The report, prepared by Arnett Muldrow Associates in Greenville, shows that tourism spending in Spartanburg County exceeded $205.8 million in 2013-14, resulting in an economic impact of nearly $228 million — a 34 percent increase over the past five years.
The report also indicates 1,293 jobs have been added thanks to tourism increases, with nearly 5,000 jobs tied directly to tourism spending. Government revenues have increased by $14 million in five years, too.
“We are emerging as a destination,” said Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Chris Jennings. “This is putting us on the map. Let’s be honest: We’re not Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head or Charleston. But we can compete with Florence, Columbia, Rock Hill, Greenville.”
Jennings presented the report to Spartanburg County Council on Monday, just as city leaders not far away were finalizing a deal to bring a new hotel downtown.
The hotel industry has particularly benefitted from increased tourism, Jennings has said. Beyond downtown, Jennings has heard rumblings of potential new hotels in Spartanburg County near the new Bass Pro Shops development, in Landrum thanks to the nearby Tryon International Equestrian Center, near the Upward Star Center multi-sports facility between Spartanburg and Wellford, and in the WestGate Mall area.
The challenge for those involved in tourism, then, becomes maintaining the local hotel industry’s business levels once any new hotels begin operating. “It’s good pressure on us,” Jennings said. “It’s a good, healthy competition for us to go out and produce meetings, conferences and sporting events.”
The 27-page progress report stems from recommendations made in the 2009 Tourism Action Plan that was spearheaded by Pacolet Mayor Elaine Harris. Spartanburg County Councilwoman Jane Hall led the initiative on the county side. Harris was not able to attend Monday’s presentation due to health issues.
Hall said the buy-in from community stakeholders over the years has helped nurture the tourism initiative. She also said she’s watched firsthand as events like Tame the Tyger have grown over the years. “We’re just going to keep moving forward,” Hall said. “As we develop one area, it opens up another area.”
Early on, the plan birthed the “Spartanburg: Revolutionary” branding campaign.
Thanks to regional sports tournaments at county facilities and the new Upward Star Center, sports tourism is now a driving force here.
Spartanburg is getting more comfortable with its Bike Town identity, thanks not only to the popular Assault on Mount Mitchell, but also the Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System Criterium downtown and the Stump Jump mountain bike race.
Spartanburg County, too, is benefitting from the Our Carolina Foothills regional marketing effort, Jennings said. Our Carolina Foothills is designed to transcend the North Carolina line and promote Landrum, Tryon, Columbus and Saluda – the latter three communities, in Polk County, N.C. – as a single unit. It’s also an effort to help that area better capitalize on the new equestrian center just north of Spartanburg County.
Jennings also talked about Spartanburg County’s 10 key Revolutionary War sites and a new map that has been produced for Croft State Park. The first 5,000 copies are gone, and the map is getting a second printing.
And no tourism discussion in Spartanburg is complete with mentioning the Carolina Panthers training camp, which will return to town for at least the next five years.
“By almost any metric, the tourism industry in Spartanburg has undergone a dramatic change,” Tripp Muldrow with Arnett Muldrow Associates said in a statement. “Spartanburg County is a collection of remarkable resources, and the community has a tremendous track record of cultivating these resources for economic benefit.”
Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt, who heads the council’s economic development committee, said tourism-related investment has helped lure companies here. It has helped improve the area’s quality of life, which piques the interest of companies that want to locate in a place where their employees would enjoy living.
“It is a different time in the county,” Britt said. “We’re very, very fortunate to be doing this, and we can’t slow down.”
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