Festival at Sandpoint Releases Economic Impact Study
It’s been over ten years since the Festival at Sandpoint has sponsored an economic impact study. Last fall, the University of Idaho assessed the economic contributions of the 2021 - 2022 Festival at Sandpoint (FAS) fiscal year and Summer Concert Series and its impact on Bonner County.
In addition to enhancing the cultural, educational, and recreational environment of Sandpoint, FAS is an important contributor to the regional economy.
Despite new costly operations at Memorial Field, bigger concerts, and recovery from pandemic seasons, over the past ten years, the Festival’s impact has grown by 58% in regional sales, 61% in gross regional product, 57% in total compensation, 47% in jobs created, and 96% in tax contribution.
The study evaluated the Festival at Sandpoint’s economic impact on two levels: direct and indirect impact. Direct economic impact includes job creation, payroll, gross regional product, and sales that directly result from the Festival.
Indirect economic impact is comprised of two parts: the impacts on other regional businesses that provide goods or services to the Festival and the effect of employee and consumer spending on the economy.
The Festival has a conservatively estimated direct economic impact of $3.8 million on Bonner County and generates over $233,000 in Sandpoint, Bonner County, and state of Idaho taxes, and creates 37 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs throughout Sandpoint.
FAS sold approximately 29,278 tickets in 2022, representing the equivalent of 59% of the Bonner County population (49,491).
Of these 29,278 Festival ticket purchasers, approximately 15% originate from Bonner County (mostly Sandpoint), 58% travel from other parts of Idaho, 26% are from out-of-state, and 1% are international. The approximately 85% of patrons that do not reside in Bonner County bring new monies to the Sandpoint economy, thus creating substantial economic impacts.
The economic impacts for FAS visitor spending include patron eating and drinking, retail purchases, and housing accommodations, which totals $2,158,221 in sales transactions.
The Festival at Sandpoint directly employs five full-time employees, 22 part-time employees and independent contractors, and approximately 600 volunteers.
Each Festival at Sandpoint contributes an average of 40 hours per year in volunteer time. The Independent Sector estimates the value of volunteer time at $26.7 per hour (adjusted to 2022 dollars). Based on this value and total annual volunteer hours, Festival volunteer time is equivalent to $669,600 in community value each year.
To read the full 2022 Economic Impact Study, visit www.festivalatsandpoint.com/annual-reports.