Napanee hotel a catalyst for economic development

NAPANEE, ON—The town of Napanee, midway between Belleville and Kingston on the Highway 401 corridor, played host to the Women’s Under 18 National Hockey Championship last November and will welcome the 2010 Ontario Men’s Curling Championship in February 2010. Napanee, population 15,000, is the smallest community to host either of these events.

It’s no accident that this small town has the facilities needed to host such lucrative events. It’s the result of a strong economic development strategy that started in the early 2000s, with a study by PKF assessing the needs of the community. The resulting plans included a $10 million arena, a Hampton Inn by Hilton, and a Smart Centre with Wal-Mart, Mark’s Work Wearhouse, and The Source by Circuit City.

“The arena kick-started the whole project,” says Stephen Paul, manager, economic development for Lennox and Addington County. “We had an old [arena] facility and needed a larger one, but we also looked at new development in terms of hotels and restaurants, so that we could host events. We owned some land near the 401, and conducted negotiations to free up that land for an arena and hotel complex.”

The arena is a $9.8 million multipurpose facility with twin ice pads, a community hall and an outdoor soccer field. The main rink seats 1,000. The project was funded through community fundraising (over $1 million raised), sale of assets, investments, user surcharges and lease arrangements. The municipality signed a 10 year naming agreement with Strathcona Paper Company for $200,000 and has 7,600 square feet of retail space with 10 year leases.

But an arena on its own wasn’t enough. “People were donating with the understanding that there would be a hotel project,” says Ray Callery, chief administrative officer for Napanee.
The 58-room Hampton Inn, which opened in 2005, was key to the economic development plans. At the time, Napanee had smaller motels, but they needed a higher-end hotel in the community. After the PKF study, the town put a proposal out to the investment community. They received five replies, and decided that Hampton Inn was the best fit. The Hampton Inn is the only branded hotel in the community.

“For the Women’s Under 18 Nationals, a Hockey Canada event, we entered the bidding process and had a winning bid. This would not have been able to happen in our community before the arena, hotel and development that is there,” says Paul. Likewise Napanee won the Men’s Curling bid because of what the community could offer.

“We are the smallest community that ever hosted either of these events. We are very proud to be able to do that,” says Paul.

Was there any community opposition to the development? “There was a lot of acceptance,” says Callery. “The most controversy was regarding the Wal-Mart development—but it really did fit well.”

Napanee Development Timeline

o    2002 – PKF study completed.  Study assessed the possibilities of a major brand hotel in Napanee and provided a financial analysis for potential investors.
o    August 2002 – Town of Greater Napanee releases PKF report and asks for proposals.  Five received and Hampton Inn chosen as proponent.
o    2003 – Twin pad arena complex approved, construction begins.
o    September 2004 – Arena complex (Strathcona Paper Centre) opens.
o    August 2005 – Hampton Inn opens.
o    January 2006 – Wal-Mart opens.
o    2007 – Mark’s Work Warehouse, The Source, Easy Home and Dollarama open.
o    February 2008 – Shoeless Joes opens.
o    November 2008 – Napanee hosts Women’s Under 18 National Hockey Championship.  It takes place at the Strathcona Paper Centre.  Championship game is televised live nationally on TSN.
o    February 1 to 7, 2009 – Napanee to play host to the 2009 Ontario Men’s Curling Championship.  Will take place at Strathcona Paper Centre.  For more information visit www.2010tankard.com