Leon County’s Apalachee Regional Park Named “Venue of the Year” by Florida Sports Foundation

Leon County’s Apalachee Regional Park Named “Venue of the Year” by Florida Sports Foundation

 

Leon County's Apalachee Regional Park (ARP) was named 2016 "Venue of the Year" in mid-size markets by the Florida Sports Foundation at its recent annual summit.

The county facility was one of six honored for outstanding efforts in sports tourism. The foundation applauded ARP for the economic benefit it brought to the area when hosting local, state and national cross country events generating $9.7 million in direct visitor spending between 2012 and 2015.

This fall, the course will host nine major cross country events including three national championship meets. The meets are projected to attract 10,000 runners and nearly 21,000 visitors – using 11,600 hotel room nights and generating $8.4 million of direct spending in Leon County.

“For runners, Apalachee Regional Park’s Cross Country Course is the best in the region. This statewide award proves that,” said Leon County Commission Chairman Bill Proctor. “And it’s a big deal for local businesses and hotels, too. Apalachee Regional Park is a top facility with a huge economic impact.”

Originally an unused portion of the Leon County Solid Waste Facility, Apalachee Regional Park was redeveloped to meet a community need while maintaining good stewardship of public dollars. The park includes a spectator area, parking and several miles of fiber optic cable that provide additional camera angles, timing stations and the ability to have video display boards in the main spectator area.

“Sports tourism in Leon County has really hit stride in the past few years and Apalachee Regional Park is a big reason why,” said Leon County Administrator Vincent S. Long. “Since opening in 2009, the park has earned a great reputation as the course to run on in the southeast. This statewide award is a credit to the hard work of our Leon County team.”

Recently, the NCAA Regional Championships, Florida State University Invitational, Atlantic Coast Conference Championships and the Florida High School Athletic Association State Championships were all hosted at Apalachee Regional Park. Upcoming national events include two USA Track & Field Club Cross Country National Championships and the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) Cross Country National Championship.

The Tallahassee-based Florida Sports Foundation serves as the state’s lead sports promotion and development organization.  For more information, visit www.flasports.com.

For more information about Apalachee Regional Park, visit the Sports Tourism section of www.VisitTallahassee.com .

 

 

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