This page uses extracted PDF text. Text can misread numbers, dates or table columns. Check the PDF before quoting or interpreting it. Redacted areas remain redacted.
The Honorable City Council
Page 2
NOODLE ӏ The Thinkers Convention: Economic and Fiscal
Impact, Event Expenditures, and Planned Public Release
Economic and Fiscal Impact
The ISR study estimates the convention’s total economic impact within the
City of Newport News at between $1.01 million and $1.14 million, with a mean of
$1.08 million. Approximately 63.9 percent of that total is direct spending, and
the remainder is secondary, that is, indirect and induced activity. Direct visitor
and production spending captured in the model totaled approximately
$747.000. The event is estimated to have a generated between 1,593 and 2,047
hotel room nights and to have contributed between $554,000 and $625,000 to
Virginias gross domestic product (GDP) through value-added effects. Local tax
revenue to the city is estimated at between $58,000 and $65,000, with a mean
of $62,000. Approximately 69 percent of patrons were non-residents, and
among non-residents and estimated 91.61 percent reported that their visit to
Newport News was primarily due to the event. All figures are presented as
ranges to account for margin of error. Table 1 summarizes the key results.
Table 1: Economic and Fiscal Impact Summary (ISR Study 2026)
Measure
Result
Event dates
May 22 to May 23, 2026
Estimated attendance (Friday / Saturday)
About 250 / about 3,750
Non-resident share of patrons
About 69%
Estimated hotel room nights
1,593 to 2,047
Direct spending in Newport News
About $747,000
Total economic impact (output)
$1.01 million to
$1.14 million (mean
$1.08 million)
Value added to Virginia gross domestic
product
$554,000 to $625,000 (mean
$589,000)
Estimated local tax revenue to the city
$58,000
to
$65,000
(mean
$62,000)
Patron rating of awesome or very good
About 68%
Would attend again (likely or very likely)
About 85%
It is important to note what the study deliberately excludes. By design, its dollar
estimates do not include the value of brand exposure and passive advertising,
or any future business or resident attraction, because those effects cannot be
reliably quantified from a single year of data. The measured economic impact
should therefore be read as a conservative floor that does not capture the
reputational and positioning value that was the primary purpose of the event.Jump to an indexed page (6 of 6)