Economic Impact after first Hornets game

[metro]

Although SOME of what the following article states is true. The Oklahoman as usual is one sided on this issue. I was there after the game. If you stayed for the entire game and by the time you walked to Bricktown, it was almost 10pm, nearly all the restaurants were closed except a handful, I had to choose Sonic because it was the only one which appeared open, I hope the restaurant owners will quit babying and realize games end late and people then have to walk over! 10pm hours will not suffice, especially if you have chairs on the tables before that!

Hornets fans expect crowds and avoid Bricktown eateries
By Steve Lackmeyer
The Oklahoman

Thousands of basketball fans streamed through Bricktown this week, and restaurant shops were ready for some "major league business."
They parked in Bricktown parking lots. But a survey of merchants indicates many of the new Hornets fans skipped the shops and restaurants.

Instead, visitors such as Kathy Randell chose to eat closer to home before traveling downtown to see Tuesday's home opener for the Hornets at Ford Center.

Randell has been to Bricktown before and likes the restaurants. But she chose to eat at a Taco Cabana at Northwest Expressway and MacArthur.

"I thought it would be too busy in Bricktown,'' Randell said.

Ronald Taylor recalled his last visit to Ford Center -- for a Paul McCartney concert -- ended with him skipping dinner altogether after encountering long lines at several restaurants along the Bricktown Canal. So Taylor met with co-workers for an early dinner at a northwest Oklahoma City Chili's before going to the game.

"Why take a chance?'' Taylor asked.

Taunya Burger, manager of Boone's General Store, stood in front of the recently opened gift shop along Reno, watching as people passed by on their way to Ford Center. They weren't stopping, but Burger was happy knowing the store was getting some exposure.

"This is a huge deal for us,'' Burger said. "We are new, so it's great just getting people to see we are here. Hopefully, they'll come back.''

The Hornets' arrival did have some effect on area businesses. At Hooters along the canal, Sacramento Kings player Mike Bibby could be seen signing autographs and taking pictures with fans a few hours before Tuesday's game. At Trattoria il Centro, a new Italian restaurant in the Arts District, manager Chris Mullings visited with a couple of basketball fans from Krebs.

Makers Cigar Lounge was packed with customers immediately after the game. Mickey Mantle Steak House, another high-dollar Bricktown establishment, had a busy dinner rush and saw about three dozen people come in for a late drink and bite to eat.

Bricktown sports bars and restaurants equipped with Cox Cable, including Daiquiri Zone and the Bricktown Brewery, drew better crowds during the game than competitors with satellite television, like the new Halftime Sports Grill.

The difference? Cox Communications has television rights to the Hornets games, which could only be viewed locally on the company's cable channel.

Bricktown eateries including Zio's and Coach's saw a 40 percent to 50 percent increase in business over a normal Tuesday.

But even those who saw increases were disappointed they didn't see a bigger boost to their sales.

Steve Bearden, manager of Earl's Rib Palace in Lower Bricktown, was among those who stayed open later, only to see fans celebrating after the Hornets' win heading straight for their cars.

"It wasn't bad,'' Bearden said of the game-day business. "But we expected a bit more. The preseason game-day business was phenomenal.''

Some merchants say they saw no increase in business at all -- or even a drop from a normal Tuesday.

Patrons could even find a table without having to wait at usually mobbed Toby Keith's I Love this Bar & Grill.

IHOP employed two men to distribute coupons and fliers to fans leaving the game. Mark Brennaman gave out hundreds of the IHOP fliers, exchanging jokes with fans and giving directions to the restaurant. But an hour later, plenty of tables remained empty.

Tony Bee, manager at Abuelo's, was among several who added staff and extended hours, only to see no increase in business. Avis Scaramucci, owner of Nonna's Euro-American Ristorante and Bar and Painted Door gift shop, knows she picked up about 60 "early'' reservations that she can directly tie to the game.

But she also knows many of her regular customers stayed away.

"Maybe they felt that traffic would be horrendous,'' Scaramucci said. "They shied away. People were just scared. The rumor and innuendo kept people away who would have otherwise navigated their way through and would have felt comfortable.''

But Scaramucci saw no traffic snarls. And even though thousands parked in Bricktown for the game, several spaces remained available throughout the night in lots along Reno and Sheridan Avenues.

Frank Sims, director of the Bricktown Association, thinks business will come from future games. Opening night, he said, came with its own, unexpected challenges.

Among them:

Bricktown merchants began planning a street festival shortly after the Hornets announced their schedule at Ford Center. But the team scheduled its own festival between the arena and convention center, which drew thousands of fans who ignored the Bricktown festivities.

Oklahoma City installed new signs directing visitors to "event parking'' at city-owned garages -- all of which were located outside of Bricktown.

Sims suspects many of the fans were unfamiliar with seat locations and the time needed to get inside the arena. He thinks more fans will make a stop at restaurants and shops before the game once they get more comfortable with game time arrangements.

Visitors like Taylor recall previous troubles Bricktown merchants faced serving large crowds, and don't realize the operators are more experienced and can better handle the traffic.

Bricktown success stories may have people convinced that they have to compete with every other basketball fan for a seat at their favorite restaurant.

"We have more than 8,000 seats in Bricktown -- that's 1,000 more than just a year ago,'' Sims said. "If you're worried about a wait at a restaurant, you don't need to worry about that. We've learned how to handle high- volume traffic in a short time.''

George Shinn, owner of the Hornets, promised Bricktown merchants the opening day "BuzzFest'' will be the team's only festival. Sims said Bricktown merchants will host another street festival for Wednesday's game -- and hope it will draw more fans who won't be lured to a competing celebration at the Ford Center.

Sims also praises city traffic officials and police for preventing tie-ups Tuesday night, and believes that as a result of their work returning fans will feel more comfortable about taking their time to visit area businesses before and after future home games.

Scaramucci is urging fellow merchants not to make hasty conclusions from the debut of Hornets basketball.

Restaurants, shops and their customers will all learn from the experience, she said.

"It's a wonderful opportunity for Oklahoma City,'' Scaramucci said. "It would be really sad if people threw up their hands and said `enough of this.' I know there is quite a bit of unhappiness over the night, but I hope people don't take that attitude. There are a lot of games to come.''

[MadMonk]

I read the article and it seems to make sense. If I know that a game will end late then I'm more likely to eat early and maybe snack during the game rather than wait until later to eat. This is especially true for a weeknight. Weekends are a little different.

[metro]

Yes, but Monk were you down there?? It seemed dead after the game, most shops were closed already or they were barely lit up and had chairs already on the tables, that to me doesnt signal an open shop. If the shop owners are going to baby about it, they need to do a better job of staying open later and letting people know they are open, Sonic and IHOP were the only places that even looked open.

[MadMonk]

Yes, but Monk were you down there?? It seemed dead after the game, most shops were closed already or they were barely lit up and had chairs already on the tables, that to me doesnt signal an open shop. If the shop owners are going to baby about it, they need to do a better job of staying open later and letting people know they are open, Sonic and IHOP were the only places that even looked open.

No, I haven't gone to a game yet. You have a good point, I wasn't disputing that. For those that would like to eat dinner afterward, early closing times would be a problem.

[Karried]

We went to Hooters afterward and walked right in with no wait.

The festivities and streets beforehand were embarrassingly empty near the canal. One band and a few beer stands.

I bet a lot of people decided to eat elsewhere first to avoid the crowds.. we went early thinking it would be swamped and it was practically barren. I hope Bricktown gets it figured out in the near future. They do need to stay open later but I really think the weekends will be the busiest and best nights for Bricktown. It 's so important to our future - we need to be perceived as a major league city who will come out in droves support a team. The more we do, the more the merchants can do. ie. street festivities and displays, retail, children's activities - etc

I hope the residents will support the merchants in Bricktown - buy an appetizer for goodness sakes!

[windowphobe]

You gotta figure, on Wednesday night there's going to be pressure to get home and hit the sack. Friday and Saturday nights aren't going to have this drawback.

[jbrown84]

This is disappointing. It seems unusual because major events at the Ford Center or Myriad have always boosted Bricktown, so I don't know why it was different this time. Maybe now that everyone hears that it wasn't a madhouse, a more healthy crowd will come down before the game.

[metro]

I'm telling you for those of us who WERE (key word) there, the biggest drawback is the merchants own fault. More than half the places were either closed or appeared closed. I didn't see any of the bars or clubs open for people who may wanted that type of atmosphere. The only place I could tell was open was Sonic and that was iffy, and IHOP and Hooters. Other than that it was hard to tell as most places appeared dark and with chairs on tables. If they want better responses, they need to advertise their hours at the game or somewhere else and need to be better lit up. Most of the places that were open closed at 10pm which is not adequate as it was almost that time by the time the game was over and you walked to Bricktime, enough said.

[jbrown84]

metro, what your saying makes a lot of sense. I was referring more to the lack of people in Bricktown before the game.

[metro]

I thought the before game crowds were decent, you have to think some of them started trickling in about 3:30pm-4:00pm I think the festival started at 5:00pm