Polk County enjoys record tourism revenue for a third straight year

AUBURNDALE – Some might call it a three-peat.

For the third year in a row, Polk County tourism set a new record with $10,423,915 generated in bed tax revenue for fiscal year 2016. This also continues a seven year growth trend, and is a more than $1.3 million increase in revenue from last fiscal year, according to figures released this week by Polk County Tourism and Sports Marketing.

To Mark Jackson, the director of Central Florida’s Polk County Tourism and Sports Marketing department, the figures only tell part of the story.

“This year, the staff at Polk County Sports Marketing brought us 215 sporting events, which has proven to be a recession resistant economic hedge for Polk County” he said. “More events translates into more heads-in-beds. And that means more cash registers ringing.”

Polk County’s numbers by themselves shouldn’t be a surprise – Florida had another record amount of visitors in 2016, including the largest amount of visitors of any six months in the state’s history – 57.4 million – for the second half of the fiscal year, a 4.3 percent increase, according to a press release issued from the governor’s office.

However, Polk County’s growth has significantly outpaced the state and the nation, primarily due to aggressive demand driving strategies coupled with results oriented supply side investments. Some of those investments will soon be put to use, including the nearly $41 million renovation of Joker Marchant Stadium and the new fields at the Lake Myrtle Sports Complex. Others, such as the first phase in renovations at the Lakeland Center, may be completed in 2017. A new field house/convention center in Winter Haven and an equestrian/heritage center in Fort Meade are still in the planning stages.

“But updating and expanding our infrastructure inventory isn’t enough,” said Jackson. “While we continue to win, others around us are improving their game.”

According to Jackson, recent developments in area sports tourism helps illustrate his point. He cited the Orange County Commission’s recent decision to set aside $5 million, with $2 million replenished annually, for a fund intended to draw larger sporting events to the area. He added that nearby Lake County has partnered with Orlando in their quest for a larger portion of the sports tourism pie, and at the same time a brand new $27 million Seminole County Sports Complex opened. And in Pasco County, there is discussing on building a $14 million, 98,000 square foot sports center while in nearby Tampa a proposed $12.9 million youth sports complex continues to move forward.

“If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then we should be flattered,” said Jackson. “But we need to continue pressing forward. By staying relevant, strengthening our partnerships with the private sector and creatively using our competitive advantages, Polk County can face our looming challenges.”

Among those challenges, said Jackson, is that the travel and tourism industry is forecasted for little or zero growth nationally in the coming year due to everything from unstable politics both at home and abroad as well as competition from other markets.

“And while the strong U.S. dollar means you can buy more at your local big box store, it also means that annual visit is a little more expensive for our Canadian and European friends,” he said. “However, our internal forecasts do predict financial growth in the local tourism industry in the next year, as well as sustained growth in both the short and long term.”