Local teams impact state finals revenue

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - The IHSAA Girls Basketball State Finals will take place on Saturday in Fort Wayne. Three of the eight teams are from Fort Wayne. One official says that may have an impact on how much money comes back to the city.

Back in June the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the Fort Wayne Sports Corporation announced the 2010 Girls High School State Basketball Finals were coming to Fort Wayne. Five of the teams in Saturday's games will be from outside of Fort Wayne.

"They're excited, their fans are excited to be here in the state tournament so I believe they will travel with a lot of fans. I think you will see that our hotels, restaurants, shopping centers, it's gonna be a busy weekend for everyone," said Randy Brown, General Manager of the Memorial Coliseum.

The other three teams are from Fort Wayne. Canterbury will play for the 1A title, Bishop Luers will play in 2A, and Concordia will play in 3A.

"I think it probably lessens the economic impact just a bit it would have to. Obviously people who live in Fort Wayne won't be spending as much money at the restaurants or staying overnight," said Art Salsberg, Fort Wayne Sports Corporation.

Despite that fact, officials expect nearly $500,000 to come back to the city. They also expect the Memorial Coliseum to be full on Saturday, and they're all proud to have three Fort Wayne teams playing for titles.

"I'm thrilled to have three local teams, just to have them here the excitement in the community, enjoying the experience, and for them to be able to pass along their Coliseum experience to our out of town guests coming in," said Brown.

Fort Wayne is hosting the finals because of a scheduling conflict in Indianapolis. Fort Wayne hopes to be considered for other big events.