Columbus braces for 6,000 visitors this week. City readies for busy streets, booming sales
It’s all hands on deck in downtown Columbus as businesses plan to bulk up their staff and inventory for the Georgia Thespian Conference this week.
The city is preparing for large crowds and an economic boost as an estimated 6,000 people will be in town Thursday through Saturday for the annual ThesCon.
The conference markets itself as the “world’s largest gathering of inducted Thespians.”
High school students, chaperones, teachers and others will dominate downtown with events in the Columbus Convention & Trade Center, RiverCenter for the Performing Arts, Springer Opera House and the Columbus State University RiverPark Campus.
This conference puts a spotlight on the Columbus community, Ashley Woitena, senior vice president of VisitColumbusGA told the Ledger-Enquirer.
“These could be future CSU students, future residents or future people who come back for vacations,” Woitena said. “(We just want to) remind the community to please help welcome them to our city.”
Businesses expecting crowds
Local business owners say Columbus residents should expect long lines throughout the conference’s duration. Some businesses, like Your Pie, warned their regular customers about the lines ahead of time.
“Most of the people in this area know that the students are moving around,” Elizabeth Kuechenmeister, Your Pie Uptown’s manager, said. “So, we tell them to be prepared and that we’ll have more lines that weekend.”
Kuechenmeister said they’ve been steadily preparing for ThesCon by hiring four additional staff members. They also adjusted their hours. During ThesCon, Your Pie will open one hour earlier (10:30 a.m.) and close one hour later (9 p.m.).
“We’re just excited,” Kuechenmeister said. “We love ThesCon. Most of our employees like to be busy and love the back-and-forth with the students.”
Other businesses focused on doubling their inventory. Crystal Blackwell, the manager of Kilwins Ice Cream, said she expects annual favorites like their chocolate-covered strawberries and chocolate-dipped Oreos to sell out this year.
“We’re just making more of everything basically, especially things you can’t find at the convenience stores,” Blackwell said. “Any of the chocolate-dipped Oreos or the sea salt pretzels dipped in caramel.”
Blackwell expects Saturday will be the busiest day of the conference with lines out the door.
The students love sharing stories about their tradeable clothespins, she said.
“I like talking to them about their little clothespins that they trade,” Blackwell said. “Last year, by the time the students got to me, I was talking to them about all the different pins they collected and traded. They are sweet.”
Parking, traffic and pedestrians
Local residents won’t have to deal with road closures or detours because of ThesCon. Detours in place because of construction will remain the same, Woitena said.
The Columbus Roadrunners Super Bowl 5K/10K Saturday morning, which is unaffiliated with ThesCon, will impact Dillingham Street Bridge, Woitena said.
“We’re advising anyone staying in Phenix City for ThesCon to be mindful of that,” she said.
During the event, Columbus residents should be mindful that there will be a lot of bus traffic in the downtown area. But these buses should not affect street parking, Woitena said.
Unloading for the event will take place at the CSU Riverside Theatre Complex, according to ThesCon’s website.
Attendees are asked to park at the Columbus Convention & Trade Center, the CSU Coca-Cola Space Science Center and use street parking.
Local drivers should be aware of the increase in pedestrians. Most of the foot traffic should start Thursday around noon, Woitena said. People primarily will be on Front Avenue near the Trade Center, CSU and other venues.
“And then there’ll be a lot of foot traffic on the sidewalks as they go to restaurants and shops,” she said.
CSU police will be out at the major crosswalks and intersections directing traffic, Woitena said, so everyone should be mindful of their instructions. The Columbus Police Department is expected to operate business as normal, CPD public information officer Brittany Santiago told the Ledger-Enquirer.
Economic impact on Columbus
Conferences like ThesCon have been important for Columbus’ economy, bringing in millions in revenue. This year,VisitColumbusGA estimates ThesCon will bring in $1.4 million to local businesses.
“This is one of our biggest conferences that we host,” Woitena said. “We look forward to it every single year. We’re already having after-action meetings and planning for next year to make it even better than this year.”
Exact profit estimates vary from business to business. For example, Kuechenmeister estimates Your Pie will see an increase of $15,000 to their revenue by the end of the weekend. Heather McComb, manager of Iron Bank Coffee Company, said she estimates to see an increase of 60% to 150% in weekly revenue because of the conference.
“The students come in and bring new money into our community that wasn’t there before,” Woitena said. “That new money gets recycled throughout our community.”
Officials at Uptown Columbus, the nonprofit organization that promote downtown businesses, say the downtown is a prime spot for Thescon participants because of its walkability.
All the businesses benefit from the pedestrian traffic, Tracey Green, director of communications and marketing at Uptown Columbus., told the Ledger-Enquirer.
ThesCon brings not only economic growth but an exciting and uplifting energy to downtown.
“They bring this energy that we love to see,” Woitena said. “You’ll see them singing, and you’ll see them dancing. They are just all over. It’s really great to have them here.”
Columbus residents can follow Thescon’s takeover of downtown on the Uptown Columbus Instagram account.
This story was originally published February 4, 2025 at 2:49 PM.
