An influx of at least 2,000 visitors to Pensacola this weekend means officials are hoping to kick off a year of tourism rebuilding.
The NCAA’s Sun Belt Basketball Championships for men and women bring 24 teams – 12 men and 12 women – into town to compete in an elimination tournament that serves as the preamble to the official March Madness college basketball tournament.
According to Darien Schaefer, Executive Director of Visit Pensacola, Pensacola’s successful attempt to host the tournament for the next five years was a huge win for tourism and the diversification of the city’s appeal.
“Once a target can demonstrate that they are able to host an event like this, it opens the door to other possibilities and adds to our résumé as a community,” he said. “It could mean other sports are coming here within the Sun Belt Conference because we’re central to all teams and the consolation prize when you enter a tournament and don’t make it to the end is a few days on the beach. ”
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The tournament takes place Friday through Sunday at the Pensacola Bay Center and the Hartsell Arena of Pensacola State College.
Twelve bars have registered as venues for celebrations and watch parties, each of which claims a team of visitors as representatives. A free trolley, supported by the Downtown Improvement Board, will take people back and forth between the Bay Center and these locations.
The tournament will be the first major event in Pensacola since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic last spring and, according to Schäfer, is about to start a comeback.
Visit Pensacola’s figures show that tourism development tax dollars in 2020 fell by almost 21% compared to 2019, almost entirely due to the impact of COVID on hotels and rentals.
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However, the first four months of fiscal 2021 from October through January show a 13.8% increase from 2020, which shows what Schaefer thinks is the beginning of a resurgence.
“People come to Pensacola who have never been here and that’s the cool thing about sports tournaments: it sometimes brings people here for the first time, and once you’ve been there you can really appreciate the city and maybe come back. ” he said.
Schaefer predicts an economic impact of $ 2 million this year as the pandemic has restricted travel to players and officials only, not additional team support such as bands and cheerleaders. In addition, the Bay Center is limited to 50% capacity, and the Hartsell Arena games are not open to the public due to the tighter spaces.
However, the impact should double over the next four years of the treaty, he said.
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Walker Wilson, the executive director of DIB, said this year will be almost a trial run.
“It might actually be beneficial that it’s COVID and that we’re not having the full effect of all of these people at once so we can solve some of the problems,” said Wilson. “I think the implications for the inner city and the city over the next five to seven years are huge.”
Keith Gill, director of the Sun Belt tournament, said Pensacola is a front runner in hosting because of its familiarity with fans and its central location between schools.
The tournament was previously held in New Orleans, a much larger city with a multitude of events happening simultaneously, while for Pensacola the entire community welcomes such a huge event to the city, Gill said.
“We just get a sense of community support, we knew what the facility would be like, the availability of the hotel, the facilities, what people in the community would do, those things,” he said. “We did a few on-site visits, met with community members and got a feel for the support and excitement.”
Winning this bid was not without cost, however. The aging Bay Center took some work to host the caliber of events expected by the NCAA, and both the Sun Belt Conference and Visit Pensacola have poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into improvements such as new video boards, the hall, concessions, and locker rooms.
The pandemic and the failure of the Pensacola Bay Bridge hampered the event in some ways. Schaefer said, for example, some teams booked hotel rooms on the beach months ago – before the bridge broke down – and canceled those bookings to get closer to the city for an easier commute.
Tickets at the Bay Center are sold in groups to distance fans, and masks are required at the stadium. The stadium will be closed for two hours for cleaning between every two-game session. However, this is a win-win as Schaefer gives fans the opportunity to explore downtown.
“I think we will be very happy with the results and the impact. It is certainly a shot in the arm,” he said. “It’s not just the tickets and hotels, but also restaurants, gas stations, all activities and attractions that a visitor will see, everything helps.”
The games in the Bay Center and in the Hartsell Arena start on Friday at 11 a.m. Tickets are available at the Bay Center ticket office or online from Ticketmaster.
Emma Kennedy can be reached at ekennedy@pnj.com or 850-480-6979.
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