Page 18 - LRCC FOCUS Magazine July 2023

Greater Lansing’s

Tourism Industry on the

Comeback Trail

The Lansing Center continue to experience a nice
bounce back in convention business following the
he economy slowdown during the pandemic. destination or out
of Greater into the woods
Lansing has someplace.”
Talways been
viewed as being built on the foundation of manufacturing, Signs of a rebound are occurring. Hotel occupancy in the
state government and Michigan State University. In region in 2022 was 53.2%. In the pandemic year of 2020,
recent years other sectors have moved to the forefront, those numbers had dropped as low as 17%. In 2019, the
most notably insurance, healthcare, technology, and occupancy number stood at 61.6%. One important marker
transportation to name a few. the community hit in 2022 was selling one million rooms
in local hotels in a night.
One industry that deserves more attention as an economic
driver of the regional economy is tourism. An economic “That’s always been an aspirational number that we
impact study conducted in 2018 by Anderson Economic actually hit for the first time in 2018, so it was great to get
Group showed the local tourism industry generates over back to that number again,” said Pingston.
$682 million in spending at local businesses and employs
nearly 11,000 local residents. The region welcomes 5.3 million Pingston says the industry started to see some real
visitors annually and contributes more progress in the fall of 2022 when attendance at meetings
than $29 million a year in sales tax and conventions started to pick up. Michigan State
revenue to the state of Michigan. University’s return to the campus brought students,
visitors and families to campus for various events.
Julie Pingston, president & CEO of
the Greater Lansing Convention The foundation of the key meetings and convention
and Visitors Bureau (GLCVB), notes business in the region is the Lansing Entertainment and
the Anderson report was conducted Public Facilities Authority (LEPFA) which operates the
pre-pandemic. She expects to have Lansing Center, acts as landlord for Jackson Field and
the numbers updated in another also operates Grosbeck Golf Course, Silver Bells in the City
year after the industry has more fully and numerous other events downtown. LEPFA drives
recovered from the pandemic. Like Pingston economic impact by bringing people both in and out of
most urban areas in Michigan, Lansing’s rebound has been the region downtown to spend dollars.
a bit slower than other areas.
“The other way we drive economic impact is by the people
“A lot of our emphasis as a destination is based on meetings we bring downtown building up other businesses around
and conventions, amateur sporting events and business our entities,” said Scott Keith. President & CEO, LEPFA.
travel,” said Pingston. “All of those have been slower to “We want the events to drive more business and activity
come back than leisure travel for people going to a beach around the region.”

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