October has been a month of recovery for the CSRA. While there were piles of evidence from Helene’s bad side, many meetings and conventions went forward in the River Region as planned.
Destination Augusta and the Augusta Sports Council announced that 3,065 visitors attended events that generated $2,798,000 in total estimated economic impact. Four of those meetings and conventions were held in October, the remaining four other events are upcoming between now and November 22.
ABD was curious about how those numbers stack up to the same period last year. As Karen Davis, Chief Marketing Officer for Destination Augusta explained it’s like comparing apples to oranges.
Last year’s estimates for October and November were 7,810 attendees with a $6,451,180 total estimated economic impact.
“Please note that comparing year over year doesn’t tell the complete story as to what happened last year vs. this year concerning group business. Not every event is an annual event hosted in Augusta, so the numbers will always vary year to year,” Davis said.
An unexpected windfall actually came from Hurricane Helene.
“Our hotel partners remained strong in that their properties hosted the workforce who came to Augusta to assist with repair and recovery. Those are not numbers we track, rather we are looking at group business impact.”
Considering everything, the economic impact of meetings and conventions was a bright spot.
| Meeting/Event: | Dates: | Attendance: | Total Est. Economic Impact (EEI): |
| 52nd United States Army Warrant Officers Association Annual Meeting of the Members 2024 | 10/28-11/1 | 150 | $92,377.85 |
| Delta Kappa Gamma, 2024 Georgia State Organization Delta Hostel | 10/18-10/20 | 40 | $17,798.15 |
| 2024 National Federation of the Blind Georgia Convention | 10/18-10/20 | 150 | $76,688.80 |
| 2024 NAACP Georgia State Convention | 10/10-10/12 | 150 | $45,487.95 |
| Augusta Rowing Club, 2024 Head of the South Regatta | 11/9-11/10 | 1000 | $600,729.79 |
| Georgia Fire Service Conference 2024 | 11/12-11/14 | 225 | $345,488.29 |
| 2024 Conference on Children and Families | 11/19-11/22 | 600 | $824,143.69 |
| Zeta Phi Beta 89th Southeastern Region Leadership Conference | 11/6-11/9 | 750 | $795,285.14 |
Next up is an event that focuses on the overall impact of tourism and hospitality. The Augusta State of Tourism event occurs on November 13 at the Augusta Marriott. For more information, click here.
Editor’s Note:
Mitzi Oxford is a veteran broadcaster and features writer who also worked at the same television station in Columbus, Georgia as Augusta’s Brad Means! If you have a South Carolina story idea for Mitzi, please email her at mitzioxfordcreative@gmail.com.
