WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla.-- Pasco County held a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday for the $40 million Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex.
- Construction starting on $40 million sports complex
- Complex planned to bring in more tourism
- Expected to be ready in fall or winter 2019
"It's a monumental day for Pasco County," said Adam Thomas, director of tourism for Visit Pasco. "We're excited that this facility is going to be a flagship facility for the Tampa market, and we're extremely excited to be here in Wesley Chapel."
The complex will be home to eight basketball courts, 16 volleyball courts, a sports medicine facility, and cheer studio, among other features. Officials said the goal is to attract national and even international tournaments for various sports.
"Amateur sports tourism is one of the fastest-growing market segments of the travel industry, and Pasco County's about to become a major player in this $10 billion a year industry," said Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore.
Moore said that, according to Visit Florida, about 15 percent of the state's tourists come because of its sports economy.
"We're focusing on non-conventional tournaments," said Thomas about why teams and events would be attracted to Wiregrass. "Even though basketball is a little conventional, volleyball's a little conventional. Cheerleading – don't get a lot of cheerleading until you go to Orlando."
This is just the latest effort in what Thomas said is the county's goal to become a premiere player in the sports tourism arena for the state. Officials at Thursday's groundbreaking pointed to the success Florida Hospital Center Ice, also in Wesley Chapel, has seen in attracting athletes and tourism.
"It's not just out-of-state visitors that will come, it's our visitors from Orlando, it's our visitors from Daytona Beach, Jacksonville, Miami," said Moore. "They'll come here, they'll visit our small businesses, they’re going to stay in our hotels, they're going to buy our gas, they're going to buy our food, they're going to help our economy."
Local teams are also excited about the complex.
"It's incredible," said Eddie Oyakhilome, director of the Wesley Chapel Soccer Club. "We have teams within our club that go to Alabama, Georgia, so we're taking revenue to those states and other parts of Florida when we can keep it at home."
Thomas said the complex is expected to be ready for a soft opening in fall or winter of 2019.