Consumer spending is growing in the Golden Triangle.
Each of the region’s three city’s — Columbus, Starkville and West Point — have seen significant sales tax revenue increases over the last five years, and the upward trajectory seems to be continuing.
Starkville and Columbus have seen record sales tax collection, while West Point is enjoying the highest revenue in years.
Joey Deason, chief operating officer with the Golden Triangle Development LINK, said his organization keeps an eye on sales tax trends over a 10-year period. Since 2005, the Golden Triangle has seen substantial growth, and he said new developments like Yokohama in Clay County, a $100 million Steel Dynamics Inc. expansion in Lowndes County and new developments such as The Mill at Mississippi State University should help with continued growth.
“Each community plays off of each other and we’re excited about the future,” Deason said.
Columbus
Columbus will likely break $9 million in sales tax revenue for the first time ever this year, according to Chief Financial Officer Milton Rawle.
The city’s financial year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30. Payouts to the city lag two months behind, so Columbus is still awaiting revenue from July. However, through August, the city had collected more than $8.5 million in revenue from sales taxes. The city has collected more than $500,000 each month since before the 2008-09 fiscal year.
When asked, Rawle said the increase likely stemmed from an influx of new businesses to Columbus.
“The state Department of Revenue won’t tell us what businesses had what sales tax numbers, but just from common sense, looking at the businesses coming in, I would say yes,” Rawle said.
Nancy Carpenter, executive director for the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau, said her office has utilized marketing, social media and public relations campaigns to make people aware of what Columbus has to offer.
“That was one of our goals — to drive more people to realize that Columbus really is a tourist destination,” Carpenter said.
The CVB, with its use of social media, went after younger visitors. The city also used its “The city that has it all” marketing campaign to further attract visitors.
Mississippi State University has also been a great benefit, Carpenter said.
Five Southeastern Conference teams that competed in a track and field tournament at MSU earlier this year stayed in Columbus. Carpenter said every SEC team MSU hosts stays in Columbus.
Other events like graduations at MSU and the Mississippi University for Women, or boating and fishing events on the waterway, push spending in the city.
Starkville
Starkville has enjoyed several consecutive years of record sales tax collection.
The city’s budget year runs from October 1 through September 30. Data provided by the financial office, organized by calendar year, show steady growth since 2009, when the city pulled in $5.12 million in sales tax revenue.
By 2014, that number had grown to more than $6 million.
Starkville Mayor Parker Wiseman said several factors have contributed to the growth in sales tax revenue collection. A boom in tourism spending over the last five years has been at the forefront, he said.
“Tourism spending over the last five years is up more than 30 percent,” Wiseman said. “That makes a tremendous difference.”
Wiseman said MSU athletics are the primary drivers of Starkville’s tourism, but new additions to the city — like the conference center at The Mill at MSU — should help create additional opportunities for the city.
Wiseman also pointed to a growing population as a force in pushing up sales tax collections.
“Generally speaking, there’s two ways that you add consumer buying power in the market,” Wiseman said. “Through more earned income locally through more people and better paying jobs, or you bring in money that was earned somewhere else to the community. That’s what tourism does.
“When someone comes to visit and they spend money on their visit, that’s money that stays in the local economy,” he added.
Wiseman also said that collaborative efforts between the city, Greater Starkville Development Partnership and the LINK to court businesses seems to be paying off, as evidenced by the spate of new business openings throughout the city.
On a broader note, he said the growth in the Golden Triangle has been a benefit for all of the cities.
“The reality is that each of our communities relies on spending by people that reside in each of the other communities,” he said. “Economic strength across the region is good for all three cities.”
West Point
It’s unclear if West Point set a record for sales tax collection for FY2015.
Mayor Robbie Robinson said he believes it was close, if not the record, but could not say for certain without confirmation.
Still, the city posted the highest collection in years as it drew in more than $2.38 million in sales tax revenue for FY2015. West Point’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.
West Point has seen its sales tax intake grow by more than $200,000 since FY2012, which saw $2.11 million in revenue.
“We’ve had an upward trend,” Robinson said. “We’ve had some new businesses open. It’s just been an atmosphere of positives… I think that helps with people coming to shop in our city.”
Robinson said Yokohama Tire Corporation, which is scheduled to open next month, has had a tremendous, positive impact.
He also expects growth to continue to improve as the city courts further retail development.
“If we can just hold what we have now, I’d be pleased, but I’d really like to see some increase every year,” he said. “We are continuously courting retail businesses and that’s one of our focuses, whether it’s fast food, apparel, building material, hardware or other things.”
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