One of the worst things about the timing of the shutdown of the federal government in Northern Arizona was that it happened at the peak of the fall tourist season when temperatures are mellow, both mountains and canyons are exploding with golden foliage, and the region typically enjoys a surge of visitors.
One of the better things about the timing of the shutdown was that it lasted only 16 days. Different businesses and tourism attractions experienced the shutdown differently – those differences ranged from devastating to beneficial.
“If anything, we were maybe even more busy,” said Kenton Krueger, floor manager of Peace Surplus, an outdoor retailer in downtown Flagstaff. “The complexion of our business was a little different,” added Krueger. “We were helping people figure out what to do now.” He said they sent people up to BLM land in southern Utah and to “hot spots” like Sycamore Canyon and the Inner Basin of the San Francisco Peaks.
Peace Surplus owner Steve Chatinsky noted there were even more tour buses in town during the shutdown and “Our [sales] numbers were exactly the same. Our mix changed: We sold more Route 66 items, more butane fuel and fewer dry bags,” but otherwise store numbers were unchanged, he said.
However, daily and overall revenue losses that were a direct result of the partial government shutdown in this region were devastating and unrecoverable for other companies, particularly those located next to Grand Canyon National Park or those relying heavily on tourists visiting the park.
“The number we used was one million dollars a day,” said Bruce Brossman, Arizona regional director of sales and marketing, Xanterra Parks & Resorts. His company owns and operates Grand Canyon Railway, the Grand Hotel in Tusayan and the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel in Williams. “That’s revenue that would have been there but didn’t materialize, and there’s no way to make that up. October is one of our busiest months. People were just looking for things to do. We worked with everyone we could to reschedule and to cancel with no penalty.”
The Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce conducted a survey of member businesses about the shutdown. Some findings from the series of questions asked included that 30 percent of the businesses said they had not been affected at all. Another 30 percent said their business had suffered, and more than 15 percent said someone in their immediate family had been affected. Slightly more than 10 percent of businesses surveyed indicated that they had to either lay off employees or reduce employee hours as a result of the shutdown.
“…I do truly believe that our region could have been one of the hardest hit in the nation due to the level of revenue generation attributed to the Grand Canyon National Park and all the ancillary businesses associated with visitation,” said Julie Pastrick, president and CEO of the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce. “River runners, tour operators, hotels, restaurants and attractions across the area all were affected.”
Meanwhile, staff members at the Flagstaff Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Flagstaff Visitor Center were working diligently, and at times at a furious pace, during the two-week shutdown to encourage visitors to this region to consider and discover attractions other than Grand Canyon National Park and other area federal parks and monuments.
Heidi Hansen, director of the Flagstaff Convention & Visitors Bureau, noted staffing, which was “all hands on deck,” did a wonderful job helping visitors rearrange their itineraries when the government shut down. “The CVB staff and the Visitor Center staff created handouts that visitors could use that offered several ideas on other area attractions and restaurants they could visit,” Hansen said. “They typically would see 150 visitors per day this time of year, but were seeing 300 plus during the shutdown…Many visitors received help rearranging their entire stay.” The flagstaffarizona.org website was updated constantly with ongoing news about the shutdown, she added.
But the financial impacts made for a gloomy story at other businesses, and some of the individual stories of visitors to the region were heartrending.
In Tusayan, the impacts were felt in an immediate, in-your-face way. Tour groups from as far away as Germany and France were already in town, hotels were booked solid for those critical two weeks, and many other people were en route to the South Rim when Grand Canyon National Park was ordered shut down on Oct. 1. The park did not reopen until Oct. 16, and those were two very long, dreary weeks for companies doing business in the Grand Canyon gateway town of Tusayan.
“We were down 57 percent, compared to our target numbers,” said Janet Rosener, general manager of the National Geographic Visitor Center in Tusayan. “We heard so many stories of people who had planned their trips – we heard so, so many stories.” One of the stories was from a 91-year-old Swedish man who was making his last trip to the United States – and of course couldn’t see the Grand Canyon. Also, an Australian visitor ended up participating in a march organized by Tusayan businesses to the South Rim entrance. The lady from Australia said the public lands in Australia belong to the public and this closure was shameful, recalled Rosener.
Back in Flagstaff, the shutdown became a boon for tourist attractions, including the Museum of Northern Arizona and Arizona Snowbowl.
At MNA, staff scrambled to help an unusual number of visitors during the shutdown, at exactly the time major repairs and upgrades were in progress on the roof and courtyards. “We did our best to help frustrated visitors from around the world re-plan their once-in-a-lifetime vacation,” said Shannon Benjamin, manager of Visitor Services for MNA.
Museum staff helped visitors find their way to other attractions, such as Riordan Mansion, Lowell Observatory, the Pioneer Museum, historic downtown Flagstaff and Monument Valley. Bus tours that would not normally stop at the museum filled its parking lots, which were partially closed because of construction. Benjamin said the museum ran shuttles to buses that could not park nearby.
The shutdown heralded a surprise boost in visitation to Arizona Snowbowl for the Scenic Chairlift Ride. “We did 1,600 riders during that time frame in the extra four days per week we opened,” said Ksenia Hartl, in Snowbowl marketing. “We were happy with that turnout… All in all, we were glad we opened – the leaves and weather were fantastic.”
It would be difficult to total up the small-business losses caused by the negative ripple effect from the loss of business at this key tourist season. The hit those small companies took was like air escaping a balloon – all that air represented lost revenues.
Impacts were certainly felt and measured in both direct economic hits and ruined vacations for visitors who had booked with these larger companies.
“It couldn’t have been at a worse time for us,” said Xanterra’s Brossman, in a phone interview from Grand Canyon. “It’s one of the busiest times up here, and after that the season just slowly declines going into the holidays.” He added that Xanterra is not going to be able to make up that lost revenue and that “We’re glad it’s over.” Brossman added, “The toughest part of the whole thing for our company was the disappointed guests. It’s crushing to people who have tried to go to Phantom Ranch, and they were not able to go.” Especially since reservations there are often made more than a year in advance. FBN
Steele Wotkyns is the owner of the public relations firm WotkynsPRplus.