Sports tourism along Baldwin County’s beaches closed out 2014 with record numbers, mirroring years of steady growth in retail sales and lodging revenue across Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.
Both beach cities have poured resources into sports facilities over the past several years, each operating its own sports complex and jointly funding the Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Sports Commission to help recruit tournaments and events. The commission, formed in 2007 with backing from the two cities, Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism, the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber and various sponsors, has seen dramatic growth since its founding. In its first year, the commission drew 27 events that generated roughly 11,961 room nights and $3.4 million in visitor spending. By 2014, those numbers had climbed to 102 events, 76,024 room nights and $30.8 million in spending.
That figure represents a 10 percent jump in visitor spending over the previous year’s $27.9 million, with room nights growing nearly 6 percent compared to 2013. Beth Gendler, vice president of sales for the sports commission, said in a statement that the continued growth reflects the strong local economic ripple effect sporting events generate through hotel stays, restaurant visits and retail spending, particularly during the shoulder seasons between the area’s busiest summer months.
The sports tourism boom has tracked closely with the broader economic recovery in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and the Fort Morgan peninsula since the 2010 Gulf oil spill. Taxable lodging rentals across those areas rose 8.5 percent in 2014 to nearly $380 million, an increase of more than 35 percent since 2011. Taxable retail sales climbed almost 8 percent to $727 million over the same period, according to figures compiled by the local tourism bureau.
Nearby Foley also posted strong numbers, with retail sales growing almost 6 percent to $641 million and taxable lodging rentals jumping nearly 20 percent to $11 million, a boost tied to a lodging tax increase that took effect in October 2013. That additional tax revenue is helping fund the upcoming Foley Sports Tourism Complex, slated to open in late 2015 with 16 multi-purpose athletic fields and a 100,000-square-foot events center along Baldwin County 20, west of the Foley Beach Express. The complex is the first phase of a larger entertainment development that will also include two adjacent hotels.
As of late January, the Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Sports Commission had 97 events already scheduled for 2015. Upcoming spring highlights include the Alabama Tennis Invitational, the American Open Beach Handball Championships, the Southern States Athletic Conference outdoor track and field and softball championships, an American Volleyball Collegiate sand volleyball national championship, and the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s regional track championship. Organizers say the growing events calendar is expected to keep drawing athletes, families and fans to the beach communities well beyond the traditional summer tourist season.