Latest news with #JeffHoagland
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dayton celebrates successes, impact of First Four
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — As March Madness heats up, Dayton is catching its breath after an exciting week of hosting visitors from all across America. The First Four is more than just basketball for Dayton — it's also a chance to showcase the city to a massive influx of sports fans. Bars and restaurants throughout the downtown area were packed all week by locals and visitors alike. 'The beautiful thing is, we always say Dayton is the epicenter of college basketball,' said Jeff Hoagland, Dayton Development Coalition president and Big Hoopla volunteer. Now, the after effects of the First Four is being felt throughout Dayton. 'It does have a great economic impact to our region. It's over $5 million,' said Hoagland. And not only was money generated, but money in scholarships was also given out to kids who participated in the Big Hoopla STEM Challenge. Organizers say they nearly doubled last year's numbers of kids participating in the program, with 1,300 students this year. For 12 of those kids, they got the chance to kick start their dreams early. 'These family members now have an opportunity, and some have said that they wouldn't have the opportunity to send their kids to college. So this gives them an opportunity,' said Hoagland. Fans pack UD Arena for First Night of First Four Wright Patterson Air Force Base members also got a chance to participate this week, with more than 70 men and women sworn-in during the First Four. 'Just watching them be sworn in, and then seeing the crowd give a standing ovation, cheering and just chanting 'USA, USA' the entire time just gives you those goosebumps,' said Hoagland. Setting the stage: The unsung heroes behind First Four Local businesses also saw a boom in their establishments. At the Dublin Pub, workers saw a big rush before and during the games. 'We had a very big lunch rush for people just coming in to town and then right before the games too,' said John Loch, Dublin Pub bar manager. The pub even says they had San Diego State and American University stop in to enjoy their offerings. 'It's really neat. We had a couple of the college presidents stop in here as well, just chatting with them,' said Loch. 'We're just really glad they get the opportunity to come in and enjoy throughout the day.' Another local establishment also saw a huge rush — Milano's on Brown Street. 'Done a lot of good stuff. We got busy all the time with people coming in,' said Larry Adkisson, Milano's general manager. And just like Dublin Pub, not only did Milano's serve new faces, but entire teams as well, even serving those who wanted one last taste of Dayton. 'We fed a couple of the teams, so after their game we had them deliver food to them, to their buses so they could eat on the way home,' said Adkisson. With the First Four continuing to stay here in Dayton for the next few years, many are looking forward to seeing these streets continue to be packed as March Madness starts right here in downtown Dayton. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dayton businesses expecting economic boost from First Four, St. Paddy's Day
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Basketball organizers and local businesses alike are gearing up for what will be an extremely lucrative set of weeks for the city of Dayton. Between St. Patrick's Day and the NCAA's First Four, millions of dollars will flood the Miami Valley in the month of March. Dayton is said to be the epicenter of college basketball, hosting the most NCAA tournament games than any other venue. Alongside the infamous parties held around the University of Dayton to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, Dayton will be seeing an increase in movement and money in the month of March. 'Economic impact is over $5 million just from these two games. And so, you know, the hotel rooms are full, the restaurants are full,' said Jeff Hoagland, Big Hoopla volunteer. Full and busy is the theme for many local businesses in the coming weeks, with both college basketball and St. Patrick's Day celebrations around the corner. Local business owners say they are expecting an economic boom this year from both events. UD students say this time of year always gets busy for local businesses. 'The bars, they always do these deals, they open up extra early,' said Natalia Glizner, UD student. 'At 5:30 in the morning, all the bars open up.' St. Patrick's Day will be celebrated this weekend by many bars near UD's campus, like Flanagan's Pub, which says they expect to see around 2,000 customers over this busy weekend. 'This weekend for the kids, there will be a turn up on the actual St. Patrick's Day of course,' said Cat Marlow, Flanagan's Pub general manager. 'There's lot of staff organizing and making sure the staff gets our kitchens ready.' Dayton Development Coalition President Jeff Hoagland is a volunteer organizer for Big Hoopla, who says the NCAA's tournament activities will bring in millions of dollars, supporting local and large businesses as people arrive in the Miami Valley to watch the games. Hoagland also says this is a great opportunity to show off the region and attract more people to the area. 'Ohio is the number one military state and we are trying to bring more people here as we bring companies like Intel and Joby and Sierra Nevada, we're bringing them to Ohio and to Dayton,' said Hoagland. 'We want to bring more people. The companies are here. The jobs are here. We want to attract more people.' And UD students are in the center of it all. Glizner says she's excited for the weeks ahead and happy to be a flyer. 'Super excited for that. It brings a ton of people to the university and it just makes it a better experience,' said Glizner. St. Patrick's Day celebrations are expected to start on Saturday, with Big Hoopla beginning next weekend. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PSA Airlines leaving Dayton, impacting 350 jobs
Jan. 29—PSA — Airlines is moving its corporate headquarters from Dayton to Charlotte, N.C., the company said Wednesday. The move is a blow to Dayton, which for years could claim to be home to the only airline based in Ohio. "We are disappointed PSA chose to relocate their headquarters to Charlotte," said Jeff Hoagland, president and chief executive of the Dayton Development Coalition. "We have worked to keep PSA's local leadership engaged in the business community, and understand this selection was not a competitive process." The new PSA headquarters will be located five miles from Charlotte Douglas International Airport, where many PSA employees are already work, the company said. PSA's Charlotte headquarters is expected to open in January 2026 and will house about 400 PSA workers. "We chose to relocate PSA's headquarters to Charlotte for several important reasons, including that Charlotte is where most of our daily departures occur and almost all our training is based," said Dion Flannery, president and CEO of PSA. "Charlotte is a vibrant community and home to the world's seventh-busiest airport." He added: "While we're looking forward to getting integrated into the Charlotte community, I want to sincerely thank the city of Dayton, its leaders and the entire Dayton community for embracing and supporting PSA for so many years. We will continue to have a presence in Dayton with a maintenance hangar and crew base, including more than 550 Dayton-based team members." PSA said 350 Dayton-based employees are being invited to move to Charlotte. They have until the end of April to decide, the airline said. Annually, PSA said it hires nearly 1,200 employees. Movement of PSA team members from Dayton to Charlotte will be "gradual," PSA said, with some moves happening as early as the second half of 2025, concluding in 2026. PSA's MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) facility will remain local, continuing to employ hundreds of people and its flight service will not be disrupted, Hoagland also said. "The Dayton region continues to grow its aerospace manufacturing ecosystem at the Dayton International Airport, and PSA will continue to be part of that," he added. A message seeking comment was left with a spokesman for PSA. Flannery recently left the coalition's board of directors, a coalition representative said. Asked about the process behind the scenes of PSA's decision, Hoagland said Wednesday: "We didn't have the opportunity to tell PSA why they should keep their corporate headquarters in Dayton." PSA Airlines is a wholly-owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group, operating 500 daily flights to nearly 100 destinations.
