CWS 2023: Council Bluffs businesses sharing some of CWS audience’s traffic

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (WOWT) - Every year, the College World Series brings large crowds and lots of money to the City of Omaha.

But some of that money and those people make their way across the river to Council Bluffs.

Tish’s Restaurant in Council Bluffs is entering its 44th year. Owner Steve Tisher says every year, they get a jump in business when the games begin in Omaha.

“A lot of these teams have been here in the past,” Tisher said. “They like to stay in Council Bluffs because it’s easy access and everything, and once they find you then they come back, and they come back. You get a lot of new people, got some new teams now, so it’s been good.”

The CWS has been good to many Council Bluffs businesses, especially when certain teams make it to the big show.

“Some years we got teams that travel well, and everybody benefits from that, and I think one of the historic great traveling teams is LSU, who’s here this year,” said Council Bluffs Mayor Matt Walsh. “They bring a lot of fans, and they spend a lot of money, and that helps everybody’s hotel-motel revenue. They go to the hotels, they eat lunch out in between games, so that’s great revenue for us.”

Walsh says the CWS also attracts a smaller version of the game -- the Slumpbuster youth baseball tournament is married to the CWS. The tourney brings in more than 650 teams from 35 states to the metro area.

“They bring a ton of teams and they fill hotels with Grandma, Grandpa, brothers and sisters, mom and dad, and that is here because of the College World Series, but it’s a spin-off of what’s going on with the College World Series, and so that’s a great revenue source for Council Bluffs.”

Walsh says everything around or connected to the CWS helps Council Bluffs and every other Metro city.

“I think a rising tide floats all boats, so it’s been good for Council Bluffs over the years,” Walsh said.

Walsh believes there are some private businesses in Council Bluffs that do some form of advertising to attract the CWS crowd across the river.

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