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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Report: VNP contributes $25 million to area economy

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 4/26/17

REGIONAL—Voyageurs National Park attracted 241,911 visitors last year, providing a nearly $25 million total boost to the local economy. That’s according to a new report put out by the National …

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Report: VNP contributes $25 million to area economy

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REGIONAL—Voyageurs National Park attracted 241,911 visitors last year, providing a nearly $25 million total boost to the local economy. That’s according to a new report put out by the National Park Service and it comes as the economic value of tourism is being hotly debated in northeastern Minnesota.

While visitation at Voyageurs has lagged some of the estimates of early promoters of the park, it has remained relatively steady since the 1990s, at around a quarter million people per year.

Based on standard economic impact models, those visitors directly spent just under $20 million, mostly on food, lodging, and gasoline. That spending supported 310 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $24,601,600, according to the report.

“Voyageurs National Park welcomes visitors from across the country and around the world,” said Superintendent Bob DeGross. “We are delighted to share the story of this place and the experiences it provides. We also feature the park as a way to introduce our visitors to this part of the country and all that it offers.” DeGross noted that national park tourism is a significant economic driver, returning more than $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service. “We appreciate the partnership and support of our neighbors and are glad to be able to give back by helping to sustain local communities,” he said.

The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by economists Catherine Cullinane Thomas of the U.S. Geological Survey and Lynne Koontz of the National Park Service.  The report shows $18.4 billion of direct spending by 331 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 318,000 jobs nationally; 271,544 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $34.9 billion.

According to the 2016 report, most park visitor spending was for lodging (31.2 percent) followed by food and beverages (27.2 percent), gas and oil (11.7 percent), admissions and fees (10.2 percent), souvenirs and other expenses (9.7 percent), local transportation (7.4 percent), and camping fees (2.5 percent).

This year, the report’s authors produced an interactive online tool. Users can explore current year visitor spending, jobs, labor income, value added, and output effects by sector for national, state, and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available at the NPS Social Science Program webpage: go.nps.gov/vse.

The report includes information for visitor spending at individual parks and by state.

To learn more about national parks in Minnesota and how the National Park Service works with Minnesota communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/Minnesota.