North Augusta really does need a hotel or two for just an event like this. But North Augusta also need more resturants than Ruby Tuesday and 10 Chinease Resturants and 3 Mexican Resturants and all the fast food places
NORTH AUGUSTA --- Forty basketball teams, more than 450 college coaches and 1,200 screaming fans and family members create increased cash flow for businesses in the greater Augusta area.
As the Nike Peach Jam settled into North Augusta this week, city officials said they can't calculate the exact economic effect of the AAU boys tournament, but the benefits far outweigh any negatives.
"If you go out in the community, they're enjoying the community and eating in restaurants," said Sam Bennett, city administrator. "It is a great, great coup for us, so folks know who we are on this side of the river."
Throughout the tournament, the city provides increased sanitation services and security, Mr. Bennett said.
"We recover all of those costs and more through arrangements with sponsors of the event," Mr. Bennett said. "There's not a negative impact on the city's operation budget. If anything, we benefit financially from the revenues."
One downside: With no large hotel or motel, North Augusta lacks the facilities to house teams and visitors.
"Our biggest goal in the future would be to bring hotel rooms to this side of the river to accommodate the things that go on in North Augusta," Mr. Bennett said.
Most of the 2,500 estimated visitors head to Augusta each night.
"We do our part to promote North Augusta restaurants, but it's Augusta that benefits because folks are staying in Augusta," said Rick Meyer, the Riverview Park superintendent of parks, recreation and leisure services.
Mr. Meyer estimates that the immediate impact of the tournament on the area is at least $500,000.
Even volunteers who feed players and coaches at First Baptist Church of North Augusta end up fueling the economy, Mr. Meyer said. Teams are fed lunch and dinner each day, but supply purchases are made in the area.
Little touches like a home-cooked meal keep the tournament in town, Mr. Meyer said.
"It's called hospitality is what it is," he said. "It gives them more of a homey feel."
And eventually families need a run to Wal-Mart or other stores for necessities, Mr. Meyer said.
Reach Julia Sellers at (706) 823-3424 or julia.sellers@augustachronicle.com.
Comments
North Augusta really does need a hotel or two for just an event like this. But North Augusta also need more resturants than Ruby Tuesday and 10 Chinease Resturants and 3 Mexican Resturants and all the fast food places
North Augusta really does have a 22 room facility for these guests to stay in unfortunately the city tends to ignore them even though they are the homes of the founders of their city. Due to lack of support from the city in situations such as these the historic inns are closing. North Augusta officials are "in bed" with the powers-that-be in Augusta, that is why the guests go across the river; not because there is no place to stay here.
"the immediate impact ...on the area is at least 500K". I don't see much of that in NA, but I do see the lack of respect that the visitors have for our community (trash all over the rec center & grounds, and some unsupervised kids all over the place).
For years I have dreaded the start of the peach jam...what a mess at our rec center.....trash ..vulger language loud nasty music and bands of wandering strangers all over the place...AND North Augusta doesn't get any of the money generated by all this noise.. just the garbage......let them have it in Augusta!
Not too high on the intelligence ladder, but money has no smell.
Is it not possible to negotiate these grievances with the coaches, and those in coaches these events before they arrive. They can then give a cultural briefing to these team members. One would think visitors would know the basic courtesy, but unfortunately most do not.
There should be more hotels and resturants in north augusta. If you want that money to stay in north augusta and not augusta.
But more money in augusta. Will only help martinez, north aug, aiken, evans, grovetown, and hephzibah. When the city of atlanta started to boom it helped its bedroom communites and suburbs also.
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