Although he has no firm numbers yet, Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano said the Empire State Games brought in a short-term economic boost to the county.
“We got some very good feedback from people who stayed here,” he said.
Mary Kay Manchin, general manager of Springhill Suites by Marriott in Tarrytown, said the games helped out during a typically light lodging season in the county.
“It was a great experience, great for the county, for business and all the hotels in this market,” she said.
One minor issue she ran into was there were some people who booked rooms for the whole weekend, but left after a couple of days if they were eliminated in their competition.
“Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were full, and we expected a sellout on Saturday but it was about 20 percent less than that,” she said.
If the county were to host the games again, Manchin said, “I might try to sell Saturday a little harder, maybe look at restrictions for length of stay, or take another look at pricing.”
The Empire State Games bills itself as the second-largest amateur sporting event in the world after the Olympics. Some 6,000 athletes between the ages of 13 and 75 participated in nearly 40 events at 30 locations in the county. This is the first time in the history of the games it was held in Westchester.
Before the games began, Spano said the county could reap a $15 million to $20 million windfall from the 20,000 athletes, spectators, referees and officials who attended the weeklong event.
Rich Stytzer, vice president of Antun”™s of Westchester and president of the Westchester-Rockland chapter of the New York Restaurant Association, said members of his organization he had spoken to noticed a definite increase in patrons during the week.
“There was a larger increase than normal during this time of year.”
While it was too early to calculate exactly how many tourist dollars came into the economy, Spano said the games were a definite boon to the county both short term and as a draw for visitors to return for future visits.
“There were a lot of people I talked to that didn”™t realize all we had to offer here,” he said.
Spano said many visitors thought Westchester was a mostly urban area.
“They were amazed to see all of our parkland and open spaces,” he said. “A lot of people really enjoyed the river villages, and going downtown there.”
As with any event of this large scale, not everything goes as planned. Spano said he heard some visitors from more rural areas of the state complain about traffic issues and difficulty navigating more dense downtown areas.
But overall, he believes Westchester made a good impression.
“I think there will be people who come back after seeing all we have to offer,” he said.
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
