Sunday, January 4, 2009

Warm-Weather Bowls Feeling Chill from Midwest Economic Woes

Just a few weeks ago, people outside Michigan and other industrial states were asking why the federal government didn't just let the American auto industry fail. They are dinosaurs, whose failure was inevitable and who cares.

But now it's college football bowl season and all those non-industrial states are hoping the sons and daughters of those over-paid autoworkers will come south to cheer their university footbeall teams on to victory. And drop a few thousand dollars into the southern economies in the process.

And all of a sudden, the businesses in the tourism states are starting to figure out why a strong industrial economy should matter to them. The lesson is being learned through the teaching aid of empty seats in football stadiums, empty beds in hotel rooms, and empty chairs in restaurants.

In Orlando, where Michigan State University appeared in the Capital One Bowl, the Orlando Sentinal reports the game was far from a sell-out -- only 60,000 seats filled in a 65,438-seat stadium. And hotel occupancy was down 23 percent.

Michigan State had nearly 1,000 unsold tickets from its allotment, the cost of which were deducted from the team's payout. Wisconsin also failed to sell its allotment for the Champs Sports Bowl, which was also played in Orlando.

And the newspaper also reported only 25,205 people went to the St. Petersburg Bowl, that a "smaller-than-usual crowd" was expected for the Orange Bowl.

Elsewhere in Florida, the Miami Herald reported tickets for the Orange Bowl game, which featured Cincinnai, were selling for as little as $10.

And the New Orleans Times-Picayune admits that the Sugar Bowl also had sluggish ticket sales. The attendance officially was listed at 71,872, short of last year's near-capacity crowd of nearly 75,000.

So what does 4,000 fewer fans mean? A lot in terms of empty hotel rooms and restaurant tables.

The same was true in the Southwest, where Phoenix-area merchants are bemoaning the slow sales for the Fiesta Bowl featuring Ohio State. The Arizona Republic quoted an Ohio travel agent as saying demand was "terrible" for bowl packages to the Phoenix area for the game. In response, Phoenix-area hotels were cutting prices.

Yes, times are tough all over. When you make your living by soaking up extra dollars from the paychecks of people who actually make things, you can't expect to do well if they're all laid off.

What goes around, comes around.

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