The return of the HydroFair is uncertain, as city officials consider whether the event is worth hosting. Tim Ross, the City’s Public Events Director, said Tuesday that while the weather and water conditions were prime this year, the turnout was less than anticipated — even with a weekend filled with activities throughout the downtown area.
Ross said that English Park — where the boats were parked and launched into the water — was busy the whole weekend. There was also a small crowd of onlookers during the event.
However, the number of people along the riverfront near the actual race course — in the area of the Convention Center through Smothers Park — was relatively low when there weren’t other events also going on.
Other big activities that weekend included Friday After 5 with one of their most high-profile performers of the summer in Blanco Brown, as well as Bridge Day drawing more than 6,000 people walking across the bridge Saturday morning. There was also a concert and fireworks Saturday evening.
Ross said while those events were successful, the audience for the HydroFair was less than anticipated.
Financially, the event generated $10,000 more in sponsorships than it had in 2021, but it also cost $10,000 more — with the net cost coming in at $175,000.
That was measured in audience viewing, hotel occupancy, and Convention Center revenues — all three of which were lower than the 2021 numbers, when the HydroFair suffered major delays and issues due to debris in the river.
Commissioners Mark Castlen, Larry Maglinger, and Bob Glenn all said they were shocked by the low turnout.
Castlen said that the turnout could be a sign of trends that come and go as the reason for the shortage.
“I wonder if it’s one of those events that’s reached its peak and is going down everywhere every year. It kind of makes me see why Evansville went ahead and abandoned theirs,” Castlen said.
The HydroFair also included a drone broadcast that could be viewed throughout the nation, Canada, New Zealand and Canada.
Maglinger, who has been pivotal in getting the HydroFair to Owensboro, said the effect of streaming a broadcast that was viewed across the globe, plus hosting teams from across the country and internationally, is a benefit for the city.
“In my opinion, we may need to look at the marketing a little bit differently. Those people are coming to spend a lot of money and that’s a big, big thing to try to overcome. So I think that was the first year and we’ve got a lot of things we could do to build on it,” he said.
On the contrary, Castlen noted that the views could be higher. He referenced how some social media users strive for upward of 30,000 views as a good day, so a stream that’s receiving 1,000 views or less is not high enough.
Ross noted that the City is also currently planning to host the Owensboro Air Show next September, and that they do not currently plan to bring the HydroFair back unless encouraged by the City Commissioners.
City Manager Nate Pagan said that while feasibility conversations continue it’s important to note that hosting both the Air Show and the HydroFair is pushing a lot out of the city staff in the parks and police departments.
“There is a very, very large toll that our staff pays from a morale issue or workforce issue,” he said. “So don’t lose sight of that as we make these have these deliberations over the next month.”
