According to a study prepared for Expos President and Owner
Claude Brochu the losses to the Montreal economy due to the
cancellation of the season "are significant." The study,
conducted by Ernst & Young, says the loss to the local economy
and to all levels of government will amount to at least C$66M.
Factoring in Montreal's possible participation in post-season
play, the loss rises to C$113M -- including C$23.5M in lost tax
revenue to the province of Quebec and C$21.5M to the Canadian
government. While MONTREAL GAZETTE's Peter Hadekel writes that
estimates of economic spin-offs from sports "are often suspect,"
he calls the Expos "a bit of a special case. They draw 60
percent of their revenue base from U.S. sources, including money
from network television, licensing and their share of gate
revenues on the road. Take that stimulus out of the Quebec
economy and it would be difficult to replace" (MONTREAL GAZETTE,
9/21).
ST. LOUIS BLUES: "Factories were hiring, but baseball-
dependant businesses were firing and so the unemployment rate
didn't budge in St. Louis in August." State labor analyst
Randall Clark attributed many of the 1,500 restaurant and
recreation job losses in the area to the strike (Jim Gallagher,
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 9/21).
BAY AREA REPORT: While sales and marketing execs at the
Giants and A's "say they are huddling on strategies to come from
behind in the public-opinion series," they will probably wait for
a settlement, just like the fans. A's Exec VP Andy Dolich: "We
have lots of thoughts, but we haven't come up with specifics. ...
[In the end] what the baseball fan cares about is only two words
... 'play ball.'" Giants Senior VP of Business Operations Pat
Gallagher: "In terms of developing themes or gimmicks, we're
certainly not going to be cavalier about what's happened or
downplay it. I think we have to remind people about what they
love about the game -- the simple pleasure of watching the game,
of being a fan" (Louis Trager, SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER, 9/21).