FOR THE STRENGTH OF OUR COMMUNITY

A study completed by ULI Sacramento District Council shows the value that museums, arts venues, sports, and recreation opportunities bring to creating and stimulating a regional economy. According to their research, civic amenities are proven to contribute to economic vitality by making a city or region an attractive business center, sparking urban redevelopment, increasing property values, improving public safety, raising the visibility of a city or region and generating money through tourism. Such civic amenities play an important role in the desire to live in a given area.

THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE CENTRAL MONTANA SPORTS COMPLEX
By The Numbers

• 3,000 people attend the Montana Youth Soccer State Tournament and spend 1.2-1.5 million dollars over three days.
• 5,000 people attend the Class “A” Basketball Tournament and put 2 million dollars into the local economy.
• 6,000 people attend the Montana State Wrestling Tournament and put 2.7 million dollars into the local economy.
• 7,000 people attend the State Class B Basketball Tournament and spend 3 million dollars into the local economy.

• Create 90-108 jobs (50-60 direct and 30-48 indirect jobs during the 10 month construction phase of the complex.*
• Create 144-180 jobs (80-100 direct and 64-80 indirect jobs during the ongoing operations of the complex.*
• Spend 1.2 million dollars annually, both directly and indirectly with the local business.
• Serve as a larger, long-term economic catalyst for Great Falls.

Other cities, with similarities to Great Falls, have benefitted from the existence of sports and entertainment facilities. And when strategically located, like ours being centrally located in Montana, such facilities have spurred economic growth beyond the facility itself. A few good examples include:

Starfire Sport in Tukwila, Washington

Sportsplex West in Waukee Iowa and

Lansing Indoor Sports Arena in Lansing, Michigan.

As spending takes place in the local and regional economy it represents revenue to the Central Montana Sports Complex and to area restaurants, shops and other retail establishments. These entities, in turn, spend this revenue for various goods and services both inside and outside the local and state economies. Further, the employees who work for these businessesspend a portion of their income in the local and state economies. As this additional spending occurs, it becomes income to other entities which in turn re-spend that money.

*  There are a variety of multiplier modeling techniques available that can be used to estimate the economic benefit and jobs created based on the total construction cost and ongoing operational revenue generated from a particular facility. These models produce only estimates and are subject to the accuracy of the underlying assumptions. The economic impacts resulting from the calculations that utilize the economic multipliers only capture a portion of the economic benefits of various projects. It is also important to consider how the construction project and future operations of the facility support ongoing economic activity once the project is complete.