PANAMA CITY BEACH — Little League is a big deal in Panama City Beach.
With hundreds of baseball and softball teams scheduled to play at Frank Brown Park this summer, the Bay County Tourist Development Council (TDC) is working with the city to ensure the fields are ready for it.
This year, the TDC will aid in about $110,000 in improvements to the fields, from additional clay, sod and fertilizer to fresh paint for the 14-year-old facility.
“We assist because in the prime time of the year, June and July, we’ve got so much going on,” said Richard Sanders, vice president of sports and special events for the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau. “From June to the end of July, we’ll be going at full capacity. It’s going to be a good year.”
Sanders said sporting events in Panama City Beach generate $55 million in direct spending from out-of-state visitors every year, with the fields alone responsible for an estimated $34 million in spending.
Last summer, more than 1,109 youth teams participated in tournaments at Frank Brown Park from Memorial Day through the end of July, 88 percent of which were from out of state.
Sanders said sporting events have continued to grow in Panama City Beach and now account for about 100,000 annual room nights.
“We have yet to have a year where we decrease,” said Sanders, outlining a goal to generate between three and six new events each year, in addition to maintaining existing events. “Each year we continue to maintain a 5 to 11 percent increase, as well as adding new events.”
TDC Director Dan Rowe said field improvements are an important investment for the agency.
“It really came into focus during the Great Recession; when other destinations had their tourism industries contract, we were able to demonstrate growth,” said Rowe, citing tournaments as a primary reason.
Panama City Beach also fared better than others following the 2010 oil spill, he said, with revenue losses at about half of competing destinations.
“We offer a great facility at Frank Brown Park,” Rowe said. “We also combine that with a world-class beach destination.”
This time next year, however, the destination likely will have some new competition in the sports arena.
A major sports and entertainment complex is under construction in Foley, Ala., not far from the beaches of Gulf Shores, a major competitor for Panama City Beach.
“Most people building these complexes don’t have a beach,” Sanders said. “They have a beach.”
With ties to the entertainers behind the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, the 520-acre “Blue Collar Country” development is slated to open its first phase, which includes several sports fields, by next summer.
Despite increasing competition, Sanders said he is confident in Panama City Beach’s ability to maintain events even after the new complex opens.
“It’s going to be tough to take away from an established product,” Sanders said. “If it’s not broke, don’t try to fix it. We’re in a good position.”