We almost did a spit take when we saw this in the fish wrapper.
The Pulitizer Prize winners in St. Pete think Pasco County should commission a study to determine whether competing for youth and amateur sporting events is a good idea. So much for fiscal prudence, journalistic inquiry and, for that matter, common sense.
First, you have to go as far as the next county to see what amateur and youth sports can do for a local economy. We hope this doesn’t shock the big brains at the all-knowing fish wrapper but Polk County stopped studying and started doing this stuff about 15 years ago.
In 19-freaking-95, a few years after Polk County decided to spend a pittance to establish a sports marketing division, sporting events there accounted for $21 million in direct economic impact compared to $6-million in 1991-92. Come along with us on a trip back in time and study this relic from June 14, 1996.
How’s it working out for Polk lately? Uh, well, we haven’t done a study but, according to the Lakeland fish wrapper, June 16, 2007 in that town “was the largest annual Amateur Sports Day in the state - ever.”
And last year the Florida Youth Soccer Association announced that it will move its headquarters to a new 12,000-square foot facility in Auburndale (Polk County), home of the Lake Myrtle Soccer complex. The projected windfall? Just 20 annual events worth more than $35 million in annual economic benefits.
Study? Maybe the St. Pete fish wrapper should study its own archives a little before asking Pasco County taxpayers to pony up for more. That’s where we found this little gem from 1999. Apparently, some heavyweights in Pasco have been thinking about this idea (and spending money to study it) for a while.
Study? Here’s one just two years old by the Washington Economics Group. And here are a few of the findings from that study:
“… Direct spending by (Florida) county and municipal governments on parks and recreation was estimated at $942 million in 2004. The contribution to Gross State Product is estimated at nearly $1.2 billion.”
“… The Sunshine State’s extensive mix of professional, amateur and recreational sporting activities makes it the leader in sports destinations worldwide.”
“…Clearwater, Florida, competes with Colorado Springs, Colorado and Indianapolis, Indiana, as a preferred location for headquarters of national and international governing organizations.”
“… Forty (40) percent of all adult travelers in the U.S. travel for a sporting event - 84 percent are spectators.”
“… Among those who travel to attend a sports event, 25 percent travel to watch a child’s sporting event rather than adult events.”
“… A significant proportion of the net economic impact of sports originates from spending by out-of-town visitors.”
Study? If anything needs to be studied in Pasco it’s why that county didn’t get to work on this about 10 years ago. That and why the fish wrapper doesn’t do a little work of its own before suggesting more studies at taxpayers’ expense.