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Mahoning County Tourism Totals $751M Impact
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- Visitors to Mahoning County generated $751 million in business activity, directly and indirectly, in 2013, according to a study commissioned by TourismOhio.
Mary Cusick, director of the state tourism agency, will outline economic impact of tourism across Ohio’s 32-county Appalachian Region, which includes Mahoning County, at a meeting Wednesday of members of Ohio’s Appalachian Country.
Ohio’s Appalachian Country is a group of tourism-related entities that work together to market attractions in the 32-county region. Tomorrow’s meeting, hosted by the Mahoning County Convention & Visitors Bureau, will take place at the Butler Institute of American Art.
Tourism helped support over 9,200 jobs locally, provided $178 million in wages, and generated $95.4 million in taxes in 2013, according to the report. Conducted biannually by Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics Co. based in Philadelphia, the study takes into account factors such as lodging, food and beverage, retail, recreation and transportation business sectors.
“The numbers show that tourism is an integral part of the economy here in the Youngstown area,” said Linda Macala, executive director of the Mahoning County CVB, in a prepared statement. “Conventions, conferences, travel and tourism and sports tournaments all contribute to our overall economic development picture. They bring people and visitor dollars into our community. The numbers from this study provide a snapshot of the state of tourism in Mahoning County.”
Using the figures for direct sales alone, Mahoning County showed a 12.9% increase from 2012 to 2013, Macala said. Across the northeastern Ohio region, the increase was 5.8%, and statewide it was 4.8%.
“We’re very happy with the positive trends reported in the study,” she remarked.
SOURCE: TourismOhio.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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