Bowl game generates $58 mil for Pasadena

By Dan Abendschein, Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 30, 2008

PASADENA - Every year, Anthony Dambrosia flies out from Connecticut and sets up a makeshift stand near the Villa Sorriso Restaurant on Colorado Boulevard to hawk Rose Bowl merchandise.

Despite price increases and an economy in recession, Dambrosia believes his little stand will do good businesses this year.

”This is a pretty affluent area. I don't think it will be a problem,“ he said.

Along with contributing to the local sales tax base, Dambrosia is among thousands of people spending money on food and lodging this week - helping to generate $58.6 million for Pasadena's economy, according to a new study by the USC Marshall School of Business, which estimated the Rose Bowl's economic benefit to the city.

Of that amount, $5.6 million will go directly to the city in tax revenue. Another $30.6 million will come from ticket revenue, direct spending by game attendees, corporate sponsors and other sources related directly to the game.

The study is the first to calculate the effects of the game solely on Pasadena's economy, rather than on the larger county economy, said Darryl Dunn, general manager of the Rose Bowl.

”We think the stadium and the game itself are huge economic contributors to Pasadena,“ said Dunn. ”And we hope and believe that people understand that as well.“

The study also estimates $20 million will be generated from the game in indirect revenues, such as sales tax, hotel taxes, and other taxes.

Evidence of those benefits was already on display Monday in Old Pasadena, where dozens of shorts-wearing tourists ringed the streets and vendors selling Rose Bowl merchandise set up shop.

Local established businesses also cash in on the game. At Crown City Loan and Jewelry on Colorado, owner Todd Robinson said sales of Rose Bowl T-shirts, scarfs, pennants and other items are a small but important part of his annual business.

Because the Rose Bowl Operating Co., which operates the stadium, has a largely self-sufficient annual operating budget, the city currently is profiting extremely well from the game, Dunn said.

But income from the game and other events is not sufficient for the long-term stadium renovations that Rose Bowl officials say it needs. The operating company currently is working with the city to develop a $300 million renovation plan.

The plan calls for demolishing 340,000 square feet of structures ringing the west side of the stadium and replacing them with a new three-story press box and luxury suites. The Rose Bowl's entrance tunnels would be widened and the seats would be replaced, according to preliminary plans.

The challenge for the Rose Bowl and the city, said Councilman Victor Gordo, who sits on the operating company's board, will be to find investors for the project. That and overcoming any opposition from residents in neighborhoods around the stadium, he added.

Still, said Gordo, the USC study shows there's a need to complete the project to keep the stadium profitable in the future.

”We don't want it to go the way of the Orange Bowl,“ said Gordo, referring to the Miami stadium that was torn down earlier this year.

”There are very few cities of our size that are known on the world stage, and the Rose Bowl is a big part of why Pasadena is recognized around the world.“