Core strengthening exercise Downtown preps for, cheers on flood of thousands at Whiteout street parties By: Gabrielle Piché Posted: 7:14 PM CDT Thursday, Apr. 11, 2024

Just off Portage Avenue, a restaurant is hurrying to open its patio before the expected blizzard of activity.

“We definitely need the space for when those Whiteouts happen,” said Malay Pitz, manager of Local Public Eatery.

The downtown restaurant is one of several awaiting the start of Winnipeg Jets playoff street parties. The events draw thousands of pedestrians to the area — an economic boon after a COVID-19 pandemic drought.

Local Public Eatery might see 400 customers during a Whiteout event. It has to open its patio early in the season for the extra 70 seats.

The company opened at 274 Garry St. during the pandemic. It’s been an uphill battle, but Local has leaned into Jets games — “We have a strong core business of Jets fans,” Pitz said — and it’s regularly busy on weekday nights when NHL hockey is happening in Winnipeg.

Staff have built promotions around home games at the Canada Life Centre: they’ll enter customers into a draw to have their bill covered by Local before puck-drop; they’ll hand out free beers to customers waiting for a seat and meal before a game.

Pitz believes the upcoming street parties — to begin later in April, when the NHL playoff schedule is set — will help Local grow its late-night business. After all, people need a place to drink once the games are over, she added.

The Downtown Winnipeg Business Improvement Zone tracked an extra 10,000 people in the city core during the Jets’ playoff run last year.

True North Sports and Entertainment Ltd., which owns the Jets and arena, touted a $377-million contribution to the province’s GDP during the 2022-23 fiscal year. It doesn’t track how much economic spin-off the street parties garner for nearby businesses.

Like Local, the Merchant Kitchen plans to open its patio early. It’s ordering roughly 25 per cent more food than it would for regular-season Jets games, said executive chef Jesse Friesen.

Friesen oversees the restaurant’s kitchen — across from the Canada Life Centre — and five other eateries in True North Square. He watches the Winnipeg Jets “very carefully.”

“A lot of our income and our revenue comes from the arena,” Friesen said. “This is almost like our playoffs as well — this is our time to shine.”

The restaurant’s parent company, Academy Hospitality, has asked roughly a dozen former employees to return to Merchant Kitchen, Yard Burger, Gusto North and its other downtown eateries for NHL playoff season.

A regular-season Jets game might draw 200 diners to the Merchant Kitchen; playoff games bring many more, Friesen stated.

The goal is to create a “fantastic experience” and draw repeat customers, Friesen relayed. He’s not worried: the Merchant Kitchen is busy during nights without events at the Canada Life Centre.

It’s not the case for everyone. Book Fair Winnipeg, a nearby Portage Avenue retailer, still considers traffic slow compared to decades past.

Jets street parties often don’t bring new customers to the shop, which sells comic books and novels. Book Fair is the only retailer on the block, noted co-owner Judy Weselowski.

“We need more retail on the street level to get people to come down,” she said. “I … wish we had more people who wanted to come back.”

Downtown is on a strong recovery path; it’s about “more feet on the street,” said Loren Remillard, president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce.

The Whiteout parties should bring thousands of feet to downtown streets.

“That’s the kind of vibrancy every downtown needs,” Remillard said. “That’s the kind of vibrancy healthy downtowns have.”

More people means more safety, added Kate Fenske, CEO of Downtown BIZ. The parties may help improve the perception of the area, she said.

Dane Surtees, general manager of Alt Hotel, is crossing his fingers for a clash between the Jets and at least one other Canadian-based NHL team. Fans of Canadian hockey teams book Winnipeg rooms during playoffs, and Alt Hotel is across the street from the arena.

Surtees is ready for more Winnipeg residents in the city’s core, too. Downtown has seen “a big improvement” in its day-to-day population, he noted.

Each Whiteout event has a maximum 5,000 tickets available. Attendees can watch games on large TV screens on Donald Street between Portage and Graham avenues, and inside the Metropolitan Entertainment Centre, True North announced Wednesday.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com