By Gagandeep Ghuman
Published: Feb. 18, 2012.
The RBC GranFondo Whistler funnelled $650,000 into the Squamish economy, the race organiser informed the council at the Committee of the Whole meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 14.
As many as 7,000 riders took part in the race.
“These are affluent people, and our research suggests 95 per cent will recommend it to their friends,” event organiser Kevin Thomson said.
The total industry output representing direct and indirect expenditures for the event was $8.2 million.
The windfall for Squamish was $650,000, while people who came to train to town pumped another $140,000 in the local economy.
Squamish companies such as Miller Capilano benefitted from the event, while partipants in the race spent money at local hotels and restaurants.
There were 400-600 training rides in Squamish before the event, Thomson added.
Thomson said the GranFondo, where cyclists travel from Vancouver to Whistler, is now the largest cycling event in North America,
The event generated a torrent of positive media coverage, with GranFondo being voted as the “Best Cycling Event in Western Canada” by Get Out There Magazine.
It was also awarded the ‘Spirit of Vancouver’ 2011 special event award.
The highway closure, however, was a sore point for many local residents.
Soccer games, Brackendale Fall Fair, and the Squamish Farmers Market were just some of the events affected by the game.
The issue of highway closure was raised by Councillors Ted Prior and Ron Sander.
They asked the organisers to reconsider traffic routes and consult with the community on the event.
Thomson said the organisers were committed to “minimize the negativities.”
The district is also hoping to leverage the event to benefit more local businesses than it does now, Cameron Chalmers, director of community services, said.
The district is hoping to market Squamish as the training centre, and enhance the spectator site at the Garibaldi Mall.
COUNCIL SCRAPS $5 TRAL USER EVENT FEES
With Coun. Ron Sander opposed, the Squamish council voted to scrap the $5 trail user event fees.
The trail fee had been applied inconsistently, the economic coordinator Dan McRae told the council.
The vast majority of trails are not on district owned land, he said, making it difficult to apply the $5 fees.
Coun. Ron Sander said trails should not be treated any different from the ice rink or the swimming pool.
“If you use these facilities, you pay for them. It shouldn’t be any different with trails,” Sander said.
Coun. Bryan Raiser said he’s fine with scrapping the $5 fees, but reminded the council money must be poured into trails.
“We are making millions of dollars from our trail infrastructure. It’s time we put some money into it,” he said.
