This year's whiteout parties are going to cost you more green.
The Winnipeg Jets will charge $10 for a ticket to get into the downtown street party during the NHL team's home playoff games, which will again see Donald Street closed down between Portage and Graham avenues.
There will be 5,000 tickets for each party, which will include food and alcohol vendors and Jets merchandise.
This year there will also be a Party in the Plaza, near the statue of Jets legend Dale Hawerchuk in True North Square, kitty-corner to the Jets' arena, Canada Life Centre.
That one will cost $20 and it's limited to 1,000 people.
"We know it's important for Winnipeg fans to have a rallying point and this show of support is vitally important to us, to the team, to the city and to our country," said Kevin Donnelly, senior vice-president of venues and entertainment for True North Sports and Entertainment, which owns and operates the NHL team.
"We know the entire hockey world watches these events and marvels at the incredible atmosphere that our fans create both inside and outside of our rink."
Half of the proceeds from the street party tickets will go to local agencies focused on homelessness, mental health and addictions. The plaza party is separate, hosted by Hargrave Street Market, and a portion of those proceeds will also be donated, though it was not stated how much.
Donnelly said it is necessary to have some control over the crowd size and charging admission helps.
"Having a fluid number like we did before really put immense pressure on all our partners, including neighbours downtown," he said at a news conference Friday.
In 2018, fans in white flooded down Donald for two blocks, along Graham for another two, and even into the plaza at the Millennium Library. An estimated total of 120,000 were in the crowds over the course of nine street parties.
In 2019, True North charged $5 for tickets and limited the capacity to 15,000 for each party.
Other NHL cities have fixed capacity for outdoor events as well, Donnelly said. The 5,000 limit allows a comfortable and safe gathering that can still be loud and fun, he said.
"We felt it was a sweet spot that is going to create that atmosphere," he said.
But if the Jets happen to have a deep Stanley Cup playoff run, "I think we'll revisit this," Donnelly said.
Tickets for both parties will go on sale April 17 at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.
The Donald Street party will open two hours before faceoff for each home game. Giant screens at each end will broadcast the game.
The Party in the Plaza will open four hours before puck drop. It will offer live entertainment and the game on a big screen.
As well as keeping a lid on crowd sizes, the ticket funds help cover some of the cost of hosting the street party, Donnelly said.
"These things are expensive to put on. Our operational cost … is a six-figure effort for each and every event," he said.
The city and province are also contributing to the costs, but "we're still working out the exact details," said Dayna Spiring, CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg.
"crowd" - Google News
April 15, 2023 at 12:26AM
https://ift.tt/4uQHRfw
Jets whiteout parties slapped with higher ticket prices, smaller crowd size - CBC.ca
"crowd" - Google News
https://ift.tt/xKPJcRb
https://ift.tt/TBLq4e2
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Jets whiteout parties slapped with higher ticket prices, smaller crowd size - CBC.ca"
Post a Comment