There is no doubt the events held annually at Langley Pond have an impact on Aiken County, but as to how many dollars pour in is hard to gauge, Mark van der Linden said.
Van der Linden, the County’s Parks, Recreation and Tourism director, said he gets asked the exact economic impact “a lot.”
“Several hundred thousand dollars in economic impact wouldn’t be far off,” van der Linden said. “It’s hard to gauge; you have smaller events, day events, like the amateur wakeboard event; it’s quick so it’s hard to gauge the impact there or where they are staying … I’ve called around the state, the Augusta Sports Council, to find the economic impact and they say it’s hard to judge.”
Aiken County acquired the property that Langley Pond sits on about six to seven years ago, but had always used the pond under an agreement with the property’s previous owner. The Pond gained national fame after the U.S. Rowing Team used the pond as its home practice facility to prepare for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Spanning nearly 300 acres, and made up of about 100 million gallons of water, Langley Pond is large enough to be considered a lake.
Today, Langley Pond doesn’t just attract residents looking to spend a nice day out on the water, but just within the last couple of years has acquired a triathlon, a wakeboard and water skiing competition and four rowing regattas. Typically in March, the County would be opening its doors to thousands of visitors and competitors for the annual Augusta Invitational Rowing Regatta, but in November a resident walking his dog noticed an unusual bubbling of water near the Pond’s dam, which led to much of the pond and its trails to be temporarily shut down. Now, a sign stating the Pond’s closure and bright orange construction signs block off visitors from the Langley Pond entrance.
The County could spend close to $800,000 to investigate and fix the Langley Dam, County Administrator Clay Killian told The Aiken Standard, but staff hope a bulk of those costs could be offset using grants or Capital Project Sales Tax or accommodations tax funds. Because of the pond’s closure, van der Linden said he’s had to notify organizations like the Augusta Rowing Club that the pond’s water level is too low for any rowing. The pond’s water level is currently down 5 feet and will be drained down another 5 feet to make room for the permanent siphon installation. Van der Linden said for competitions to come back to the pond, the water’s level would have to come back up at least 10 feet, but while it’s down, the County will get rid of exposed stumps and remove sandbars for swimmer and boater safety.
“I hope by 2016 to have the competitions come back, but it depends on what the fix is for the dam,” van der Linden said. “We hope to have everyone back, and so far we’ve received positive comments from the competition coordinators who are still looking forward to holding their events here.”
Because of this setback, van der Linden has had to focus his attention on not just the pending improvements to Langley Pond, but also finding ways to provide several land-based programs and events for residents and visitors.
“So we have a finish line tower, which will be constructed on the eastern end of the pond, and will be a multiuse space but mostly used to accurately time the regattas,” van der Linden said. “This tower, it will cost between $500,000 and $600,000 by grants and accommodations tax funds, (and) will help attract more events.”
Parks staff also have plans to construct a road into Langley Pond, funded by Capital Project Sales Tax funds, to open up the park to future facilities, to give a more clear view from the Aiken-Augusta Highway and to help promote economic development along the Aiken-Augusta corridor, van der Linden said.
“It will allow for more parking for events and it really just opens up the rest of the property for future facilities down the road, like a boathouse, an amphitheater, picnic shelters – long-term stuff,” van der Linden said. “The road is a start; it gives us an artery getting down toward the future of the pond.”
Van der Linden introduced plans to construct a boathouse during the County’s budget retreat last week. The boathouse would allow the County to host its own rowing club or to bring in large-scale events such as weddings. The boathouse, he said, is a concept, an “end goal” that will be funded privately through a fundraising campaign.
“I hope this development moves us toward getting a hotel or something on the property,” van der Linden said. “It’s been discussed because of the events that go on that having a hotel on the property would be nice. It would really open up the entire Midland Valley area. The thing is, right now, we’re going to focus on the improvements we need but also make goals so that when we become operational again we will be better than ever.”
Maayan Schechter is the local government reporter with Aiken Standard. An Atlanta native, she has a mass communications-journalism degree with the University of North Carolina Asheville. Follow her on Twitter @MaayanSchechter.
Leave a Reply