Downtown London businesses hope for boom as Western convocation moves to Canada Life Place

Thousands of Western University and Fanshawe College students and their families will flock to London's downtown over the next two weeks for convocation ceremonies, with some nearby businesses hopeful for an uptick in sales.

From June 9 to 13, Western will hold its spring convocation ceremony at Canada Life Place for the first time, a shift from the typical celebrations at Alumni Hall on campus. The following week, from June 16 to 19, Fanshawe's ceremony will return to the venue for its third year.

"We've already planned to have extra staff here for both the lunchtime rush and dinner," said Nick Philavong, who owns Thaifoon, a restaurant just steps away from Canada Life Place's back gates.

"Last year, we actually did see quite a big spike in guests coming in unannounced – groups of 14 or 15," he said, adding that he expects to see even more families coming with Western's ceremonies also at the entertainment centre. "It's a natural spot for people to come eat."

At La Casa Ristorante, located across the street from Canada Life Place's front doors, general manager Darlyne Morlog said she's excited to welcome students and their families next week.

"It's a milestone in their life, and we hope to share it with them," she said, adding that the restaurant is offering a promotion for graduating students to draw more families into the restaurant.

La Casa tends to notice an increase in business during the graduation season regardless of where ceremonies take place, Morlog said, but she said she expects downtown to be even busier this year.

"We see them dropped off by their parents, the hugs and the 'good lucks,' and then we see them graduate," she said. "I always tell them when they come here that I want to see you when you graduate, and so far, we've got reservations coming in."

During Western's convocation ceremonies, Dundas Street will be closed between Ridout Street and Talbot Street for additional student celebrations. There will be no closures during the Fanshawe ceremonies.

Some downtown shop owners said they expect traffic and parking to become more challenging for both graduates and local customers over the two weeks, which could affect business.

"I think there might be a little bit of chaos," said Suki Bal, owner of Suki Salon on King Street. "Whenever there are events going on, or during the Fanshawe convocation for the last several years, parking becomes very difficult."

Despite that, Bal said he thinks holding the ceremonies downtown will help his business in the long run.

"If they walk by here, or they go to a local restaurant, we're all going to benefit from just the people walking by and looking at the establishment," he said.

While still hopeful, other businesses say they are less certain whether the downtown convocation ceremonies will create a business boom.

"I'd like to say that I think it's going to be a big uptick, but in the grand scheme of things, I don't expect a huge uptick at all," Plaza Sushi owner Henry Braun. "It's just like a London Knights game when all the Knights fans come downtown. It'll be very similar."

Braun said he also expects some locals to avoid the downtown area, knowing it will be busier in the next two weeks.

"Being a local myself, I don't like coming downtown when there's all kinds of craziness going on because it makes it challenging to get around," he said. "If I'm a local person that doesn't have to go downtown, why would I?"

Over at Forget Me Not Flowers and More inside the Covent Garden Market, floral designer Val Denomme said the store may face some challenges bringing in additional customers due to new hours and outdoor construction at the market.

"When Fanshawe is having their graduations, we're very busy, so we're looking forward to being even busier," Denomme said. "Unfortunately, the market is closed on Mondays, which is a bit of an issue because we're very busy during that time, and we're going to miss two days [of ceremonies]."

Western's convocation ceremonies are only expected to happen at Canada Life Place for the next five years as the university makes accessibility and capacity upgrades to Alumni Hall.

All of the businesses who spoke to CBC News said they want the convocation ceremonies to stay downtown going forward.

"It's definitely not going to hurt business; there's no doubt about that," Braun said. "Whether or not it helps, we'll have to wait and see."