By Gemma Villaneuva
The Canadian Tulip Festival injected $40-million into the regional economy, but Centretown businesses say they will be largely unaffected by the potential loss of the cash-strapped spring celebration.
Jantine Van Kregten, spokesperson for Ottawa Tourism and Convention Authority, says the festival attracts about 500,000 people to the annual event and creates economic spinoffs to the region. She cites a study conducted in 2003, which reports the festival generated $40-million in total economic activity.
But the festival filed for bankruptcy late last month after four years of financial troubles blamed on low attendance due to cold, wet weather.
The festival’s bankruptcy trustee, Ginsberg Gingras and Associates, now estimate $750,000 in outstanding bills is owed to about 200 creditors. The Canadian Tulip Festival was launched in 1953 and celebrates the millions of tulips blooming throughout the city.
The festival runs for almost 20 days in May, and includes an outdoor concert series in Major’s Hill Park.
“May is one of our biggest months in terms of hotel occupancy and numbers of visitors,” says Van Kregten, adding that hotel occupancy rates reached 80.7 per cent last May.
David Smythe, general manager of the Lord Elgin Hotel, agrees that it is a busy time in Ottawa since hotels deal with not only with the tulip festival’s tourists, but also many conferences, conventions and group visits.
“If we had to lose some business, it’s better to do it in a month that is already strong and we may be able to weather the storm,” he says.
The Lord Elgin Hotel has been one of the festival’s official sponsors since its renovation program was completed about two years ago. The hotel has since been filled with tulip-inspired artwork and photography largely from the late Malak Karsh, a founder of the festival.
Smythe says he is optimistic that efforts will be made to revamp the festival because it has been a tradition in the city.
“There are many organizations that would probably find a way of making that happen in some new form,” he says, adding that his hotel’s bookings indicate tour companies are scheduled to arrive this May to see the tulips.
Dino Iafelice, owner of the Johnny Farina restaurant on Elgin Street, says the festival makes a difference by attracting tourists and boosting his clientele in the evenings.
“It would definitely put a dent [in business] if we lose the Tulip festival, but not as massive as other events the city offers,” he says. Last summer, more than 250,000 people attended Bluesfest and the Ottawa Jazz Festival had about 130,000 visits.
The festival has launched a new plan to make partial repayments. Creditors will vote on a settlement offered through the festival’s trustee at a general meeting on Nov. 24.
Under the offer, $100,000 will be divided so that creditors would receive about 13 cents on the dollar, says Claude Gingras, president of Ginsberg Gingras and Associates.
“If they accept, we go ahead with splitting the money,” he explains. “If it is refused, then it’s bankruptcy.”
While the festival’s board of directors resigned earlier this month, Gingras says he believes the event is still scheduled for May 2007. Former board members could not be reached for comment.
If the creditors accept the settlement, Gingras says he expects local businessman David Luxton, who is offering $35,000 to help pay the creditors, will reorganize the 2007 event.
Geoff Waddington is the president of RealDecoy, a computer applications company located on Catherine Street. For the past four years, he has been trying to collect almost $16,000 owed for the computer equipment and software his company supplied to the festival. Waddington says many hours in technical support and training were also offered through volunteering. If the tulip festival crumbles, he says it won’t have a big effect on his company since the unpaid bills have not been included in any planning.
“It’s just unfortunate because that money could be going towards creating jobs,” he says.
Waddington says he is still uncertain if he will accept or reject the latest offer.
“It’s not a lot of money,” he says. “But I suppose it’s better than nothing.”
Van Kregten says she hopes the festival will continue, and that she hopes the city will continue attracting tourists since the tulips will still bloom this spring.
“The tulips are still the main purpose, the main thing that draws people here,” she says.