Eric Writes: ComicCon in Harrisburg: Can Costumed Heroes Save Harrisburg from Debt?

A number of cities across the country are in dire straits. Detroit, Michigan – once the “wealthiest city in America,” according to Economy in Crisis – was called “an example of everything that is wrong with the American economy” by the same site. Flint, Michigan is currently at the center of a massive water crisis. Aliso Canyon in Orange County California was the center of a major environmental crisis when a gas leak blasted 100,000 metric tons of greenhouse gasses into the air before it was plugged.

Crises like these are highly publicized because the effects are visible and felt by many. Not all cities receive the same treatment, though.

These situations are often the result of poor decision-making by city officials or other high-ranking administrators.

One such example of major financial mismanagement is Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Of all the cities in financial trouble, the Pennsylvania capital is in the worst crunch of any. To date, the city owes $1.5 billion and filed for bankruptcy in 2011, according to NPR in 2012.

“The city would not be in its current dire financial situation if Harrisburg officials had acted more responsibly,” said David Unkovic in a 2012 article for PennLive. “Similarly, if the lawyers, financial advisers and financial institutions had given the city better advice, the city would not be in its dire financial situation. At worst, Harrisburg would be in a similar position to Altoona, with a moderate structural deficit. But the worst of its problems — the mountain of issued debt combined with its huge structural operating deficit — could have been avoided.”

A probe into Harrisburg’s financial crisis led to the arrest of Stephen Reed, who served as mayor from 1982 to 2010.

A number of actions are being undertaken to reduce the debt. This resulted in a struggle between Democratic governor Tom Wolf and Pennsylvania’s Republican-led House and Senate to pass a budget in 2015. This led to an editorial in Lancaster online calling for both to come to a compromise.

But still, the city is in dire need of financial relief.

Help may just end up coming from an unlikely source: superheroes.

Harrisburg is set to host its first comic book convention (Harrisburg ComicCon, or HCC). The convention is set to last the weekend of June 11th at the Harrisburg Farm Show Complex.

The origins of comic book conventions trace back to San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCC). The convention began in 1970 as a way for comic enthusiasts Shel Dorf, Ken Krueger, Richard Alf, Bob Sourk, Barry Alfonso, Mike Towry, Dan Stewart and Greg Bear to showcase works of art they wanted to receive more exposure. This began with comics, but escalated to films and literature.

What began as three-day showcase of pop culture eventually spiraled into a massive mainstream convention. Initially receiving a turnout of 300 in a hotel basement, San Diego Comic Con International (SDCC) received up to over 130,000 attendees in 2015. SDCC has also spawned WonderCon and the Alternative Press Expo (APE).

The rise of SDCC inspired the creations of similar city-centered but unaffiliated conventions, such as New York, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, and Dallas. The similar titles led to SDCC trademarking the spelling “Comic – Con” (with hyphen) to differentiate it from other conventions following a legal battle with Salt Lake City Comic Con. The dispute was reported on in the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Daily Herald and described on Salt Lake City Comic Con’s website.

An audience for Harrisburg Comic Con is all but certain. In 2015, CNBC reported that tickets for New York Comic Con (NYCC) sold out within five hours of going on sale.

Since the appearance of artist Jack Kirby and Ray Bradbury at the original Comic-Con, the appearances of celebrities have also become common events. SDCC holds panels promoting various TV series. Variety reported at least 80 series would receive promotional events in 2011, including series Doctor Who, Burn Notice, Once Upon A Time, Person of Interest, MythBusters, Bones and many others.

Celebrities Salt Lake City’s Comic Con have reported to bring in included Stan Lee, the casts of various Star Trek series, Doctor Who actors Matt Smith, Colin Baker, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill and John Barrowman, actors Carrie Fisher and Anthony Daniels from Star Wars, astronaut Buzz Aldrin and numerous others.

Meanwhile, New York Comic Con has seen appearances by Aisha Tyler, Cary Elwes, Bill Nye, George Clooney, Robin Lord Taylor and Ben McKenzie (of Fox’s Gotham) and Lucy Liu, amongst over 100 others over the years.

Fitting with this, a number of celebrities are confirmed to be in attendance. PennLive and Harrisburg ComicCon.com confirmed the current slate of guests include actresses Caity Lotz, Katrina Law and Michelle Harrison of the CW’s Arrowverse, professional wrestler Brimstone, Invader ZIM’s Richard Steven Horvitz, and Steve Coulter of AMC’s The Walking Dead. Also slated to attend are Mike Zapcic and Ming Chen of AMC’s Comic Book Men. Meanwhile, fans of the Power Rangers franchise can expect to meet Karan Ashley, Steve Cardenas, Blake Foster, Austin St. John and David Yost.

In addition, members of Capital City Jedi Knights, Central PA Avengers and the 501st Legion will also be appearing.

With high attendance comes potential economic boons.

Conventions are known to receive high numbers of attendees. Forbes reported attendances of up to 167,000 at New York Comic Con in 2015. It goes without saying that this has major financial impacts.

In San Diego’s Convention Center Fiscal Year report of 2013, SDCC International was ranked the biggest economic generator, with an estimated economic impact of $1.75 million. A CNBC article elaborated that the average economic impact of a comic convention on a hosting city amounts to roughly eight times ticket sale revenue, adding that SDCC stands to make up to 100 times more.

However, there is a snag, as the chances of HCC being able to assist in fighting Harrisburg’s debt remains low.

A 2014 article by the Voice of San Diego reported a number of inconsistencies that serve to inflate SDCC’s overall economic impact, such as using outdated or unreliable information. In addition, a Forbes article on NYCC’s massive attendance pointed out how ticket versus individual attendee counting can lead to severe misinterpretations of convention attendance numbers.

Likewise, it appears unlikely that a comic convention will have an immediate impact. The Chicago Tribune reported that Chicago’s Comicon took three years to turn a profit. KUSI News in San Diego released the results of a study by the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation that stated it would take up to 34 comic conventions the size of San Diego Comic-Con International to match the financial effects of local San Diego research institutions.

What does this all mean? It means that pulling Harrisburg, Pennsylvania out of debt is not going to be a quick, easy process. But while comic conventions are unlikely to solve the problem quickly, they can be an effective resource in bringing in help for a city in severe need of it.

Sources & References

Eric Writes

Monday, June 6, 2016

ComicCon in Harrisburg: Can Costumed Heroes Save Harrisburg from Debt?

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