Seven Surprising Ways Tourism Benefits Everyone in Flagstaff

Here are seven ways tourism benefits Flagstaff residents.

National Travel and Tourism Week is May 4-10, giving communities the opportunity to reflect on the important role visitation plays across the country.

In Flagstaff, the celebration is nuanced, with the city celebrating National Travel and Eco-Tourism, which is a hat-tip to this high-elevation mountain community’s commitment to responsible visitation.

With approximately five million visitors to the city annually, travel is vital to Flagstaff and serves as the foundation for the city’s economy.

The direct benefits of visitor spending are clear. Restaurants, hotels, motels and world-class attractions such as Lowell Observatory and the Museum of Northern Arizona all enhance the community, and all told, the tourism sector supports approximately 8,000 Flagstaff jobs.

But the benefits of tourism run much deeper in the community. Here are seven ways tourism benefits Flagstaff residents.

More recreational opportunities throughout the city. Flagstaff collects a 2% Bed, Board and Beverage (BBB) tax on accommodations and restaurants. The largest portion of those funds, 33%, supports parks, recreation and open space in Flagstaff. That amounts to approximately $5 million annually, and the money is spread throughout the community on some of the city’s most heavily used facilities including the Flagstaff Urban Trails System, five Flagstaff Unified School District fields and seven city sports fields, neighborhood and community parks, basketball and other sport courts such as pickleball and tennis, and disc golf facilities. Playgrounds at city parks also benefit, as do recreation centers.

Beautifies the city and fosters community pride. Another 20% of the BBB collections support beautification initiatives throughout the city. Some of the major projects include the Downtown Connection Center, Switzer Canyon Roundabout and the Lone Tree Overpass. This program offers dozens of grants to community members for projects like murals, utility cabinet art wraps and pollinator gardens.

Enhances the arts and sciences. With 7.5% of the BBB money funding arts and sciences, the city’s program operates in partnership with Creative Flagstaff to support non-profit and private agencies engaged in arts and sciences. Public art in parks is also included. Upcoming is a sculpture titled “Rustle,” to be placed at the newly named Cleo Murdoch Park, adjacent to the Murdoch Community Center at 203 E. Brannen Avenue. 

Brings the community together. The festivals and events throughout our city are special because they not only bring visitors from out of town to celebrate things like Hullabaloo, the Great Pinecone Drop, Fourth of July, Pride in the Pines and several others, but those events create touchstones for residents that the city can look forward to each year.

Reinforces Flagstaff priorities like sustainable, regenerative visitation. As the destination marketing organization for the city, Discover Flagstaff not only strives to increase visitation, but also embraces the responsibility of educating travelers before they arrive. Every advertisement and marketing effort to promote the city is also an opportunity to remind visitors of key messages such as to “Be Fire Aware,” and to “Leave no Trace.” Also critical is winter recreation information that instructs visitors on the appropriate places to play in the snow and stay safe.

Promotes Northern Arizona cultural heritage. Events such as the Heritage Festival at the Museum of Northern Arizona and the current exhibition at Coconino Center for the Arts called “The Future is Indigenous: Messages to the Seventh Generation” increase awareness among residents and visitors alike about the unique history of this region and the people who have lived here for millennia.

Encourages business development and investment. The city uses 9.5% of the collections to promote economic development in Flagstaff with things like business grants, business retention and workforce development. These tourism-funded efforts also include the “Visit, Discover, Grow” campaign aimed at attracting additional businesses to the community and helping get them launched. They also support the Innovation Mesa Business Accelerator program, which allows university professors and entrepreneurs to work in a supportive environment to develop ideas into commercial business models. FBN

By Ryan Randazzo

Ryan Randazzo is the Discover Flagstaff media relations and marketing project manager and Flagstaff film commissioner.

Courtesy Photo: Funding from the Flagstaff Bed, Board and Beverage tax supports parks, open space and heavily used amenities like the Flagstaff Urban Trails System.