SUN LURES VITAL SPRING CROWDS FOR BUSINESSES
Golf courses, outdoor eateries welcome clear skies
April showers only brought … May showers.
But a rare summer-like day graced the city Saturday, and residents and businesses alike rejoiced and took advantage of the sunshine. It was the first day many retailers and eateries saw large crowds, as the cold and rain kept people away since the start of spring.
The weather has impacted more than just restaurants and bars with outdoor seating, and hardware stores, golf courses and others have felt the sting of the rain.
“It has been a late start to spring; lots of businesses would start to see a pickup in traffic and sales in mid- to late-April,” said Jon Hurst of the Realtors Association of Massachusetts. He said that the April to May months are important parts of the season for many area businesses.
“We did get a good weekend this weekend and that’s great, but lots of businesses have time and sales to make up,” he added. “But with a strong economy and now better weather, hopefully people will get out to entertain and out on the street and to bars and restaurants and get to doing their yard work.”
According to the Boston Water and Sewer Commission, so far this year the city
has seen an average of almost 19 inches of rainfall at each of its monitoring stations.
Golf courses have seen the rain wash out their daily visitation averages. The Quincy Granite Links Golf Course said it has seen a 30% to 50% drop in its attendance since this time last year.
“The rain hurts us and it is aggravating for our guests,” said Bobby Iannarone, the PGA first assistant golf professional at Granite Links. “Not only that, but it makes the course hard to maintain and susceptible to damage from carts because the ground is soft from all the rain.”
The rains not only force the course to cancel lessons and clinics, but it also impacts employees — many of them unable to work because there aren’t enough guests to support.
But days like Saturday are greatly welcomed, as Bostonians flooded the course; soaking up the sun, hitting the driving range and enjoying the outdoor bar. Iannarone said they can average about 300 rounds on a good Saturday.
“It’s huge to have nice days like this for people to come out,” Iannarone said.
Just a few miles away, at Sullivan’s Castle Island, dozens of people wrapped around the beachfront shack to snack while they soaked up 2019’s rare sunshine. Chris St. Hilaire, a manager at Sullivan’s, said they have gotten a lot of locals so far this season, but this was one of their first really busy days since they opened in March.
“With the weather, we still have been busy with our locals — the older folks who have grown up in Southie — and they come out and show their support for us, but we are always down for more people to come out,” St. Hilaire said. “We get bored waiting for these big crowds.”
“The last few weeks it has just really been clouds and seagulls,” he added.