The city of Starkville gearing up for a busy weekend

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI )- The regular season is over, but there’s still one more high stakes weekend series at Dudy Noble Field.

Mississippi State is hosting the NCAA regional baseball tournament, and Starkville is playing host to fans from across the country.

And the city is getting ready to greet the crowds.

“We just spend the time the week before really preparing to roll out the red carpet for all of our visitors making sure that our restaurants and our hotels are ready to be at capacity and prepared so they can people can navigate the city while they’re here,” said Greater Starkville Development Partnership interim president Jennifer Prather.

Prather said the regional could give businesses a welcome shot in the arm during what is normally a slow time of year.

“So it is no secret that it kinda, you know, the town is a little bit like a ghost town during the summertime. It’s a little bit quieter easier to navigate weekends like this are really important to the sustainability of our tax base the restaurants And the retailers that are open all year long even when their customer base decreases really capitalize on weekends to sustain themselves throughout the summer,” said Prather.

With an expected increase in customers, some stores are treating the weekend like a warm-up for fall.

“Definitely feels like fall you know the out-of-state and out of town customers so we really just get to prepare for that and get ready for the busy season,” said Deep South Pout marketing director Olivia Chatham.

Prather said scheduling of athletic events can help with business traffic too.

When a game starts at noon, it encourages people to come into town earlier and hopefully stay longer.