RNC called a boon for some Milwaukee businesses. Lulu owner says it was a 'complete bust'

The Republican National Convention was a boon for Milwaukee area hotels, as well as other businesses and city improvements − despite that economic impact falling short for some.

That was the message delivered to city officials at a Monday public meeting to discuss the convention.

The RNC, which drew an estimated 50,000 people, brought revenue of $30.5 million to Milwaukee County hotels during the week of July 14, said Peggy Williams-Smith, president and chief executive officer at Visit Milwaukee Inc.

That compared to $10.4 million during the comparable week from 2023, Williams-Smith told members of the Common Council's Steering and Rules Committee, citing estimates provided by hotel industry data firm CoStar Group/STR.

Pre-convention estimates forecasted a $200 million economic impact. An impact study could be published by year's end, said Williams-Smith, whose publicly funded nonprofit group promotes Milwaukee as a travel destination.

That spending helped dozens of area businesses, she said, including restaurants, event venues and other vendors.

"It extends well beyond the hotels," Williams-Smith said.

The Journal Sentinel in July interviewed several local business owners who were disappointed with the RNC.

They cited three big factors: a spike in downtown employees working remotely, which decimated the normal lunch trade; a reluctance by area residents to venture downtown for dinner because of real and perceived traffic issues, and the busy schedule of delegates — many bused from hotels to Fiserv Forum and other venues — which left little time to explore downtown restaurants, taverns and shops.

Indeed, word of Monday's committee meeting led Bay View restaurant operator Cameryne Roberts to write an email to Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic, calling the RNC "a complete bust."

"Let's not do that again, please," wrote Roberts, who operates Lulu Cafe and Bar, to Dimitrijevic, a committee member.

Expectations of RNC boon didn't work out for some local businesses

There were unmet expectations of heightened activity for some businesses, said Nicholas DeSiato, Mayor Cavalier Johnson's chief of staff.

City officials and others "could have done better" in managing those expectations, DeSiato told committee members.

The unmet expectations was partly driven by the contradiction of Milwaukee being the center of a widely publicized week-long event − but with most of the activity confined to a small portion of downtown centered on Fiserv Forum and the Baird Center, he said.

The RNC's benefits included heavy news media coverage of Milwaukee as well as increased use of Visit Milwaukee's website, Williams-Smith said. That bodes well for drawing future events as well as vacationers.

Also, she said, AT&T Inc. spent $12.4 million improving Milwaukee's cellular phone networks − part of outside spending that provided the city with infrastructure improvements.

That includes $6.8 million spent on new city-owned equipment, DeSiato said. Much of that was spent on public safety equipment, such as 250 Kevlar helmets, 60 police bicycles and three fire engines, he said.

Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram , X and Facebook .

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: RNC called a boon for some Milwaukee businesses. Lulu owner says it was a 'complete bust'