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Visitors shell out $40 million more New report charts growth since 1991 By DAVID PRESZLER The tourists are clearly coming to Jackson County -- and opening their wallets wide. The amount of money spent by visitors grew sharply in the 1990s and hit $208.3 million a year in 1998, according to the Oregon Tourism Commission. A new study tracks traveler spending from 1991 to 1998 on state, regional and county levels. In Jackson County, spending grew from $167.8 million in 1991 to $208.3 in 1998, an increase of more than 24 percent. That includes money spent by visitors on air travel, accommodations, food, gas, retail sales and recreation. "The Jackson County numbers have grown substantially," says Julie Petretto of Medford's Visitors and Convention Bureau. Mark Dennett of the Southern Oregon Visitors Association sees three things driving the growth: stepped up marketing efforts, a shift to more outdoor- and family-oriented vacations and expanded options in Southern Oregon. "The consistent promotion of Southern Oregon as a destination region has had significant impact," he says, adding that SOVA members spend $170,000 a year on cooperative advertising. The shift to more active and family-oriented vacations has benefited the area because it offers a variety of attractions at more affordable prices than other destinations, he says. And there are more recreational opportunities -- more hotels, restaurants and golf courses. Southern Oregon now has numerous 18-hole golf courses -- with three in Jackson County -- compared to one 10 years ago. Southern Oregon ranked fourth among regions in spending by travelers. Visitors to the region -- including Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and part of Douglas County -- spent $508 million in the area in 1998, up 32.1 percent from the $384.5 million spent in 1991. Only Portland ($1.74 billion), the Willamette Valley ($739 million) and the central coast ($566 million) had more spending in 1998. Visitor spending in Southern Oregon accounted for 8,380 jobs with a payroll of $106.3 million in 1998, the study says. The region reaped $20.3 million in travel-related taxes. In Jackson County, visitor spending was tied to 3,460 jobs with a payroll of $44.2 million in 1998. Taxes from visitor spending were pegged at $8 million. Statewide, traveler spending grew from $3.5 billion in 1991 to $5.1 billion in 1998 and a projected $5.5 billion in 1999. If the 1999 projections hold, statewide expenditures will have risen more than 50 percent since 1991. 1999 figures for counties are not yet available. While annual data has been collected since 1987, Julie Curtis, the tourism commission's assistant director, says bringing it together in one study gives the state a clearer picture of the travel industry and its impact. "It's really important to look at what travel has meant to the state," she says. "And it's shown pretty solid growth." Since 1991, statewide expenditures on travel have grown about 5.7 percent a year. When adjusted for inflation, spending has grown 3 percent annually. A few other key figures from the study: Travelers who stayed overnight in commercial accommodations spent $2.2 billion in Oregon in 1999, significantly more than those staying in campgrounds or making day trips. Travelers in Oregon spent $1.2 billion in eating and drinking establishments in 1999. Statewide, 79,000 jobs were directly generated by travel spending in 1999. In 1998, visitors to Jackson County spent $48.3 million eating and drinking, $38.6 on accommodations, $34.5 million on ground transportation, $29.6 million on retail sales, $29.3 million on recreation and $21.6 million at food stores. Of the $208.3 million spent by visitors to Jackson County in 1998, $95.4 million was spent by those who stayed the night in hotels, motels and bed-and-breakfast inns. Day travelers accounted for $38.3 million. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA