The Arts Council of Summit County and Park City participated in the Arts and Economic Prosperity study for the first time this year.
It’s called AEP6 because it’s the sixth such nationwide study from D.C.-based lobbyists at Americans for the Arts. It looked at art’s economic contributions in 373 areas across the United States and its territories.
And Summit County is generating as much, if not more, economic activity and jobs through the arts as more populated areas.
“I think the biggest takeaway for me and for the arts council generally is, first of all, our local arts and culture organizations are powerhouses in this community,” arts council Executive Director Jocelyn Scudder said. “They contribute not only to the social well being of our community, but are also economic drivers here in Summit County.”
The $176 million contribution to Summit County’s economic activity refers to 2022 spending by attendees and the impact of local nonprofits, according to arts council data specialist Jake McIntyre.
“This is the money that somebody spends going out to eat, paying for childcare, paying for lodging,” McIntyre said.
The average arts event attendee in Summit County spends $84 on those kinds of goods and services. That excludes the Sundance Film Festival, when lodging and restaurant prices tend to spike.
Scudder and McIntyre presented the study’s findings to the Summit County Council Sept. 4.
They showed that the arts in Summit County has almost seven times the economic impact as in a place like Fort Collins, Colorado, despite Summit County having less than half the population.
It’s possible that’s due to tourism: six in 10 Summit County event attendees are not local.
Summit County has some growing room when compared to most mid-sized cities. Salt Lake City produced $512 million in economic activity through arts and culture in 2022. That’s almost three times more.
The study also highlights government revenue. The arts generated $6.6 million in city and county tax revenue locally, the study claims.
The findings place Summit County 258th out of the more than 370 regions studied.
