The Economic Impact of a Small, Short-Term Recreation Event on a Local Economy

Abstract

The economic impacts of small short-termrecreation events have not been widely researched, yet they provide the sort of information that recreation practitioners could use to support and justify their budget submissions. In this article the economic impact of a three-day old-timers hockey tournament on its local community is presented. It was found that the average family attending the event spent between 200 and 300 Canadian dollars. Comparable studies are noted, and complementary impacts are briefly elaborated, that indicate the need for researchers to explore the total local level impacts of parks and recreation services. This type of research would provide park and recreation practitioners with the information they need to justify their budgets, and to support their submissions through the unfavorable political budget decision-making processes that appear to exist currently.