pride of hosting the 1993 Memorial Cup in Sault Ste. Marie," Vair says in a report prepared for Monday's city council meeting.
"Hosting the 2024 Memorial Cup aligns with economic development and tourism strategies and would successfully achieve the city's goal of economic stimulation within our economy."
"In particular, hosting the 2024 Memorial Cup would assist the hotel and hospitality sector and would be a significant boost to the ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic," Vair says.
The Hounds are hoping to score $300,000 from city community development coffers in support of their bid to host the 2024 tournament.
They'll argue that the 2019 Memorial Cup attracted 18,879 out-of-town visitors to Halifax, resulting in $9.1 million in visitor spending attributable to the event and $24.4 million in overall economic activity in the province of Nova Scotia.
What will they do with the $300,000?
"In order to have an economically successful bid, and in order to keep ticket prices at an affordable level, we will need significant financial support of our government and community partners," says Tim Lukenda, Greyhounds president and governor.
"In other communities, government grants have been used to offset some of the organizing costs in recognition of the economic impact to the community, region and province. Please note that there is no direct financial benefit to the host team. On the other hand, the team has responsibility to deliver the financial results in accordance with projections and commitments to the Canadian Hockey League," Lukenda adds.
City staff have advised the hockey club that facility fees could be covered through either concession sharing or a ticket surcharge, if required based on revenue performance of the event.
The following are local sanctioned events proposed during the 10-day 2024 Memorial Cup:
- Memorial Cup Arrival Ceremony - The arrival of the Memorial Cup is the official opening of the event where the cup is showcased and brought into the city. This event will signal to the community that the celebration of the tournament is underway. Military and veteran involvement will be a key part of this event and will complement the many CHL and dignitaries in attendance
- Memorial Cup Banquet - The opening banquet is a celebration to welcome the Memorial Cup, competing teams and visitors to our community. It will be hosted at the Marconi and Cultural Event Centre featuring local cuisine and entertainment
- Memorial Cup Golf Tournament - The tournament will be held at Crimson Ridge Golf Course, our local course rated amongst the top 100 courses in Ontario
- Memorial Cup Fan Fest & KidZone - As not all members of the community are able to attend the games, the Fan Fest and KidZone is an opportunity for everyone to become involved and participate in the event in some capacity. Fan Fest & KidZone will offer various levels of interaction that will provide a creative and fun filled venue that is accessible to all. A positive note for Sault Ste. Marie is that the downtown plaza will be finalized and provides a great venue, in addition to the Roberta Bondar Pavilion, for fan events
- Waterfront Concert Series, game watch and Beer Garden: Each day we will offer musical entertainment and a beer garden atmosphere to allow visitors and locals to gather in a festive environment to hear local musicians and hopefully a headliner to conclude the week
- Fun, Run, Walk or Roll: An inclusive event to enable visitors and local residents to enjoy the outdoors and experience our boardwalk and waterfront vistas
- Pow Wow Celebration of Indigenous Culture
- Boat Cruises and Big Canoe Rides
- Speaker Series focused on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Hockey
In addition to $300,000 from the city, the Greyhounds are seeking additional funds from the Province of Ontario and Tourism Sault Ste. Marie.
The deadline for formal bid presentations to be submitted is the end of this month.
Decision on a host city will be made in March, 2023.
The 2024 Memorial Cup is to be held May 24 through June 2, 2024.
Monday's city council meeting will be live-streamed on SooToday starting at 4:30 p.m.