PSA/Visit Pensacola/Escambia County DMO Thoughts on Community Recreation and Sports Tourism Needs and Facility Feasibility Study The following Request for Proposal (RFP) is to assist Escambia County, Florida in determining the feasibility of the development of a sports facility to meet the current and future demands of the local citizens and organizations but also to determine the opportunities available to enhance the sports tourism product. The County therefore wishes to retain a qualified person, firm or multi-disciplinary team to serve as a consultant to the County as follows. The following outlines the overall mission and goals as well as the actual scope of the RFP. The RFP is presented as a three phase project that will allow for the project to be stopped at the end of each phase should the demand for a facility development or the upgrade of existing facility not exist at a level acceptable to justify further efforts. What are the critical success factors of a sports tourism destination and how does the local market characteristics lend support for either a new or enhanced facilities? Lodging supply & availability including room types Existing facilities and space Air and Highway access Population and income Composition of the local economy Existing activities and attractions for participants (shopping, entertainment, dining, activities) Planned or proposed developments (lodging, entertainment, retail etc.) Conduct local stakeholder interviews to determine need, usage and support o PSA members o Local Lodging Management o Community & business leaders representing various facets of the hospitality, tourism, civic, tourism and sports sectors What is the state of competitive sports events in the local market, the region and nationally? Is there market demand for a new facility? What are the required program elements to place a new facility in a competitive position particularly relative to generating incremental lodging demand as well as spending? Number of facilities including fields, indoor venues Number of local events at each facility including number of participants Number of out of town events at each facility including number of participants Different types of sports events taking place within the county, including Santa Rosa Identify participation trends including but not limited to number of events, number of participants 1
What are examples of comparable destinations and how are those destinations positioned to capture sports tourism business? Lodging supply Direct flight access and location of facilities to the airport Drive-in vs. Overnight population Destination buzz/promotion Local buy-in and support Vehicular accessibility and parking Supporting infrastructure (restaurants, retails, activities) Seasonality of the destination Management & marketing Other questions to be answered: Where should a new facility be located What level of financial performance might a new facility achieve What are the potential costs to develop such a facility & how might it be financed? What is the preliminary estimate of economic/fiscal benefits that could be generated annually from on-going operations? Work Scope The work scope we contemplated is in three self-contained phases that could be stopped at each phase if the data did not support going forward. The three phases are Phase 1 Demand Feasibility; 1. Survey all existing Escambia County public venues (including but not limited to High Schools, Colleges, Universities, Bay Center, Maritime Ballpark, City and County) and the managing organizations of same. a. What is their capacity and current utilization? b. What are their plans and/or needs for expansion? i. Timeline of expansion ii. Is funding in place or identified c. What are their current and projected unmet needs? 2. Where are the growth opportunities a. What are the growth sports? b. What are the emerging sports? c. What are the currently available sports not being adequately served by existing venues? 2
3. Find and fill the voids. 4. Determine size of the potential user universe by sport with calendar for their seasons and tournament periods; a. Example: Girls volleyball has over 1,000 tournaments a year with average number of teams and players at 50,000 and 1,000,000 respectively in November and December, i.e. 5. Focus on organizations and sports that have state, regional, national and international competitions or training opportunities in our shoulder season; October, November, December, January, February, late April, and May. 6. List groups that could potentially relocate and be resident in the facility; recurring income during the week and/or year-round. a. National Governing Bodies, both domestic and international b. Events rights holders 7. List local events, activities that could use the facility in non-tournament times as well as events we could create; i.e. graduations. 8. Do not compete with existing facilities/venues a. Examine existing facilities/venues, including Bay Center, for availability by month for calendar year. b. Determine if we have sufficient available space for the times these tournaments would be held and the required facilities; i.e. need 7 contiguous courts and only have 4. 9. Assume we will build whatever facility can be economically justified, so every sport is on the table. 10. Examine the ancillary needs of other local groups/institutions who might use the facility, i.e., a. Public and private schools b. Pensacola State College c. University of West Florida d. City of Pensacola Parks and Rec. department e. Escambia County Parks and Rec. department f. Local sports and fitness organizations g. Others Stop here if you cannot determine sufficient market demand. Phase 2 Financial Feasibility 1. Identify capital project contribution and funding sources, i.e., LEED certification grants and/or credits, emergency facility grants and/or credits, local public and private partnership opportunities, naming rights, pouring rights, etc. 2. Identify alternative revenue streams and uses beyond tournaments and training for both operating revenue and capital cost contribution. 3
a. LEED building b. Hurricane shelter c. Emergency shelter d. Corporate team building e. Public meeting f. Concessions rights g. Other local users like public and private schools, colleges and universities for sports and recreation activities as well as graduations, meetings and banquets. 3. Recommend facility size, support elements and use without cost estimates including a. Facility size and conversion options with movable, fencing, walls, seating, etc. b. Office space c. Meeting space d. Banquet support (if included) e. Locker rooms f. Seating (permanent and temporary) g. Flooring or turf h. Storage i. Public address j. Concessions, concourse, restrooms, etc. k. Lighting, sound, internet, etc. requirements to support event play and broadcast l. Parking 4. Determine financing alternatives 5. Recommend facility management 6. Detailed pro forma with revenue by source and operating cost assumptions 7. Stop the pro forma at net income before debt service, amortization and depreciation. 8. Provide recommendations for upgrade of existing facilities for maximum ROI if the study does not support the development of a new facility. Stop here if financially not feasible. Phase 3 Site and Design 1. Acreage needed 2. Site selection; survey and recommend sites to be considered and why (pluses and minuses). Recommend at least three sites for the construction of a building or external sports venue(s). In each case provide evaluation of the sites to include but not limited to: h. Land acquisition cost and terms. i. Size and ability to expand j. Ease of access to the site by participants, and spectators from all parts of the community as well as airports and hotels. k. Surrounding support infrastructure for events i.e., hotels, restaurants and other required services 4
l. Surrounding challenges i.e., neighborhood concerns, infrastructure challenges, etc. m. Parking 3. Design and materials 4. Construction cost 5. Financing plan Construction timeline Note: It is anticipated a feasibility study as comprehensive as this most likely could not be provided by any single organization and expect various organizations might well team-up to provide the level of information requested. Deliverables It is expected that the consultant(s) will deliver within 180 days from a notice to proceed the following work product: A written concise report covering all of the prerequisites listed above. An easy to understand executive summary that summarizes the full report. A compilation of matrices that clearly delineate the information requested in Phases 1 and 2. Three report presentations in person including 1 to the Board of County Commissioners. 5