NCAA tournament brings economic boost to Manhattan

MANHATTAN (KSNT) - The City of Manhattan is preparing to host the opening rounds of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament this weekend. While the city is no stranger to big sporting events, a tournament of this size is expected to deliver a huge economic boost.

Manhattan last hosted the tournament in 2003. City leaders and local businesses tell 27 News it's a great opportunity to show off what makes the Little Apple so special.

While fans aren't watching the games, Visit Manhattan Director Marcia Rozell hopes they'll venture out and take advantage of all that Manhattan has to offer.

"Having those fans come in, the economic impact that it will have as they spend money in our restaurants," Rozell said. "They buy fan-based products, you know, whether they're cheering on the Cats or their own team, they're going to be coming in and purchasing things."

Hilton Garden Inn General Manager Brad Everett said with so many out-of-towners in the area, they expect every single room will be booked this weekend.

"I think some of it is attributed to the conference center, but more importantly I think some of it obviously with the fans," Everett said. "As I heard on the news, K-State is almost sold out for the games, so that type of volume of visitors to our community are going to need a place to stay."

And while the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament is expected have a positive economic impact on Manhattan, at least one K-State fan is looking forward to welcoming out-of-town guests just to show off his hometown.

"We have a lot of great places to eat, a lot of great places to shop," Manhattan resident Dave Lewis said. "It's a fun thing to be able to be in Manhattan whenever we have an opportunity to welcome guests to town."

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