Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine visiting Cleveland Tuesday to promote tourism

CLEVELAND — Ohio Governor Mike DeWine is making a trip around the state today to promote Ohio Tourism Day, and he’s planning a stop in Northeast Ohio.

Tourism is a $46 billion industry for the state and numbers released by Ohio in 2019 show more than ten percent of our sales tax revenue comes from tourism. The tourism industry also supports more than 400,000 jobs.

After a decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, officials are hoping that golf plays a key role in tourism recovery in 2021.

The Buckeye state hosts six professional tournaments this summer, including the Bridgestone Senior player’s Championship in Akron. To attract attention to the tournaments, Tourism Ohio created the “golf trail” to showcase the communities they are held in as travel destinations that tourists can return to.

Recent events like the NFL Draft in Cleveland have provided a much-needed shot in the arm to Ohio’s economy as 50,000 fans each day came to see the draft and fan experience outside of First Energy Stadium.

Next year’s NBA All-Star game at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse highlights another big-ticket event that will draw tens of thousands of sports fans to Northeast Ohio.

Given tourism’s importance in Ohio’s economy, transportation investments by the state that ensure safe and reliable access for visitors could contribute to economic growth.

This is underscored in 2016’s Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which requires states and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to consider enhancing travel and tourism as a factor in their transportation planning processes.

Currently, ODOT supports the travel and tourism industry by providing tourists information (e.g. maps, online traffic updates, tourist-oriented directional signs, scenic byway trip planning resources) and offering support to those in the travel and tourism industry.

The Governor’s stop this afternoon will be at 4 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

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