chairman, we leave it there. >> Thanks so much for your time.
>> Thanks for having me. >> With so many people coming
into Milwaukee and opening their wallets through the week, there
was an expectation for a $200 million economic boost to the
city. But as Stephen Potter reports, while some businesses
made out, others fell flat. >> For some, the restaurant
business this week in Milwaukee has been booming from the minute
we open our doors yesterday, all the way through, we have been
slammed busy. We have been packed full for Marla Poytinger
from the new fashioned bar and restaurant, which is right
across from the Fiserv Forum. The increase in traffic from the
Republican National Convention has more than exceeded
expectations. about the equivalent of one Bucs
game every day this week, which would have been fantastic four
days in a row. Yesterday alone, we did five Bucs games.
>> But for others who are further away from the convention
activity, business has been significantly different and
hearing people haven't been coming down.
not getting enough business. >> It seems like there are just
so many events going on, just we're also kind of on the
outskirts of the where everything's taking place. So, I
mean, people sometimes seems like they're forgetting, like
the little local local spots we had, like, you know, extra staff
on, on ready standby, but we've actually called off, a few few
people here and there just because numbers have not been
what we expected in the months preceding the convention, there
was a lot of talk and excitement about a substantial financial
bump coming from the infusion of the 50,000 convention attendees.
>> I think originally, the thought was it would be a $200
million in economic impact. >> Omar Shaikh of the high end
steakhouse carnivore says business at his restaurant has
been slower than he'd like. >> Yesterday we were decent, not
crazy by any means, not really overly busy.
>> Normally, Shaikh says, conventions that come to town
for company meetings and trainings are busy, but the
Republican National Convention >> There aren't restricted areas
and security and things of this nature. So I would say this is
political conventions are certainly different, Shaikh says
he's also talked to some restaurant owners who decided
not to open at all during the week of the convention, and they
said, well, look, I don't really have a lot of reservations on
the books. So if I don't have business, if I order a lot of
the product, you know, it's perishable, right? And they
don't do business and they actually lose money.
>> One person keeping a close eye on the economic impact of
the RNC is Dale Kooyenga. He's the president of the
Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, the
Milwaukee brand is known and it's things like this.
>> It's like the box, the Brewers events like this where
you could go around the world and people say, oh, I know
Milwaukee, Wisconsin. >> As for the lack of business,
some spots are seeing during the convention, Kooyenga says, you
can't just look at your four days.
>> You have to look at the longer impact of tourism in
Milwaukee. more of an economic impact from
the RNC, but he also understands it's a long game.
>> The greater hope is like that. Everyone that came here
from around the world and around the country to say, this is an
incredible city. I want to return to that city. I want to
go back to that restaurant. I that hotel, and hopefully that a