On one day last month, Oct. 19, approximately 17,000 people were in downtown Conway, admiring plastic pumpkins in trees and all manner of Halloween decorations 鈥 and ringing cash registers in businesses.
The visitors on that Saturday were part of the 235,000 people who experienced the city of Halloween. City Council member William Goldfinch is spot on in describing the month as 鈥渁 fantastic quality of life event.鈥
The 235,000 people represented increases of 21% compared to October 2023 and 50.2% over 2022. And they did more than drive through. The visitors center had a 40% increase compared to October 2023. 鈥淲e are seeing many new faces,鈥 said Hillary Howard of Conway Downtown Alive, which promotes the downtown.
City Manager Adam Emrick described the month鈥檚 total as 鈥渁 staggering number of people.鈥 It鈥檚 also significant that the October draw to Conway is bigger than December and Christmas decorations and events. By means of a software tool that tracks cell phones, the city has data showing that Conway in December 2023 had 175,000 visitors and a single-day high of 13,000.
The increases, comparing previous Octobers and December 2023, illustrate the positive reaction to the decorations which are purchased from hospitality tax revenue. This money from restaurant meals and hotel rooms must be used for tourism promotion.
New this year was a pirate ship at the city marina. Other attractions include a tunnel of bones, the witch鈥檚 garden, the haunted city hall and of course, the 2,400 plastic pumpkins.
A resident of Little River told neighbors how much he enjoyed seeing the pumpkins in trees. Another senior resident, who was taken to see the Halloween decorations last year, was looking forward to this year鈥檚 event, months ago.
鈥淧eople are experiencing Conway in a new way; Conway is now seen in our region as a cool place to go," the city manager said.
That illustrates how Halloween in downtown Conway is a quality of life event 鈥 the joy of senior citizens, with their grandkids, perhaps, or on an afternoon鈥檚 outing, enjoying the plastic pumpkins in trees and other decorations.
The economic impact is significant. Howard, of the downtown organization, says many restaurants reported 10% to 12% increases. And some retail establishments benefited by staying open after the typical hours with higher revenue between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen a good influx of business,鈥 said the manager of Coastal Carolina鈥檚 Teal Nation store on Main Street. Branden McShane said the October increase 鈥渞einforces our decision to locate downtown.鈥
So kudos to city manager Emrick and the entire city staff for making the month of October a Halloween celebration with economic impact for businesses and enjoyment for more than a quarter of a million people. Emrick is more than justified in saying 鈥淗alloween has been an overwhelming success.鈥
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