Buncombe, Jackson, Henderson, and Transylvania Counties)
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Economic Impact Study of Organized Youth Camps in Western North Carolina (Buncombe, Jackson, Henderson, and Transylvania Counties) A report prepared for the North Carolina Youth Camp Association January 2011 Project Team: Dr. Michelle Gacio Harrolle Assistant Professor Dr. Samantha Rozier Rich Assistant Professor and Tourism Extension Specialist Project Consultants: Dr. Daniel A. Rascher, AVA President, SportsEconomics, LLC Dr. Karla Henderson Professor, NC State University Graduate Assistants: Michael King, Stacy Supak, Scott Warner, & Shunagyu Xu Produced by: NC State University Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................. 5 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................... 10 Study Objectives ........................................................................................................................ 10 Study Area ................................................................................................................................. 10 RESEARCH METHODS ............................................................................................................. 11 ECONOMIC IMPACT OF WNC REGION ................................................................................ 13 Comparison to 1999 Economic Impact Study ............................................................................ 15 Industry Growth for WNC Region ............................................................................................ 16 BUNCOMBE COUNTY .............................................................................................................. 18 Economic Impact for Buncombe County .................................................................................. 18 Industry Growth for Buncombe County .................................................................................... 19 HENDERSON COUNTY ............................................................................................................ 20 Economic Impact for Henderson County .................................................................................. 20 Industry Growth for Henderson County .................................................................................... 21 JACKSON COUNTY ................................................................................................................... 22 Economic Impact for Jackson County ....................................................................................... 22 Industry Growth for Jackson County ......................................................................................... 23 TRANSYLVANIA COUNTY ....................................................................................................... 24 Economic Impact for Transylvania County ................................................................................ 24 Industry Growth for Transylvania County ................................................................................. 25 CAMP DEMOGRAPHICS ........................................................................................................... 27 CAMP FAMILY DEMOGRAPHICS ........................................................................................... 33 GIS Mapping of Camp Families ................................................................................................. 36 CAMP STAFF DEMOGRAPHICS .............................................................................................. 38 IMPACTS OF ORGANIZED CAMPING ................................................................................... 41 Benefits of Organized Camping and Influences on Participation in Organized Camping ........... 41 Influence of Travel and Tourism ................................................................................................ 45 Tourism – Camp Families ...................................................................................................... 45 Tourism – Camp Staff ............................................................................................................ 49 Influence of School Schedule – Camp Families .......................................................................... 53 Resources and Social Media Usage ............................................................................................. 55 2 Sustainability of Organized Camping – Camp Directors ............................................................. 57 APPENDIX .................................................................................................................................. 62 Map of Camp Area ..................................................................................................................... 62 Camps where staff (who completed the survey) indicated they worked ...................................... 63 Economic Impact Methodology ................................................................................................. 64 GIS Maps ................................................................................................................................... 66 Tables of Additional Data .......................................................................................................... 75 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to acknowledge and extend our gratitude to the following persons and organizations that helped to make this study possible: North Carolina Youth Camp Association (NCYCA), namely Chuck McGrady, Gordon Strayhorn, Tom Rosenberg, Page Lemel, Sandy Jackson, and Jane Murray, for their commitment to organized camping and for their hard work and dedication in supporting this study and ensuring its successful completion. American Camp Association (ACA) and Morrow Insurance for their financial support and assistance in making this study possible. And of course, to all the camps, camp directors, camp staff, and camper families who took time out of their busy schedules to complete our extensive surveys. Without the participation from the camps below, this study would not have been completed. Thank you! Adventure Treks Camp Wayfarer, Inc. Blue Star Camps Connestee Cove, Inc Brevard Music Center Deep Woods Camp for Boys Buc Outdoor Center (Camp Buc) Eagle's Nest Camp Camp Arrowhead for Boys Falling Creek Camp, Inc. Camp Bob at Kanuga FDB, Inc. (Camp Mondamin & Green Cove) Camp Carolina Girl Scouts Peaks to Piedmont Camp Cedar Cliff Green River Preserve Camp Dorothy Walls Conference & Retreat Center Kahdalea Camp Glen Arden Keystone Camp, Inc. Camp Greystone Merri-Mac/Timberlake LLC Camp High Rocks Ridge Haven Camp Highlander Ridgecrest Summer Camps Camp Hollymont Rockbrook Camp for Girls, Inc. Camp Illahee SOAR Camp Judaea Swannanoa 4-H Center Camp Kanuga Talisman Programs Camp Merrie-Woode THE WILDS Christian Camp & Conference Center Camp Pinewood Woodson Wilderness Challenge Camp Rockmont for Boys, Inc. YMCA Blueridge Assembly Camp Tekoa YMCA Camp Greenville Camp Ton-A-Wandah Young Life Windy Gap 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The North Carolina Youth Camp Association retained NC State University to evaluate the economic and fiscal benefits of the operations of summer residential camps in Western North Carolina (WNC) within four counties (Buncombe, Henderson, Jackson, and Transylvania) during the summer of 2010. This analysis presents estimates of the quantifiable impacts and a discussion of qualitative benefits to the WNC Region (referred to as Region throughout this report) currently generated as a result of these summer residential camps. The study‟s key findings are presented in this Executive Summary. For camp directors‟ data, a total of 45 camps completed the survey with a total of 40 usable surveys representing 50 camps. For visitor data (collected from camper families‟ data), approximately 5,200 surveys were completed with a total of approximately 4,600 usable surveys representing nearly 53,238 families. From staff data, approximately 840 surveys were collected with a total of approximately 540 usable surveys representing 5,477 total staff. Total attendance at camps was estimated to be 53,238 over the summer, with 49,665 who were considered “incremental visitors”. These incremental visitors, who traveled specifically to WNC because of the residential camps and did not live in the four county Region, each spent an average of $2,096 dollars during their stays in the Region. Seasonal staff, which traveled specifically to WNC because of the residential camps, each spent an average of $2,402 dollars during their stay in the Region. The camps generated considerable economic impacts for the Region. Moreover, substantial tax revenues were also generated. Specifically, the total economic impact on the four counties in WNC from residential summer camps and their operations was approximately $365 million, with over 10,000 full-time equivalent jobs created beyond camp staff, and nearly $33 million in new tax revenues. The details are shown in the table below. Economic Impact for WNC Region Including Buncombe, Jackson, Henderson, & Transylvania Counties FINDING # 1 : Direct Economic Impact to the Region: $218 million. FINDING # 2 : Total Economic Impact to the Region: $365 million. FINDING # 3 : Induced Economic Impacts to the Region: $260 million