Warmer weather offers some C.O. business perks
Lots of people were out and about in Bend Thursday, enjoying the unseasonably warm weather. But are they tourists visiting Central Oregon or local residents? For most restaurants, it really doesn’t matter where the customers come from. All that matters is that customers are able to make it out of their driveways and into the restaurant.
In years past, lots of snow meant fewer customers, less staff on hand, shortened hours and closures. With such little snow in town this year, restaurants have been able to make money every day.
Immersion Brewing is one business that has been happy to see a bit less snow this year, according to General Manager Chris Hakala.
“This year’s been great, with no snow,” Hakala said Thursday. “Last year, we had to close down a few times for the safety of our employees getting home, guests getting here. Of course, with the mountain, the Springhill Suites is always packed, but for the main part, our sales have increased.”
Jersey Mike’s Subs, Chicken Bonz, Cascade Lakes Brewing and Next Level Burger all said the same thing — that business is good this winter, without snow.
As for tour companies, it’s a mixed bag. Even though there are fewer people in town, the people who are here are able to go to the mountain, as well as take in-town tours.
Bend Tour Company has been able to take advantage of the dry ground and continue tours through the winter, according to the company’s contraption captain, John Flannery.
“Obviously, we all know there’s been a little less to shovel this year, and that has affected business in a good way,” Flannery said. “With that lack of snow, roads have been a lot clearer, so we’ve been able to take Segway tours, cruiser car tours, cycle pub tours, electric bike tours. None of those have snowmobile tires on them, so that lack of snow has been a good thing.”
Flannery also said tourists have the ability to adapt. If there isn’t enough snow to their liking, Central Oregon has enough to offer that it’s still worth visiting.
But according to the Bend Visitor Center, some businesses aren’t faring quite as well. Visit Bend keeps tracks of hotel numbers and, according to the group’s president, Kevney Dugan, those numbers are down.
“So when you look at TRT, transient room tax collection, which is this big broad metric of all short-term lodging, you know you’re still seeing a decrease in that September, October, November were all down slightly. It has varied anywhere from, on a given month, 3 to 10 percent decrease in occupancy rates,” Dugan said.
Despite the drop in hotel stays, Visit Bend found that there has been an increase in the vacation rental side. So there could be the same number or more people visiting Bend — but they’re just doing it differently.
