By Diana Mendes
Businesses in the Lansdowne Park area are welcoming news that a new football team may soon move into Frank Clair Stadium on Bank Street.
Gary Smith, owner of The Barley Mow, a bar down the street from the stadium, says the loss of the Renegades has cost him business.
“On game days our business would increase probably around 30 to 40 per cent,” he said. “And because we’re so close, a lot of the front office staff, coaches, and players would often come down to our place.”
As the league tries to find a new investor for an Ottawa franchise, the businesses around Lansdowne Park are looking forward to the return of a football team to boost sales and inject energy back into the area.
Gordon Lilley, owner of the Royal Oak at Bank and Second Avenue, says he has noticed a difference since the Renegades have been gone.
“It has an effect on business. I don’t know if I can quantify it …we would have certainly done well on game nights,” he said.
It’s not just pubs that have lost out. Sean Everett, associate manager of The Papery, a stationery store on Bank Street at Fifth Avenue, says he noticed an increase in foot traffic.
“It definitely brought more people to the neighbourhood. It definitely created a sense of excitement. And with that comes one more person who may notice the store,” says Everett.
Shannon Dorion, owner of Jericho, a Mediterranean restaurant on Bank Street near Fourth Avenue, says she has noticed a difference in atmosphere since the Renegades left.
“With the Renegades, you hear of people coming early to get parking and that leads to shopping and that leads to spending money,” she said. “Everyone benefited from the Renegades: stores, restaurants. It brought people from different areas.”
Not so, says Panina Pickard, owner of Infusion Bistro at Bank and Fourth Avenue. She says football fans are not the clientele her restaurant usually attracts. “I’m sure for the pubs it’s better […] They just think we’re fancy.”
Coun. Clive Doucet says football games benefit local bars and restaurants more than any other type of business.
“It may have an effect on bars. But in general, big events at Lansdowne take away business rather than generate it. Think about it: when you have 35,000 people [at these games] people don’t want to shop along Bank Street because they don’t want to deal with the crowds,” he said.
Patrick Desrosiers, who oversees events and bookings at Lansdowne Park, says every effort is being made to bring a football team back to Frank Clair Stadium.
“With regards to the stadium, there are efforts to see a football team in the near future. I hope it will be 2007, but it will probably be 2008,” says Desrosiers.
The future of the stadium has been unclear since the CFL suspended the Ottawa Renegades last spring. Since then, three potential buyers have emerged including investment group Golden Gate Capital, Toronto-based food and beverage entrepreneur Frank D’Angelo, and a group of investors led by former CFL player Bill Palmer. Each group has submitted a letter of interest to the league.
Despite these problems and doubts over a new team, The Barley Mow’s Smith says he is looking forward to football’s return, as are many of his patrons.
“People are still skeptical here, but they’re hoping they’ll come back.”