Issues to Watch 2014: Sports Tourism

EAST COUNTY — First you create the venues, then you win the bids.

Next comes buy-in and, then — hopefully — successful performances that spur year-round visitation and a steady stream of economic dollars.

On its journey to become an international sports haven, the Sarasota-Bradenton area has completed the most difficult steps — the first two.

Now, it’s game time.

“Both counties and private business such as Schroeder-Manatee Ranch (Lakewood Ranch’s developer) and Benderson Development have invested in world-class facilities,” said Nicole Rissler, the sports director of the Sarasota County Sports Commission, a division of Visit Sarasota. “We’ve gone after international-caliber championships, and we’ve gotten them. We have a responsibility now to fill those facilities with spectators and excitement to create long-lasting economic value.”

Premier venue
The Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch has closely followed the equation’s steps.

It’s obvious during a two-week stretch in December, as Tim Mulqueen, Premier’s director of sports, sits behind the wheel of a stationary golf cart — his perch to watch amateur athletes from Portugal, England and Brazil play soccer on his fields.

Mulqueen, who worked for U.S. Soccer from 2005 to 2011 and coached major league soccer before coming here, used his strong ties to help Premier land the Nike International Friendlies tournament — the U.S. Soccer Federation’s biggest youth event — for the last three years.

Nike just signed on to hold its event at Premier for another three years after 2014.

The 2012 tournament attracted 6,000 players and 15,000 fans who brought $11.3 million of economic impact to the region. Mulqueen expects better numbers this year.

Athletes from sports as varied as lacrosse, Irish hurling, ultimate Frisbee and rugby come to Premier to play on 108 acres of fields.

Using Mulqueen’s connections as a starter, Premier’s strategic plan called for it to attract marquee events often and quickly, because it knew — once athletes played their best soccer on these fields — Lakewood Ranch would soon become the talk of the soccer community.

To take the next step, Premier must expand its facilities to include bathrooms and locker rooms, staff offices and concession stands.

“We won’t build what people don’t want,” Mulqueen said. “After three years, we have a good idea of what this place will look like in the future.”

Premier changed the flow of its parking lot — an unpaved, rocky area near the fields — to better accommodate out-of-town visitors.

It installed lights at eight of its 22 fields, so sports can be played at night. Premier learned it can keep its fields green by spreading rye seed, and, last year, it began doing so two weeks earlier than it had before.

“The hard part is over,” Mulqueen said. “We have established ourselves as an international destination. Next, we have to make it better.”

Premier also has taken steps to include the community.

In December, the East County franchise of i9 Sports partnered with Premier to move its sports leagues there.

Already, Tim Howard, the U.S. National team goalkeeper, runs a goalie camp at Premier during the summer.

Brian McBride, Howard’s former teammate, will add a camp for forwards to Premier’s offerings.
In the age of the next big thing, Mulqueen expects more.

“We can’t sit back and say, ‘We’ve done it,’” Mulqueen said. “People are smart and will try to copy our model.”

Collaboration pays
Paul Blackketter, president of the Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates (SANCA), which operates the Nathan Benderson Park rowing center, spearheaded the decision to make the facility the best.

Thirty million dollars in taxpayer money went into the park’s construction, including $1.5 million from Manatee County, $19.5 million from Sarasota County and $10 million from the state.

Officials estimate the 10-day 2017 World Rowing Championships — the sport’s biggest competition outside of the Olympics — to be held at the park, will attract more than 42,000 people and 1,500 athletes to Sarasota and Manatee counties and have a regional economic impact of $25 million.

The investment represents a partnership between taxpayers and Benderson Development, a Manatee County-based development company.

Elliott Falcione, director of the Manatee County Convention and Visitors Bureau, says such collaboration must continue in the years before the World Rowing Championships to ensure it lives up to the investment.

His organization — in conjunction with Visit Sarasota — is working to receive approval for a banner program to better showcase and market events.

Banners advertising events and welcoming athletes would be plastered to light poles and at rights of way, especially near the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport.

Falcione hopes the program comes online in four to six months, pending review by commissioners from both counties.

“When you have people from all over the world coming here, you need to focus on customer service,” Falcione said.

He says Manatee County is continuing to improve its technology, including mobile apps meant to allow visitors to explore the area when they’re here.

He even envisions collaboration between the banner program and the apps, so visitors could learn about nearby restaurants and hotels.

In advance of the World Rowing Championships, Nathan Benderson Park will host another world event — the International Breast Cancer Paddlers Commission’s Dragon Boat Festival — in 2014.

The venue will also host the World Cup finals for modern pentathlon in June, the first of four events in the sport that will come here the next three years.

Challenges await
On the challenges side, Rissler and Falcione say the region needs more hotel rooms. Other challenges include providing foreigners with translators, diverse food options, visa services and security.

Rissler says her organization is working with the Department of Homeland Security to secure more global events.

Rissler will visit six major trade shows in fiscal year 2014 to continue to market Sarasota-Bradenton as the place where sport comes to play.

“The minute we become complacent, we stop climbing that ladder,” Rissler said. “We would never have the budget to get the word out the international marketing way. With events, we can spread the name and the brand through participation. If you come here and experience it, you later come back and buy a house or start a family. That’s where you get into the economic development piece of this.”

BREAKDOWN
Overview: Sarasota and Manatee counties, private businesses and volunteers continue to pool resources to ensure forthcoming international sports events run smoothly.

Players: Paul Blackketter, Nicole Rissler, Elliott Falcione, Tim Mulqueen

Timeline: Pentathlon World Cup Finals at Nathan Benderson Park and Sarasota YMCA’s Selby Acquatic Center in June; International Breast Cancer Paddlers Commission’s Dragon Boat Festival at Nathan Benderson Park Oct. 24 to Oct. 26; and Nike International Friendlies tournament Dec. 8 through Dec. 16 (tentative) at Premier Sports Campus

By the numbers
Manatee County
For 2013, Manatee County sporting events/tournament generated an estimated 54,200 overnight visitors staying in commercial lodgings in the area.
This represents a 23.2% increase from the 2011 level.
In 2013, visitors spending generated $78 million of economic impact for the region, a 30.0% increase compared with 2011.

Sarasota County
For fiscal year 2013, sporting events/tournaments generated $71 million of economic impact, with 67,519 hotel rooms booked.*

*For events sponsored by Visit Sarasota and the Sarasota Sports Commission

Contact Josh Siegel at [email protected]