DAYTON — More than $1 million was spent in Dayton during the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Spring session.

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As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, I-Team Lead Investigative Reporter John Bedell previously looked into the millions of dollars in public money the state spent to keep everyone safe.

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Traffic couldn’t drive through parts of downtown because of the secure perimeter in May.

Now, News Center 7 is looking at the return on investment for the local economy.

The Hilton Garden Inn, in downtown Dayton, was so close to the NATO Village that people could look out the window and see into the secure perimeter.

“People could walk the sidewalk in front of our hotel, but the street was closed,” James Bailey, with Hilton Garden Inn, said.

News Center 7 talked to Bailey after obtaining new data from Destination Dayton, which estimated the economic impact of the NATO event to be $1,320,000.

The organization said that the number is based on the approximate spending by attendees on hotels, restaurants, and shopping during the event.

They added that the city also got just under $138M in media publicity from the event.

Bailey said he knows the weekend-long event was not good for all downtown businesses.

News Center 7 previously talked to businesses inside and outside the secure perimeter that chose to close due to the challenges it created.

Other businesses said they saw negative impacts from NATO.

“Probably were down 25 percent over last year’s Memorial Day weekend,” Kelly Byrd, General Manager of Spaghetti Warehouse in downtown Dayton, said.

$2 million from the federal government helped support holding the NATO assembly.

Governor Mike DeWine told News Center 7’s John Bedell this spring that the state spent millions more on security.

Bedell asked specifically how much taxpayer money the state will spend to protect the assembly.

“Well, I think by the time you’re done, it’s probably over $5 million,” DeWine said.

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