CANTON – Tourism spending climbed to $1.37 billion in Stark County last year, up 4.6% from the previous year and providing a total $2.2 billion economic impact for the community, a new report says.
Visit Canton , formally the Stark County Convention & Visitors' Bureau, released its annual report Wednesday just as the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week is set to begin. The enshrinement festivities attract hundreds of thousands of tourists to the county each year.
"Our community has benefited tremendously from the increased visitor activity, and we look forward to continuing this positive trajectory," Visit Canton's CEO Allyson Bussey said in a prepared statement.
The spending numbers indicate that, when adjusted for inflation, Stark County's tourism industry has nearly, if not largely, recovered from the economic shock of the COVID pandemic in 2020.
Stark County is home to many popular regional and national tourist destinations, including the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame Village, Gervasi Vineyard Resort & Spa, Hartville Marketplace & Flea Market, McKinley Presidential Museum & Library and National First Ladies Library & Museum.
The report noted — based on a study done for the state Department of Development Tourism Division — that day trip visitors spend an estimated $124, while an overnight visitor spends $400 in Ohio.
Visit Canton 2023 annual report by Rick Armon on Scribd
Related: Visit Canton opens new downtown office with more space & room to showcase Stark County
National First Ladies Library sees 50% jump in visitors
A yearlong exhibition devoted to the life of former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis contributed to the increased tourism spending last year.
The National First Ladies Library & Museum at the First Ladies National Historic Site in downtown Canton hosted "Beyond Camelot: The Life and Legacy of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis."
Patty Dowd Schmitz, the president and CEO of the library and museum, estimated the exhibition helped the site experience a roughly 50% increase in the number of visitors compared with the same period the year before.
"Jackie Kennedy is an American icon. And she draws a great deal of attention. And having that attention definitely opened the doors to a lot more visitors than we've had the last few years,” she said.
The National First Ladies Library & Museum currently is having a yearlong exhibition called "Leaders in Literacy, First Ladies as Teachers, Educators and Librarians." The exhibit features Jill Biden, the current first lady and a college professor, among first ladies who've been educators. Schmitz said she anticipates that exhibition attracting more visitors this year as well.
Ernie's Bike Shop reports more tourists
Ernie Lehman Jr., one of the owners of Ernie's Bike Shop , said the past two years his Massillon shop has seen a significant increase in the number of bicyclists from out of the county using the Ohio to Erie Trail from Cincinnati to Cleveland.
The Sippo Valley Trail from Dalton to Massillon and the segment of the Congressman Ralph Regula Towpath Trail from Lincoln Way West to Summit County are segments of the Ohio to Erie Trail.
He said he did not have statistics but he estimated the volume of cyclists on the trail has at least tripled the past couple of years.
Lehman said those bicyclists are often spending the night at the Hampton Inn in Massillon, eating at Kozmo's Grille in Massillon and stopping at his Lake Avenue bike shop. They come to buy replacement bike parts and Ohio to Erie Trail-branded merchandise, and they'll sign his guest book, saying where they hail from.
“That has been very cool because it is people from different states, different coasts, different countries that are coming here for this trail and spending their money here in town," Lehman said. "There are a lot of people looking for these multi-day cycling experiences. ... I think the word has gotten out that there’s a gem of a trail.”
Lehman also rents canoes and kayaks for use on the Tuscarawas River. But he said it's nearly all local residents who rent the canoes.
Breaking down the tourism numbers in the Visit Canton report
The Visit Canton report says direct visitor spending was $1.18 billion in 2019 prior to the pandemic. It dropped to $933 million in 2020 before rebounding to $1.15 billion in 2021 and $1.31 billion in 2022.
Not considering inflation, the increase in direct visitor spending was more than 16% from 2019 to 2023. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' inflation calculator , $1.18 billion at the end of 2019 would be the equivalent in purchasing power of at least $1.41 billion today.
The number of overnight hotel stays in Stark County in 2023 remained about the same as the previous year at 1.5 million, the report said. That's compared to 1.4 million in 2019; 978,000 in 2020 and 1.3 million in 2021.
Tourism Economics, a UK company with an office in Wayne, Pennsylvania, provided the spending numbers. Placer.ai, an Israeli company based in Santa Cruz, California, provided the hotel overnight stay statistics.
Higher hotel spending in Stark County
According to the Stark County Auditor's Office, Stark County's hotel bed tax revenue that went to Visit Canton rose nearly 27% from 2019 to 2023. Visit Canton gets 6% in hotel taxes on hotel stay revenue in the county minus a 3% fee kept by the Auditor's Office.
That figure was $3.09 million in 2019; $1.83 million in 2020; $3.01 million in 2021; $3.61 million in 2022; and $3.92 million in 2023.
While the number of overnight stays has remained stagnant the past two years, the amount paid per stay has increased.
Visit Canton hands out grants to support tourism
Visit Canton also said that last year the agency:
- Assisted and supported 671 "meetings, sport events and motorcoach events," resulting in an estimated $55.6 million in visitor spending.
- Provided more than $260,000 in event support grants to 24 organizations "hosting conferences and sporting events."
- Awarded nearly $366,000 in destination enhancement grants for nine projects in four communities and more than $365,000 in cultural tourism grants to 32 organizations to "attract visitors and stimulate the local economy" and generate $21.5 million in visitor spending and attract an estimated 123,601 visitors. Nearly $57,000 for major arts enhancements went to fund arts projects.
- Opened a Visit Canton visitor center and retail store at the Hall of Fame Village, increasing net sales by $17,520.
Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com. X formerly Twitter: @rwangREP.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: 'Positive trajectory.' Stark County sees jump in tourism spending
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