Indiana is hoping that investing in tourism will pay off. The General Assembly boosted the Indiana Destination Development Corporation's annual funding from $4.3 million to $20 million during this year's session.
Elaine Bedel is the agency's secretary and CEO. She says part of the issue was educating lawmakers about what neighboring states spend.
"Everybody knows Pure Michigan, especially up here, right? Forty million dollars a year is what they spend. Ohio was spending 35, Kentucky 45, Illinois over $100 million, and we're sitting here with four," Bedel said Wednesday at the Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond, where she and Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch met with Northwest Indiana tourism professionals.
Bedel said a $1.9 million tourism campaign targeting Chicago, St. Louis and Louisville last year led to 864,000 more visits. That, in turn, brought $109 million in spending at Indiana businesses and $11.2 million in tax revenue.
Crouch believes this year's increased budget will have a big impact. "We're humble Hoosiers. We work hard. We put our nose to the grindstone. We do what's right. We don't pat ourselves on the back for doing that. But as a result, we don't tell our story very well. And so, we need to be loud and proud about Indiana and being a Hoosier," Crouch added.
The Indiana Destination Development Corporation plans to use its new funding to expand its existing campaign to new markets and to increase its partnerships with local tourism agencies.
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