Deferring Grey Cup to cost Regina $100 million of economic activity, chamber says

The Regina and District Chamber of Commerce estimates that not hosting the Grey Cup in 2020 will cost the city about $100 million in lost economic activity, with hotels and the hospitality sector to be hit the hardest.

“Clearly we would have loved to have seen a normal Grey Cup, but people’s safety comes first. We respect the CFL’s decision,” read a statement from the organization on Wednesday.

The CFL and the Saskatchewan Roughriders made the announcement Wednesday that, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the 2020 Grey Cup won’t be played in Regina — unless the Roughriders win the right to play host to the CFL’s title game.

If the league has a 2020 season, the Grey Cup will be hosted by the team that had the better regular-season record among the two qualifiers.

Instead of this November, Regina is to play host to the 2022 Grey Cup game and festival. The 2021 game is to be played in Hamilton.

As Saskatchewan gradually reopens, chamber CEO John Hopkins said there is some optimism among members.

“But it’s still a major challenge, particularly for those that are still shuttered, like some restaurants and gyms and a range of others,” Hopkins told the Greg Morgan Morning Show on Thursday.

Hopkins said it’s too early to see the pandemic’s full economic impact, and whether some businesses will close permanently.

On Wednesday, the federal government announced a rent assistance program to help businesses survive the pandemic.
Ottawa would extend forgivable loans to landlords so they can cut rent to their tenants by 75 per cent.

The federal and provincial governments would combine to pay half the rent owed while the tenant would pay 25 per cent using existing relief measures.

Landlords would be asked to absorb a 25 per cent loss.

Hopkins would like to see assistance given to businesses being asked to pay rent.

“Somehow, some way, it needs to be the tenants that can access that and then pay the landlord,” he said.

“The fact is, these businesses have not had cash flow for two months and to expect them to pay rent when there’s no money coming in, it just doesn’t work. A lot of people are putting their life savings into this and more, burgeoning their lines of credit and whatever else they can do just to stay open.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is an amended version of the story, correcting the requirements to be the host team for the 2020 Grey Cup game.