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reprinted from:
If county builds it,
will they come?
By Eve Modzelewski, staff writer St. Lucie County is considering raising its tourist tax and using the revenue to lure a $5 million youth baseball complex to St. Lucie West. The project could boost the local economy by attracting scores of sports-related tourists each year, county officials say. If the County Commission approves a new 1 percent room tax, the major-league-style complex - called Dreams Park South - could get $840,000 from the county over seven years. The founders of Cooperstown Dreams Park in Cooperstown, N.Y., are considering developing the 14-field facility on 30 acres adjacent to PGA Village. Kolter Property Co., which owns The Reserve and PGA Village, has committed to donating the land. If the deal goes through, construction would start next summer, and Dreams Park South could open in December 2003 or early 2004. As in Cooperstown - home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame - the park would conduct weeklong tournaments for youth baseball teams from across the country. Proponents say the development could boost tourism by bringing in thousands of players during the slow summer months. "One of the things we need to focus more on in St. Lucie County is sports-related tourism," said County Commissioner Doug Coward, chairman of the Tourist Development Council. Commission Chairman Cliff Barnes visited Cooperstown Dreams Park last summer and said a similar facility would be a boon to St. Lucie County. "Parents are the ideal tourists because, of course, they want to watch their children. They'd get hotel rooms; they'd eat in local restaurants," Barnes said. But the county is only willing to give Dreams Park the incentive money if it guarantees to bring hundreds of youth baseball teams from outside a 100-mile radius to St. Lucie County. A preliminary offer from the county states Dreams Park would have to bring in 320 teams its first year, 400 teams its second year and 480 teams annually in its third through seventh years of operation. County Administrator Doug Anderson plans to recommend that the Tourist Development Council consider the addition of a fifth cent to the county's tourist tax, as well as reinstatement of a fourth cent that's set to expire at the end of the year. Both taxes would be approved for 15 years. The council meets Dec. 4 and will pass its recommendation to the County Commission, which will consider the item Dec. 10. "I think it would be a great addition to
St. Lucie County," County Commissioner John Bruhn said. "It would bring a
lot more exposure here." |
