(WXYZ) — If you're a fan of cars - there is no doubt the Detroit Auto Show will have something that's right up your alley. Even if you're not into cars, the auto show will have something for you, too.
The economic impact of the show extends far beyond the walls of Huntington Place., and after a three-year hiatus, folks who live and work in Downtown Detroit say they are glad it's back.
Grosse Pointe Woods native James Dannecker is back in Detroit after spending years in hospitality roles around the country. In February, he took over as General Manager of the Detroit Foundation Hotel.
Related: Everything you need to know for the 2022 Detroit Auto Show
The hotel is just steps away from Huntington Place. And Dannecker says he can see the impact of the auto show.
"So with the charity event on Friday, we've got several groups that we're hosting here throughout the week, kind of getting ready for that. So it's all hands on deck," he said.
Hotel rooms are near capacity and the restaurant - The Apparatus Room - is also seeing a surge of reservations. It's a similar story at businesses all around Downtown Detroit for hotels and restaurants, but also food suppliers, laundry services and more.
"They're projecting somewhere between $100 million and $200 million," Eric Larson, the CEO of the Downtown Detroit Partnership, said.
That's a conservative estimate of the impact on the local economy, according to Larson. He said pre-pandemic Downtown Detroit had 33 million visitors - not including office workers or residents. During the pandemic, that number fell to 22 million.
"We're on target this year, in 2022, to be well in excess of 35 million. So the visitor piece of our economy has really come back," he said.
That is crucial because not all local workers have come back downtown post-pandemic thanks to flexible and remote work options.
The hope is that the impact will continue even after the contractors break down the Auto Show and move on. They hope visitors who experienced Detroit will come back and business leaders will see the opportunity.
The Downtown Detroit Partnership is working with the North American International Auto Show on all of the events in the parks downtown, as the auto show heads outdoors for some aspects this year.
