3 million reasons Water Follies is worth it

For many Tri-Citians, this weekend’s Water Follies is about so much more than boat racing.

While that might be tough to acknowledge if you are a die-hard hydroplane fan, the reality is those boats on the river make important financial ripples that go well beyond the river.

For Tri-City businesses – especially hotels, gas stations and restaurants – this weekend is the financial highlight of the year.

Michael Novakovich, the new president of Visit Tri-Cities, said 70,000 people are expected to line the banks of the Columbia River shoreline over the next few days, and about 10 percent of them will be from out of town.

That means an infusion of roughly 7,000 visitors who will be eating, drinking, sleeping and touring the community during the weekend. The visitor center projects the overall economic impact of the Water Follies at about $3 million.

“It’s a big deal,” he said. “It’s such an iconic event and a chance to showcase the Tri-Cities.”

It puts the community on the national radar, and many veterans on the hydroplane circuit consider ours the strongest race site on the circuit.

Much of the credit for the event’s success has to go to the volunteers, who work all year to plan activities, raise money and work on equipment. Then during boat race weekend they work from sunup to past sundown to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible.

One volunteer in particular made a huge difference this year after flooding had crumbled the shore and damaged the event’s infrastructure.

Clarence Martin, 76, helped repair docks and benches that were pulled away and damaged by high flood waters on the Columbia River’s shores.

Martin has been hailed by the Tri-City Water Follies Association as saving the event. Pit crew chairman Juan Marin said that without Martin’s involvement, the pits would have had to use backup plans or spend more than $30,000 on labor.

It is this kind of devotion that makes the Follies such a fantastic community event.

In addition to the fun and financial boost, the boat races also provide fundraising opportunities for a number of nonprofit organizations. More than $20,000 goes to community groups who help with parking cars, selling programs, taking tickets and traffic control.

What’s more, the weekend also brings the Art in the Park show sponsored by the Allied Arts Association. It runs Friday and Saturday at Howard Amon Park in Richland with an estimated 230 artists expected to participate.

For information on all the activities, check out the Water Follies website at waterfollies.com and the Visit Tri-Cities website at visittri-cities.com. The Tri-City Herald also provides ticket, parking and bus information on our website.

And on a side note, be smart about the heat. Re-apply sunscreen often throughout the day and drink lots of water.

This is the Tri-Cities’ signature event. It brings in visitors and it also brings us together.

Novakovich is right. It’s a big deal.

This story was originally published July 25, 2018 at 5:59 PM.