Dear Reader: Taylor Swift weekend will create memories for fans. It also just might create hundreds of jobs for Cincinnati.
On Friday, June 30 and Saturday, July 1, Cincinnati’s Paycor stadium will become Holy Ground as fans from Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and beyond descend on the city for the singer’s Eras tour stop. The months-long tour has left millions across the nation with light-up wristbands and glowing reviews — and host cities with millions of dollars.
Julie Kirkpatrick, president and CEO of Northern Kentucky tourism bureau meetNKY, estimates that more people will travel to the region this weekend than any other weekend in the past eight years.
"We are looking forward to the weekend... for what is going to be, we think, one of the biggest inbound travel weekends in this region since the [2015 MLB] all-star game,” said Kirkpatrick.
Austin, Chicago, and Phoenix have told Cincinnati to gear up for “as much economic impact as a Super Bowl,” she said. “And that's epic. That’s absolutely epic.”
'Call It What You Want,' But $48 Million is $48 Million
The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber and Visit Cincy estimate the concerts will more than double spending in the Greater Cincinnati region this weekend.
Brandon Rudd, director of the Center for Research & Data at the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, said the economic impact of the Eras tour stop resembles that of the Bengals’ run to the AFC championships earlier this year.
“It’s going to be a huge weekend, obviously,” he said.
The Chamber expects the concerts to generate $48 million in additional spending by the end of the weekend. It estimates that over $40 of every $100 spent will come from visitors outside the Greater Cincinnati region paying for food, transportation, lodging, and more.
“All our hotels are completely sold out,” Kirkpatrick said in a conversation with WVXU last week. Rudd estimated that 95% of hotel rooms will be booked by Saturday, compared to 70-75% on a typical summer weekend.
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He added that large-scale events don’t just boost spending because more visitors are in town. During city-wide events, buyers may feel more willing to pay.
“When people are feeling happy, when they're feeling good about their city and themselves,” he said, “they tend to feel richer. So, they spend more money. And that’s an exciting thing.”
The city, in turn, also gets more money. The Chamber expects the concerts to generate $3.8 million in tax revenue, including $1.6 million in city taxes, $1.4 million in state taxes, and $750,000 in federal taxes by the end of concert weekend.
'Long Story Short': 902 Jobs
While the buzz is around the spending and singing, the Swift shows also have an unexpected effect: hundreds of new jobs. Rudd says the shows will create or support 902 jobs for the city, which contributes to long-term stability for workers.
“All of the jobs at Paycor Stadium, all the jobs at the hotels, all the jobs at local restaurants are supported by these types of events, he said. “When you add it all up, without this concert, those jobs would not exist in the long term.”
Rudd says the city’s unemployment rate is currently an “extremely low” 2.8%. But he adds Cincinnati’s labor force participation is still recovering from the pandemic: just three out of every five working-age people in Cincinnati are employed or actively seeking work.
Events like the Taylor Swift concerts, he says, help keep employees working.
'Tell Me Why' Swift chose Cincinnati?
For all of the festivities, Rudd is quick to offer a reality check.
“It's not unprecedented,” he said, that Cincinnati is hosting a large national event. He added that the city's location makes it a hotspot for major events, from Taylor Swift concerts to MLB games to Broadway shows.
“Within 100 miles of downtown Cincinnati, we have over 9 million people,” he said, citing the city’s proximity to Louisville, Indianapolis, and Columbus. “It's incredibly densely populated.”
The density, he says, makes it relatively easy to get to the Queen City.
Kirkpatrick thinks this likely influenced Swift’s decision to make a stop in Cincinnati.
“We're going to pull in people from Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia,” she said. “I've got friends calling from North Carolina [asking] ‘Can you get me tickets?’ because they think that's the closest stop to them.”
“While she is pretty much proceeding all over the country,” she added, “I think they've been very strategic about where they've placed these concerts.”
Visit Cincy President and CEO Julie Calvert says the major concert “creates a unique draw for… our hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues, [and] women and minority-owned businesses.”
The city’s establishments, Calvert said, “no doubt will benefit from visitors — local, Midwest, and Southern region combined.”
Pink signs, for a 'Change'
Neighboring cities and states have also taken notice. In a news release Monday, the city of Bellevue, Ky announced it would rename its Taylor Avenue to Taylor Swift Avenue for the latter half of the week and offer visitors “Swiftie-inspired food, drinks, and specials.”
The release “encouraged” concertgoers bound for Paycor to make the two-mile detour to Bellevue to avoid traffic across the river and see its Swift-themed preparations.
"The city will change street signs to pink signs on Thursday, June 28," the release said. "Visitors are encouraged to take a photo with the pink street signs!"
'… Ready For It? '
Starting on June 30, Taylor Swift will take to the Paycor stage in Bejeweled outfits before Enchanted fans. Rudd says the entire weekend shows that Cincinnati has what it takes to host Super Bowl-scale national events with tens of millions of dollars in economic impact.
“Cincinnati is a great city. It’s a world-class city,” said Rudd. “If you’re Downtown, just to take a second, take it all in.”
He’s trying desperately to avoid Taylor Swift puns, he said. This reporter is not, so here’s a translation: just Breathe.
“Think about how awesome it is.” He smiled. “The options are really endless.”
