Clay County re-engages Airstream Ventures to expand sports events; staff cite airport and parking as key hurdles

Alan Verlander, principal with Airstream Ventures, told the Tourist Development Council on July 16 that his firm has resumed work under a new contract to market sporting events to Clay County and that his team will add personnel in Tampa, Orlando and Colorado Springs to pursue events, including Olympic-governing-body events.

"The airport is really our biggest, hurdle," Verlander said, explaining that some event rights holders prefer locations with closer commercial air service. He told the council the firm is also focusing on driving events that are within a few hours'drive of Clay County.

Council members and staff discussed facility readiness and operational constraints. Verlander and county staff said the regional sports complex now has field inventory that it lacked previously; Justin (director of parks and recreation) described a "crawl, walk, run" approach to opening fields and said seasonal limitations have been relaxed as the grass establishment progressed. County staff and the consultant said existing grant programs and a competitive incentives package make Clay County more attractive to rights holders than in prior years.

Tedd y Meyer, director of tourism, and Verlander both emphasized the need for creativity when staging niche competitions (for example triathlons or waterfront events) and for working directly with rights holders on visioning for how events would operate within existing parking and staging constraints. Verlander said the county's grant program is a strength: "We have a very robust grant program here, that is one of the better ones in the state, if not in the South," he said.

Staff said they already have several events interested in relocating to Clay County and expect a ramp-up in sports bookings; the county's event grant budget was discussed as part of that planning, with staff noting a proposed sports/grant budget for 2025–26 of $250,000 and that current-year grant funds remain available for events under this fiscal year.

The council and staff discussed operational needs that could improve marketability, including additional parking for large tournaments and coordination with airport and transportation partners to address access for larger, non-drivable events. Verlander and staff said they will pursue targeted trade shows and sports-industry conferences to reconnect relationships and re-establish event pipelines that waned when the contract lapsed previously.

Council members asked about lost events during the contract gap; Verlander said relationship-driven cancellations can be reversed quickly by outreach, and staff described tactical steps to re-engage event owners and rights holders at upcoming industry conferences.