They’re Ready To Hoop It Up In Seattle Even First Fan’s Attention Will Be Riveted On Final Four

Times and the rules have changed since Seattle knocked Final Four fans’ socks off with unprecedented red-carpet treatment in 1984, but the city hopes to come out ahead again - financially and image-wise - with this weekend’s college men’s basketball finale.

And with the Arkansas Razorbacks in the finals along with UCLA, Oklahoma State and North Carolina, there’s speculation the First Fan might show, though official White House plans Monday put him in the state of Arkansas for the weekend, not at courtside.

“They keep getting themselves in trouble, but they find a way to win,” President Clinton, who was the subject of such comments himself in 1992, told The New York Times on Saturday.

Seattle’s rave reviews for 1984 brought the 1989 tournament here as well, not to mention this weekend’s semifinal matchups and Monday’s championship game.

“They literally rewrote the book on how to host the Final Four,” said Rich Baker, who organized Dallas for the 1986 games. “It was like a whole brand-new era.”

Well, it WAS the 1980s. Business was booming and so was the city skyline. Six years ago, lights in the partly finished Columbia Center spelled out “NCAA Final 4 89.”

Local sports promoter Bob Walsh had a lot to do with changing perspective on the Final Four.

“I envisioned the 1984 Final Four as an opportunity for our city to make a name for itself by doing it bigger and better than anyone else ever did,” said Walsh, key booster for the 1990 Goodwill Games. “But it was very difficult at first because people didn’t realize the value it had.”

The 1984 organizing committee spent $1 million getting ready - five times the previous high.

Walsh is not involved this year; the weekend is being organized by Bon Marche senior vice president John Buller and Brian Trent of the Seattle Organizing Committee. But he laid the groundwork.

“He took it to an incredible level,” said Trent, the committee director.

It’s a coup for the University of Washington as well. The school gets 10 percent of the gate - about $200,000 this year - but the Final Four “is much more than dollars and cents,” said UW athletic director Barbara Hedges, who shares the committee chairmanship with Buller.

“It’s the focus on Seattle, the focus on the university, not only from television but the thousands of people who will be coming into the city,” she said.

“Our goal is we want to put on a spectacular event so people will want to come back and will recognize the value of returning to Seattle.”

New NCAA rules and restrictions have toned down the event some. There are limits now on local spending. Corporations and businesses that contribute no longer get free tickets or use of the Final Four logo. Lavish parties and bottomless corporate coffers are a thing of the past.

But with 35,000 visitors, 17,000 hotel-room bookings and five days of celebration, Seattle should come out $30.8 million ahead, said Peter Lin of the state Revenue Department.

Not the $40 million of 1984 or the $45 million of 1989. But not peanuts, either.

“This crowd does have a tendency to spend money,” Buller said.

“It is strictly manna from heaven from our standpoint, and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” said Mick McHugh, owner of FX McRory’s Steak, Chop and Oyster House near the Kingdome.

His business is still recovering from the July-to-November dead zone, when the Kingdome was closed for $50 million in emergency roof repairs that have passed muster with the NCAA and the host committee.

“Six years ago we can vividly recall every minute of every day the Final Four was here,” McHugh said. “It’s an absolutely tremendous event. Everybody is upbeat and enjoying themselves.”

He plans to bring in 38 additional employees this year. He also has a catering contract for a party of 900 on Pier 48 sponsored by the Adidas shoe company.

The first round of play is Saturday, when Oklahoma State takes on UCLA and North Carolina meets Arkansas. The grand finale is Monday night.

The 38,590 tickets have been sold out for months. Brokers and entrepreneurs are asking as much as $3,500 for the few remaining courtside seats.

But the games will be televised and there are more accessible events:

- Open practice session Friday at the Kingdome. Admission is free - and so is parking - for fans who want to watch pretourney workouts.

- Fan Jam sponsored by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, Thursday through Monday at the Washington State Trade and Convention Center, whose fourth floor has been converted into a 100,000-square-foot basketball theme park. For $5 admission, fans get access to contests and slam-dunk exhibitions, instructional clinics and autographs.

- NABC slam-dunk and 3-point shooting championships for top college men and women players, 4:30 p.m. Friday at Bellevue Community College. ESPN’s Dick Vitale is one of the hosts. Tickets are $10, available through TicketMaster.

- NABC men’s college all-star game, featuring 40 of the top college seniors, at 1 p.m. Sunday at UW’s Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Tickets are $8 for general admission, $12 reserved.