Corbin expects thousands of visitors for All “A” Classic

The All “A” Classic state championship basketball tournament interjected about $1 million into the economy of the city of Richmond where it was played in 2023. This year it is being played at the Corbin Arena, and it is already having an impact on the local economy as every hotel between London and Williamsburg is booked, Corbin City Manager Marlon Sams told the Corbin City Commission during its monthly meeting Monday.

The All “A” Classic will run from Wednesday (Jan. 24) through Sunday (Jan. 28).

Corbin Tourism Director Maggy Monhollen said that she hopes everyone in the community understands the importance of hosting this tournament.

“We are anticipating 5,000 – 7,000 people in our community over a five-day period. I have booked 320 hotel rooms for the teams alone. We are spending about $7,000 – $10,000 on the hospitality room. It is a very significant event to our community,” Monhollen said.

“I have communicated with every single restaurant in the city limits and every single entertainment destination to be prepared because this is Corbin’s time to shine from a hospitality and tourism standpoint.”

Games will go from 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in addition to weekend games.

Corbin Arena Manager Kristina Balla admits that her staff has no idea how many spectators to expect per game.

“It could be 50 per game. It could be 5,000. We have no clue. A lot of those schools are from far away,” she added.

Balla noted that there is a player from Lyon County High School, Travis Perry, who has committed to play for the University of Kentucky next year and is playing in this year’s tournament, which could increase attendance for some games.

The Williamsburg High School Boys Basketball Team will be representing the 13^th Region in this week’s tournament.

Basketball isn’t the only thing happening in Corbin this week.

Monhollen added that the same day the All “A” Classic starts, Corbin will also be welcoming well-known chef Ouita Michel and 13 crew members, who will be filming for her multi-jurisdictional series about The Taste of Kentucky.

In addition, Monhollen gave the commission an update Monday on the status of the proposed Colonel Sanders Story: A Finger Lickin’ Good musical, which would be about the life of Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Colonel Harland Sanders, who is a Corbin native.

Monhollen said that she is hoping to find out by the end of the month whether Corbin qualifies for a $10,000 strategic grant to study the feasibility of the project.

Monhollen noted that she met with Matt Davenport Productions out of Nashville on Monday about the project. She hopes to schedule a work session with the commission in late February or early March regarding the project.