10/04/2023

Ohio Must Continue to Grow its Tourism Industry

A message from Steve Stivers, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce

In 2022, Ohio’s tourism industry generated $53 billion in visitor spending, the state’s highest ever. Even with this record-setting year, we need to continue to grow this industry due to Ohio’s robust economic growth setting it on pace to have more jobs than people in the state to fill them. Investing and putting focus on economic development related to Ohio’s travel and tourism efforts are a great way to help grow the population and fill open jobs.

The Ohio Chamber recently released our Blueprint for Ohio’s Economic Future, a report that analyzes Ohio’s economic outlook and compares it to other states. In creating this report, we identified six key areas for improvement, including “Sense of Place.”

Sense of Place reflects the characteristics and resources that make a community a desirable place to live, work and visit. Investing in Ohio’s tourism and travel industry is an integral part of creating a strong sense of place that will keep Ohioans here and attract newcomers to our state. In the Blueprint, we highlight that it is equally as important that economic development policies focus on investing in amenities and quality of life in Ohio as it is that they invest in business attraction.

Please select this link to read the complete op-ed in The Morrow County Sentinel.