Braves Commission Economic Impact Study Ahead Of Turner Field Lease Negotiations

Braves Exec VP/Business Operations Mike Plant said the team recently commissioned an economic impact study ahead of their Turner Field lease negotiations with the city of Atlanta because they "wanted to show what we do to drive the economy in our region," according to Saporta & Wenk of the ATLANTA BUSINESS CHRONICLE. The Braves' current Turner Field lease expires Dec. 31, 2006, and the study found that the Braves have an "annual economic impact of more than" $100M, and that the team pays $8.6M in "state and local taxes each year." It also shows that the Braves "generate the employment of 1,648 full-time (or full-time equivalent) jobs in the local economy." Visiting Braves fans "stay 110,000 nights each year in local hotels and motels," and the team spends $10.5M "on Atlanta-based companies." A total of 32.3% of all seats sold per game are "sold to fans who are from outside the state -- 7.4 percent coming from Alabama; 5.6 percent from Tennessee; 4.4 percent from South Carolina; 4 percent from North Carolina and 3.1 percent from Florida." Georgia State Univ. economist Bruce Seaman, who conducted the study, in an e-mail wrote the Braves "'were relatively unique' for having a genuine regional fan base that generated significant local economic benefits in what he called 'baseball-related tourism for entire weekends.'" Seaman in a brochure that the Braves will soon release is quoted as saying: "The Braves more than double the economic impact of Georgia’s other major sports franchises combined." Saporta & Wenk note the data "will be helpful as the Braves enter into negotiations for another 20-year lease." The study also included research by program management firm Brailsford & Dunlavey (ATLANTA BUSINESS CHRONICLE, 8/2 issue).