Lifetime achievement honour for city hotel owner
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/05/2019 (2643 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A Winnipeg hotel owner received a lifetime achievement award for his contributions to the city’s tourism industry.
“It’s a great honour,” said Bob Sparrow, who received the award at Tourism Winnipeg’s Awards of Distinction on Tuesday.
“A lot of the people that have received this before, I’ve worked with,” he said. “Being included with them is really a great honour to me.”
Sparrow is the owner of several Winnipeg hotels, including the Mere Hotel on Waterfront Drive and the Inn at The Forks. Sparrow Hotels also owns Riverstone Spa and Smith Restaurant at the Inn at The Forks, and Era Bistro at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
But Sparrow said it’s the hotel that started it all that means the most to him: the Norwood Hotel on Marion Street, which his father, Merle, opened in 1937. “The Norwood was the flagship,” he said. “It’s an institution. It’s known by so many people.”
While Sparrow, 72, said he’s been spending more time on the golf course and leaving more of the hotel work to the younger generation — his son, Ben, is now the CEO of Sparrow Hotels — he said it’s an exciting time for the industry. “Winnipeg is doing so well right now from a tourism perspective,” he said. “We’ve just got to keep it going.”
Tourism Winnipeg also gave out 11 other awards to recognize excellence in hotels, stores, museums and more.
It’s about more than just the big, new events and fancy hotels, though — it’s about the people behind them, said Dayna Spiring, president and CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg.
“You are part of the reason why our city has such a friendly reputation, and why visitors who make the trip rave about our attractions, our food scene, our arts and our culture,” Spiring told the 25 nominees at the awards ceremony at the Metropolitan Entertainment Centre.
Spiring said additions like the Amazon Web Services Thinkbox office at The Forks, the Ubisoft Entertainment studio on McDermot Avenue and the Winnipeg Whiteout street parties are all examples of ways the city is growing.
Mayor Brian Bowman, who spoke at the awards ceremony, said tourism is often what brings people to the city — but it’s something else that makes them want to stay.
“People come here for a conference, or a festival, or a concert, and they like it,” Bowman said. “They rave about Winnipeg, and it’s because of the people.”
Bowman said attractions like Canada’s Diversity Gardens at Assiniboine Park Conservancy, the Inuit Art Centre at the Winnipeg Art Gallery and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights are steps in the right direction to keep the city’s population trending upward.
caitlyn.gowriluk@freepress.mb.ca