The City of Victoria spent far more than its original budget to host Touchdown Pacific, but maintains it got a lot for its investment.

A report on the cost of hosting the event, which culminated in a game between the BC Lions and the Ottawa Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park on Aug. 31, showed the city’s contributions totaled $491,500, far more than the original commitment of $350,000.

“By all indications, the event was a success and achieved the expected results,” said Deputy City Manager Thomas Soulliere. “Council approved the partnership with the BC Lions for Touchdown Pacific with specific goals in mind, including economic benefits and support for local businesses, family entertainment for residents and showing how Royal Athletic Park can be used for major events like this” .

The report noted that the city’s direct costs totaled $281,500, including turf improvements at Royal Athletic Park, facility preparation, policing and traffic control.

It also provided $210,000 to the BC Lions, who managed the $2 million event, to reimburse the team for the cost of temporary stands and goals, which the city will retain for future use.

Part of the event’s budget ($93,430) came from the parks department’s future budget, allowing the city to accelerate some improvements to Royal Athletic Park before the event, including concession upgrades, pavement patches, electrical work, painting and carpentry .

The city recovered just over $47,000 in food and concession sales during the game, bringing the city’s total funding to $443,000.

The event had an economic benefit to the region of approximately $16 million, according to Destination Greater Victoria estimates.

Soulliere told council on Thursday the figure represents money spent on accommodation, jobs created, food and beverage sales and other impacts on businesses around Greater Victoria.

Mayor Marianne Alto said several small businesses, not only around Royal Athletic Park but also downtown and elsewhere in the city, commented on the impact of the “volume of people that were here for those few days.”

The event concluded with the Lions’ 38-12 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks in front of a crowd of approximately 14,000 at Royal Athletic Park and a national television audience.

The report suggested that if the city were to host such an event again, it would like to receive a little more notice (ideally, a year or more), as well as a well-defined scope and a dedicated project team.

“Extra time and attention is particularly important when working with an older facility like (the Royal Athletic Park),” the report says.

Soulliere told council there were disruptions because the event attracted so many people to the area and attempts were made to mitigate the impact.

“There will be impacts every time we have a large event at the stadium,” he said. “One of the challenges we have is mitigating those impacts on immediately adjacent residences and other stakeholders. I think, overall, the planning was pretty well done.”

When asked if there could be another Touchdown Pacific event, Soulliere said it’s in the hands of the BC Lions and the Canadian Football League.

“We have not received that request yet. “If they make a request to the city, we will certainly take it into consideration and bring it to the council,” he said.

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