Big events mean big tourism business for Edmonton
Hosting the Junos in March was a watershed moment for Edmonton and Alberta in 2023.
It's a night Alberta musicians didn't take for granted. Playing the Junos — the annual awards showcase for Canada's music industry — in their home province is a big deal.
"The fact that it's in the home province, that's icing on the cake right there," frontman Chad Kroeger of multi-platinum-selling band Nickelback, whose members hail from Hanna, Alta., told reporters during the event held at Rogers Place.
Getting the awards extravaganza to Edmonton took time.
"For Junos, we'd been working to get that event to our city since I want to say 2016," Janelle Janis, the executive director of events and business development for Explore Edmonton, the city's tourism arm, told CTV News Edmonton in a year-end interview.
Explore Edmonton is one of the organizations that works to bring major events to the city, such as this year's Junos, the Heritage Classic featuring the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames in October at Commonwealth Stadium and the Style Experience, a FIS Snowboard Big Air World Cup event, in December, also at Commonwealth.
It decides which ones to pursue based on its three key pillars: economic impact, image and reputation, and social and community benefits.
"It is the people that make Edmonton a special place and we just support events like no other city," Janis said. "We are one of the best fanbases in Canada, in my opinion."
That local support is what helped Edmonton see an economic impact of $165 million, support 46,000 jobs and book around 115,000 hotel stays during events throughout the year.
"(Tourists are) coming in Friday or they're coming in Thursday night and they're making a weekend of it," Jordan Beatty, the operations manager of four Edmonton-area pubs that make up the Sherlock Holmes Hospitality Group, told CTV News Edmonton. "That's the sort of thing those big events do for us, and we see it and plan for it."
He said the bigger the events that come to Edmonton and "the more people that come to town, the busier we are."
"When Garth Brooks was in town (for back-to-back shows at Commonwealth in 2022) or Luke Combs was in town (in June 2023, also at Commonwealth) — for those stadium tours, these hotels are full, which means we're busy for lunch and in the afternoon," Beatty said. "People go shopping, they're pre-concert drinking, they're post-concert drinking, they're getting off the (LRT) train to go back to their hotel. The bigger the event, the busier we are. It's just that simple."
Puneeta McBryan, the chief executive officer of the Edmonton Downtown Business Association, says making sure these rushes occur year-round is important to its members.
"If we can do that enough times throughout the year, January to December, then we can make sure that even if offices are a little slower, even if it's not hockey season, we've still got a steady flow of people coming in and using downtown for social purposes, entertainment purposes, business purposes," McBryan told CTV News Edmonton.
Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, McBryan said tourism and major events for downtowns in Edmonton, across North America and even globally is a "major part" of any revitalization strategy.
"Every downtown that I've studied, which is a lot of them, that's doing very well, tourism and events are a big part of their strategy," she said. "It's getting people into hotel rooms, into bars and restaurants, walking around shopping, making our city into a bit of a destination for a trip, so they may be coming for an event but they're probably going to stay a few extra days."
The city is back to enjoying a full slate of events following the pandemic, even rising above numbers seen before it, Janis said.
"Right now as it stands, we have surpassed the levels that we were at in 2019, which is pretty incredible to be able to state," she said. "I think Edmontonians are major sports fans, so when it comes to hosting the major sports events that we bring to the city, people are going to come out in droves, people are going to come out and cheer.
"It doesn't matter if it's a summer night or a freezing cold winter day, people are going to come out and support major events."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
Man banned from owning animals after fatal Calgary dog attack
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
DEVELOPING Hamas accepts Gaza ceasefire proposal from Egypt and Qatar
Hamas said it has accepted a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar, which seeks to halt the seven-month war with Israel in Gaza, prompting Israel to say it would send a delegation to negotiate – though it warned the proposal remained far from the 'necessary requirements.'
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
East-end Ottawa family dealing with massive rat infestation
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
2024 Met Gala: Everything to know about fashion's annual soiree
Fashion’s biggest night out — hosted at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York each year on the first Monday of May — is both a forever-evolving spectacle and a carefully crafted event.
Teacher charged in historical sexual assault of Calgary teenage girl
Calgary police have charged a teacher with the alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl more than 20 years ago.
Concern over speeding in Fredericton neighbourhood grows after 2 teens, young adult killed in crash
Three people – including two teens – are dead, and two others are injured after a crash that has left a greater Fredericton community shaken.