Tony Vail has learned not to expect anything after 20 years in the events management industry. But when it comes to Maine’s winter high school basketball tournament, the general manager of the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor is hoping for a full house.
“We hope the building is just as electric as it was two years ago when we had the last one,” Vail said about the 6,500-seat arena, which will host the tournament starting next Friday along with the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland and Augusta Civic Center.
Bangor is celebrating the return of the Maine state high school basketball tournament, the first winter championship since February 2020 after COVID-19 forced last year’s cancellation. Businesses, in particular, are looking forward to the return of the annual tournament boost.
The Maine Principals’ Association, which organizes the tournament, has held other events since last winter, said executive director Mike Burnham. The association is anticipating large crowds at next week’s tournament now that venues like the Cross Center are allowing full spectator capacity, he said.
“What we have seen during the spring and fall were large crowds that wanted to come out and support the athletes,” Burnham said. “We are hoping to see that continue this winter.”
Businesses are anticipating increased traffic when fans, players and their families flock to the Queen City for tournament week, a welcome relief after last year’s cancellation meant a loss of much-needed revenue following the pandemic shutdown.
The Bangor area saw lodging sales drop by about $1.5 million, or by more than half, in February 2021 from the same period a year earlier, when families and fans were staying in hotels for the week, according to state data. Restaurants reported about $3.6 million less in sales, or an 18 percent drop, for that same time period.
John Hafford, the general manager of Seasons Grille and Sports Lounge on Main Street, pointed to the “Tourney Central” sign above the door to emphasize how big a deal the competition is for his restaurant.
Seasons usually doubles its sales on weekdays during that time, and sees a 25 percent bump on weekends, Hafford said.
“We’d probably put our [sales] increase at 65 percent just for that one week,” he said.
John Hafford, the general manager of Seasons Grille and Sports Lounge, has doubled staff’s shifts in anticipation of people streaming into the restaurant in between games; Cheyenne Moody, a bartender at Seasons, talks to customers Friday. Credit: Linda Coan O’Kresik / BDN
This year, Seasons has doubled its staff’s shifts in anticipation of people streaming into the restaurant between games.
Tia Hardy, a manager at Kobe Ninja House Japanese Bar and Grill on Hogan Road, said that tournament week is the busiest time of year for the steakhouse. She expects that this year will be no exception.
The restaurant has begun taking reservations, including from families coming from as far away as Presque Isle and Caribou. Kobe’s hibachi tables can seat up to 21 people at a time, so they can accommodate entire teams.
“Everyone loves it, especially the kids,” Hardy said.
Tournament week also coincides with the busiest time of the year for the Maine Discovery Museum in downtown Bangor because children are on February vacation then, said Autumn Allen, director of museum services.
The museum, which opened to the public this past week for the first time since shutting down during the pandemic, has limited hours and capacity, so Allen isn’t anticipating a noticeable bump in visitors, but anticipates more phone calls and walk-in visitors.
While the tournament is a big deal for his venue, Vail said the impact is even bigger for the city of Bangor, its people and its businesses.
“It’s obviously very special to the Cross Center, but the tournament has a much larger economic impact for the community,” Vail said, comparing the vibe to the NBA playoffs when he worked for the Golden State Warriors.
“It’s a really unique, cool atmosphere to be a part of,” he said.
