THE 2009 JUNO AWARDS: IMAGE: CREATIVE COMMONS/RADIOBREAD
The Halifax Regional Municipality will pay $750,000 for the privilege of hosting the JUNO Awards in 2024.
Regional council agreed on September 13 to put up the money. It’s part of a $1.7-million fee the host city must pay to the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) to host the awards. The provincial government has agreed to fork over the remaining $1 million.
Both payments will only happen if CARAS chooses Halifax to host the ceremony. The organization specifically sought out Halifax to bid on the 2024 awards. It won’t say if any other cities are in the running.
Along with the Actual JUNO broadcast, the awards come with a week of events that include the JUNO Songwriters Circle, the JUNO Gala Awards, and many industry events.
The confirmed dates for JUNO Week are March 15-24, 2024. If Halifax is chosen, which seems likely, the awards broadcast will be held on March 24 at Scotiabank Centre.
Millions in economic impact
City staff estimates the week of JUNO-related events will generate about $7 million of direct economic activity. The biggest chunk of that money will go to the hospitality industry as guests book hotels and eat at restaurants.
Destination Halifax estimates 20,000 people will attend JUNO events in Halifax, booking about 2,225 rooms for about 9,000 total “room nights.”
That would be especially good news for hotels and restaurants in the region because the awards happen in the March “shoulder season” when there are fewer guests.
“With so many events associated with JUNO Week, performance venues of all sizes across the city and rural HRM would be booked for programming,” a staff report claims.
The 20,000 attendees’ money getting funneled into local hospitality, transportation, and retail businesses will generate $733,202 in provincial taxes and $68,584 in municipal taxes.
The last time Halifax hosted the JUNOs was in 2006. But the city has committed hundreds of thousands of dollars to host recent, similar events.
In 2015, Halifax spent $250,000 to host the Canadian Country Music, in 2017, it spent $150,000 for the East Coast Music Awards, and the city just agreed to put up $250,000 for the 2023 ECMAS.
The $750,000 for the JUNOs will come from the municipality’s Community And Events Reserve fund. On April 1, the fund had $995,068 in it. After the Juno money and other capital withdrawals are taken out, the fund will be left at $173,170.
**Trevor Nichols is the Associate Editor of Huddle based in Halifax.
