Food fuels discussion at Advantage Butte meeting

By Bruce Sayler - 12/18/2008

Asking eating places to keep their lights on (and the food warm) stirred conversation at the December meeting of Advantage Butte.

So did the possibility of a high school all-star basketball game in Butte.

The meeting was held Tuesday at the War Bonnet hotel.

Advantage Butte president Ron Davis of KBOW/KOPR radio suggested a list of restaurants willing to stay open late for basketball tournament crowds be compiled and made available to fans.

"Maybe we can try to put boards up at the Civic Center and MAC (Maroon Activities Center) telling the folks which places are open," Davis said. "We've been getting negative response on that and from the Montana High School Association as well." Advantage Butte members said that the earlier closing — 9 or 10 p.m. — of some Butte eateries has brought complaints from tourney-goers needing a meal after the games finish.

"As a restauranteur myself, I can say this is how it is with winter hours," said Ray Ueland of Perkins Restaurant and the Metals Sports Bar & Grill. "Maybe we can encourage longer, later hours for tournaments." Perkins Restaurant has 24-hour service while the Metals closes before midnight.

"The criticism we get," Ueland said, "is Butte doesn't have enough places to eat anyway for state tournament crowds, let alone enough that remain open later." He said those operating the eating places need to be considered as well.

"Winter hours are a slower time and late hours are slower, too," he said. "Then, minium wage is going up in January and then again in June. Those are real concerns for restaurants." Still, he said he thought the businesses might be willing to offer their services a little later on tournament nights to accomodate the hungry fans and teams.

Handing out fliers at the door, posting on bulletin boards and announcing over public address systems the places that might remain open were suggestions voiced by persons attending the Tuesday meeting.

"We will be putting a letter together to go out to the restaurants (about the matter)," Davis said.

The basketball all-star event idea was suggested partially as a means to raise hospitality room funds for the putting on state, district and divisional MHSA events.

Marko Lucich of the Butte-Silver Bow Chamber of Commerce and Don Peoples Jr. of the MAC brought it to the grouip.

Lucich said he thought money was needed to be raised outside the realm of Advantage Butte to fund the hospitality rooms, which are a popular attraction for drawing events to Butte. It goes for food and soft drinks, and service.

Peoples said the plan is for a basketball doubleheader involving boys and girls from the Southwestern Montana area. A boys' slam dunk contest might be held at halftime of the girls' game, and then a girls' 3-point shooting contest might go on at intermission of the boys' tilt.

The proposal is for the twin bill to be held the Wednesday after the Class AA state tournament.

He added that Montana Tech's HPER Complex would be the site of the 2009 doubleheader.

"We'll start nominations and the selection process by committee after the first of the year," Peoples said. "The MHSA has very strict guidelines we must follow, too, and (MHSA Executive Director) Mark Beckman sent me that information." Peoples said such events have proven to be popular in other regions of the state.

Lucich said, too, that requests for help again will also be sent to previous hospitality room donors.

Ned Ellingwood was a Butte contact for the Montana Special Olympics basketball tournament held in The Mining City last month.

"The state officers were pleased with the way Butte people responded," he said. "It went off without a hitch. We had about 700 athletes. It'll be back for the next two years." Bill Melvin, Butte Civic Center manager, said the arena will be the site of a Learn To Skate program set for Dec. 23-28. He said the skating will be free, but donations to the Butte Food Bank will be appreciated.

Davis said a change in holding district basketball tournaments in Butte and underwritten by Advantage Butte will be to have the districts involved provide the athletic trainers. Davis said St. James Healthcare formerly provided the service.

Sitting Advantage Butte officers were all re-elected by acclimation at the meeting. Davis remains as president, Don "Moose" Petritz of Universal Athletic Services as vice president, Desiree Shogren of the Comfort Inn as secretary and Brad Spear of Anderson Zurmuehlen and Co. as treasurer.

Spear reported that the group remains about $2,300 short of commitments for this school year of events tied to Advantage Butte.

Peoples said a kids' basketball tournament set for the MAC Dec. 26-27 has drawn more than 50 entries so far. He said he is looking at dates in January and April for perhaps holding one-day tournaments for grade school and junior high teams.

The next Advantage Butte meeting is scheduled for Jan. 21 at Perkins Restaurant.