ARDA releases economic impact assessments

ARDA has released two economic impact assessments; the 2010 Evolve Festival, a three day music festival that attracts thousands of spectators and participants each year, and the 2010 Antigonish Minor Hockey Novice Spring Challenge, an annual weekend tournament that brought 22 Novice teams from across Nova Scotia to Antigonish.

“Although these events are very different in nature, the point is events like these leave a positive economic impact on the community” says Gerry Grant, executive director at ARDA. “These assessments measure that impact by surveying participants and taking into account the operational expenses by the organizers.”

From its inception in 2000, Evolve draws in musicians, performers, and attendees from around the world. In 2010, it was voted Best Festival in Canada by listeners of CBC Radio 3 Searchlight and had 2,963 spectators.

With the facilitation and coordination of ARDA, the Evolve assessment was completed in partnership with Events Nova Scotia and the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance (CSTA).
Out of the 2,963 spectators, ARDA surveyed 481 visitor parties representing 585 visitors who were from outside of Antigonish; 69% of whom were from other parts of Nova Scotia, 25% from Atlantic Canada, 4% from other parts of Canada, and 2% were international visitors. To conduct the assessment, CSTA used STEAM PRO (Sport Tourism Economic Assessment Model – Professional version), which measures the economic impact of an event on a community.

The combined operations and visitor expenditures directly associated with the festival totaled $811,000, resulting in an increase in net economic activity (GDP) of $854,000 in the province, of which $497,000 occurred in Antigonish. These expenditures supported $595,000 in wages and salaries in the province through the support of 17.5 jobs. In the Antigonish region, 12.4 jobs were supported by the festival, with wages and salaries paid totaling $374,000. The total economic activity (industry output) generated by the festival was $1.8 million throughout Nova Scotia, with $1.2 million occurring in Antigonish.

Considerable tax revenues were also produced by the festival, totaling $328,000. The event supported federal government tax revenues of $157,000 while an additional $142,000 in taxes accrued to the provincial government. Moreover, $27,000 in taxes was supported in Nova Scotia municipalities, of which $18,000 accrued in Antigonish.

“This assessment proves the significant impact Evolve has on Antigonish,” says Jonas Colter, the festival’s organizer. “The fact that it brings $1.2 million of economic activity into the community proves that it’s a major driver of the local tourist season and the economics of the local area.”

Besides playing host to one of Nova Scotia’s best music festivals, Antigonish is well known for its strong roots in hockey. For a weekend in March, the Novice Spring Challenge was hosted in Antigonish. The Antigonish Arena and both ice surfaces at the Keating Millennium Centre held 48 games for 22 Novice teams.

Using the STEAM model, information from the 320 participants, 667 spectators and the operational expenditures of the event’s organizers ($15,364), the collective spending was $86,988. This $86,988 generated an estimated $189,245 in economic activity for the province of which $133,357 occurred in Antigonish. This spending supported approximately $57,068 in wages and salaries for Nova Scotia through the support of 1.9 jobs, of which 1.5 were in Antigonish. The total net economic activity (GDP) produced by the tournament was $91,506 for the province, with $61,353 occurring in Antigonish.

The province and the two municipalities in Antigonish will see the benefits of the significant tax revenues supported by the Novice Spring Challenge, which totaled $36,765. The event also supported tax revenues for all three levels of government; federal government tax $16,561, the provincial government tax $16,031, and municipal government tax $4,173.

“When you really break it down and analyze the figures, the fact that these two events bring in close to $1.3 million in economic activity is remarkable,” says Grant. “Antigonish is extremely lucky to have events like these that support the local economy.”

Evolve Music Festival 2010
Novice Spring Challenge - 2011