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Parks and recreation reports surge in events, hotel demand and attendance for 2025

5841140 · September 24, 2025

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Summary

Parks and recreation director Jamie Abshire told the City Council on Sept. 23 that the department estimates $8.5 million in direct business sales tied to park events in 2025, with weekend attendance up to about 223,000 and hotel-night demand growing sharply from 2024.

Jamie Abshire presented the annual Parks and Recreation update to the City of Bruce City Council on Sept. 23, reporting substantial year‑over‑year gains in events, attendance and local economic impact. Abshire said estimated direct business sales for 2025 are about $8.5 million, compared with roughly $3.76 million in the same period last year.

Abshire said single‑night hotel demand for 2025 was just over 8,100 nights versus about 3,000 in 2024; multiple‑night hotel demand was 15,510 nights in 2025 versus about 6,000 the previous year. He reported 29 weekend events in 2025 compared with 24 in 2024 and said the department’s tracked attendance for those weekends was about 223,000 in 2025 versus about 182,000 in 2024. "Our attendance is up, almost 20%," Abshire told the council.

Abshire listed recent tournaments and events that staff say drove the increases: Bullets Sports (JUCO softball), the Acadiana Como high‑school softball tournament (92 teams), Cajun Lineup soccer (LA Crew), multiple state‑level and regional softball tournaments, youth football events and the Crawfish Classic Tennis Tournament. Abshire said the recent PGF Softball Tournament brought 57 teams, about 80% of which were from out of town, including teams from Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas.

On youth registration, Abshire said rec soccer had 544 registrations and competitive soccer could reach about 600 players; flag football registered about 230 participants. He said most seasonal registration windows are closed now and the department expects to reopen for spring youth baseball and softball registration in December.

Council members asked about tennis tracking and the effect of recent facility investments; Abshire said he will begin counting tennis event metrics and provide numbers to council. He also noted that weekday recreation leagues remain steady while weekends are filled with tournaments, and he credited council and staff investments in facilities for the growth.

No council action was required; the presentation served as an informational update.