Fans crowded downtown bars and restaurants on Saturday to watch the first Twins playoff game against the Astros. Sunday sees the second game of that series on TV, plus a Vikings game downtown.

By Gita Sitaramiah

October 8, 2023 at 4:44PM

Twins fans swept in the postseason excitement have brought some liveliness and an economic jolt to downtown Minneapolis. (Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Kieran's Irish Pub, Tom's Watch Bar and the Lyon's Pub all had something in common over the weekend:

The downtown Minneapolis bars were packed with sports fans. Minnesota Twins boosters flocked downtown Saturday to watch the playoff game in Houston, televised at nearby Target Field. Saturday also saw Gophers football on campus, and a Vikings home game was on Sunday.

The Twins return home for a Tuesday game vs. the Astros, the latest game in a playoff run certain to bring thousands more people downtown. It promises an unexpected economic boost for the Minneapolis core, another hopeful sign of recovery in a part of town still in some ways reeling from the last few years.

"Downtown is very much event-driven. If there's a lot going on downtown, it's great," Brit's Pub General Manager Shane Higgins said Saturday. "Last night, we were packed with all the sports fans."

The playoff run and the business generated as a result offsets decreased spending with fewer workers downtown on top of sluggish business travel. That hits hardest downtown, where those visitors would have booked hotel stays and restaurant reservations.

Civic boosters say events at Target Field and U.S. Bank Stadium are critical to driving downtown's recovery and improving morale as crowds set aside fears of crime and return to the urban core. Hotel visitors are especially prized guests for the downtown economy, as they spend at multiple establishments during their stay.

The Twins' playoff hopes are the latest in a series of event-driven wins for downtown this year.

Taylor Swift's June 23 concert night filled 9,888 rooms that Friday night, a record high for Minneapolis. Swift's two concerts coincided with the Twin Cities Pride Festival and a Kiwanis International Convention, attracting 500,000 visitors to downtown that weekend.

A recent summer week recorded the highest weekly demand for hotel rooms in Minneapolis since fall 2019. There were more than 56,000 occupied hotel rooms from Aug. 27 to Sept. 2 thanks to events throughout the region, Meet Minneapolis reported.

That week capped a summer of significantly improved overall performance, with demand for hotel rooms in Minneapolis increasing nearly 11% from Memorial Day to Labor Day versus a year earlier.

"I think the vibes are good downtown," said Kevin Murphy, who moved to the North Loop a year ago from Omaha.

A Twins fan, Murphy was at Tom's Watch Bar on Hennepin on Saturday, before heading to Huntington Bank Stadium at the University of Minnesota to watch the Gophers face the Wolverines. "As far as daily life, safety has never been a problem."

Twins season ticket holders Mitch and Sharon Bauer drove in from Shakopee and headed to Target Field. "We haven't had any issues," he said. "You just have to be smart."

Many out-of-towners also hit Minneapolis this past weekend. University of Michigan fans were everywhere. So were Kansas City Chiefs fans, who joined local Gophers and Vikings fans in imbibing downtown.

"It's a huge sports weekend," said Nathan Norris of Kansas City, who planned to go to the Vikings-Chiefs game Sunday.

Tony Edmonds of Detroit came to Minneapolis for work and scored tickets for the Minnesota-Michigan matchup Saturday night. It's one of his first visits to downtown since the pandemic and unrest following the police killing of George Floyd.

"It seems like it's come back," he said, after a stop at Tom's Watch Bar.

Jeaneen Campbell came to Minneapolis for the weekend from Helena, Mont., to cheer on the Chiefs. "I'm not a Swiftie," she said, referring to megastar Taylor Swift, with buzz swirling around whether she would be in the city on Sunday. "I actually love football."

Campbell made her way around downtown Saturday, with stops at Brit's and Kieran's before heading with her group to the Twins watch party at Target Field.

"I love hanging out here. Lots to do," Campbell said. "Everywhere has been packed."

Another Chiefs fan, Collin Bottoms, came to Minneapolis for the first time and hung out with his buddies Saturday afternoon at Tom's Watch Bar. His first impression was a good one.

"I love it," Bottoms said. "I've had a Jucy Lucy. I'm trying to do all the Minnesota things."