Officials say fishing tournaments and Bassmaster return boost lodging tax and generate roughly $1.1 million in local impact

Tourism staff briefed the council on the economic return from fishing tournaments and asked the city to continue contributing to bid and host fees that draw those events. The tourism official said the tournaments brought roughly 3,564 overnight stays and 3,376 anglers and that the direct economic impact from anglers across the season was about $1.1 million; she also said the Bassmaster professional event produces additional promotional value when it is televised nationally. "We're excited about it," the tourism official said when describing the financial and promotional benefits. Staff noted that the county divides unincorporated lodging-tax receipts into five buckets and that tourism receives a portion of those funds; the tourism office said it received a $25,000 pass-through last year though a $27,000 request was submitted. The tourism official reported the city's lodging-tax receipts were about $83,000 ahead of the same point last year and showed that individual facilities — including the state park and area hotels — saw increases in lodging-tax collections tied to tournaments. The packet provided to council members lists the Bassmaster Elite (the professional event that was last local in 2018) as an upcoming attraction and staff said the Elite will return, adding several days of pre-event activity and national coverage when televised. Staff asked the council whether the city would continue contributions to cover bid and host fees so tournaments do not have to be canceled. Ending: Tourism staff said continuing modest city contributions helps the community capture off-season visitor spending that otherwise would be concentrated in summer months.