In its second full year of operation, Grand Park has surpassed all of its visitor projections. More than 750,000 visitors attended over 300 events and accounted for 60,000 hotel room nights. It is estimated that there were 1.9 million total visits to Grand Park in 2016.
Third party economic impact study conducted by Applied Economics projected an overall impact of $162.6 million for 2016 based on a forecasted 1.5 million total visits.
“It was an exciting year for Grand Park. We’re thrilled to have exceeded our projections and to further demonstrate the success of Grand Park as an economic driver for Westfield and the entire region,” said Westfield Mayor Andy Cook.
More than 15,000 teams attended events at Grand Park from the 48 contiguous United States and several countries.
On the field sports side, the following were the highest profile events held in 2016: Big Ten Men’s Soccer Tournament; Crossroads of America College Showcases; Indiana Soccer State, Presidents, and Challenge Cups; US Youth Soccer Presidents Cup Regionals; US Youth Soccer National Championship Series Midwest Regionals; US Lacrosse Nationals; and USA Ultimate Select Flight Invite.
On the baseball side, some highlighted tournament events included the Amateur Baseball Championships; Prep Baseball Report World Series; USSSA Global World Series; PBR Future Games Powered by Under Armour; and Premier Girls Fastpitch Firecracker Showcase.
The Grand Park Events Center officially opened in July with a three-day celebration that included a ribbon cutting ceremony and Mayor’s Yellow Tie Ball event. Prior to its opening, the Events Center was the location of a presidential campaign rally for President-elect Donald Trump attended by more than 6,500 people and covered by national news media. The facility is being regularly utilized this winter by numerous local sports leagues, including MAX Lacrosse, Indiana Fire Juniors Soccer, Indiana Soccer, 1st and 10 Passing Academy (football), and Indy Juniors Volleyball Club.
About Grand Park Sports Campus: Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana, is a destination like no other. The thoughtfully designed 400-acre Grand Park Sports Campus features 26 baseball and softball diamonds, 31 multipurpose fields for soccer, football, and lacrosse. The Grand Park Events Center is now open, featuring three full-sized indoor soccer fields, a restaurant and administrative offices. The Jonathan Byrd’s Fieldhouse indoor basketball/volleyball facility opened in January 2016. Grand Park also features an abundance of green space and more than 10 miles of pedestrian/bicycle trails, including the largest trailhead on the Monon Corridor.
More than 1.5 million sports visitors are expected to participate in or attend tournaments and events at the Grand Park Sports Campus on an annual basis, making the surrounding area a prime location for economic development. The master plan outlines approximately 1,400 acres of land available for residential and commercial development, including hospitality (hotel, restaurant and retail), mixed-use, life science and corporate office uses.
Visit GrandPark.org for more information, follow us on Twitter (@GrandParkSports) and Facebook (Facebook.com/Grand-Park-The-Sports-Campus-at-Westfield).
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