In a city where every street is a canvas, a love for art and culture is never underappreciated. However, it’s possible that it may be undervalued.

St. Petersburg’s vibrant arts and culture scene is what drew many of its residents to call the Sunshine City home in the first place. A recent study emphasized that idea, drawing a direct line from the arts to economic benefit for the city. Reggae Rise Up (happening this weekend at Vinoy Park) is a perfect example, and the study revealed a $22 million economic impact for St. Pete from the music festival.

Last year, festival organizers and the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership hired Meshsem, Inc. to provide an economic analysis of the 2021 festival in October. Even under the threat of covid, the results were an emphatic statement about the importance of music, art and shared experience to the health of St. Petersburg.

Meshsem, a Tampa-based research firm, measured the spending from out-of-town attendees at last fall’s event. The result was an estimated impact of nearly $23 million, and organizers only expect that this weekend’s festival will be even bigger, with residents and local business owners reaping the economic windfall.

Music, art scenes make St. Pete unique in Florida

The study was focused on visitors, but even among locals, the results showed an extra $600,000 in spending by residents related to the festival last October. As for visitors to St. Pete, the results were extensive, including the following:

• Visitors hailed from 20 different countries and all 50 states
• Median age of visitors was 38 with a household median income of $80,000
• Participants were extremely satisfied with the event (6.4 on a 7-point scale)
• Half of non-resident visitors extended their stay resulting in additional local spending
• Overall impact to the city of St. Pete was $22.9 million
• Economic impact is the equivalent of 206 jobs in St. Pete and $7M in labor income

While new construction, waterfront improvements and transportation upgrades are significant contributors to St. Pete’s growth, this study appears to be a clear indicator that preserving the city’s arts and culture scene is of vital importance for its future.

“We know that artistic events like Reggae Rise Up contribute to downtown’s sense of place, artistic culture, and incredible quality of life,” said Jason Mathis, CEO of the Downtown Partnership. “We didn’t realize the incredible economic windfall this three-day festival brings to St. Pete’s hospitality industry. This artistic event represents new money coming to our local economy and is just as important as any other kind of corporate recruitment effort. In St. Pete, supporting art means investing in economic growth.”

Reggae Rise Up has become a St. Pete staple

One of St. Pete’s most highly anticipated annual events, Reggae Rise Up is a three-day music festival taking place in Vinoy Park this weekend. Headliners include Rebolution, Slightly Stoopid and Iration.

“This event consistently attracts more than 20,000 attendees, with people coming from all over the nation, and even the globe, to enjoy a diverse set of artists and performers,” said St. Petersburg Deputy Mayor Stephanie Owens. “We are thrilled to again welcome Reggae Rise Up back to our beautiful city on the Bay. It’s an important event, not only for our residents, but for visitors who will travel from far and wide to enjoy our sunshine, our gorgeous city and this year’s incredible lineup.”

As St. Petersburg continues to grow, many have expressed concern that the city could lose the personality that made it special to begin with. Studies – and events – like these ought to help city leaders and organizers see the value in preserving the things that make St. Pete a place so many are proud to call home.