The Polk County Economic Development Office was awarded a $23,200 grant to fund an 11-month Tourism and Business Growth Management Project to determine the near real time economic impact of visitors to major events.

The application for the grant stems from the county wanting to survey visitors to the Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC) and other major events in the county in order to determine the economic impact as well as determine what services are needed in the county.

The Polk County Board of Commissioners met Feb. 23 and announced the grant, which was awarded from the N.C. Department of Commerce, Rural Economic Development Division.

Polk County Manager Marche Pittman said a lot of the grant funding will focus on the growth at the TIEC.

Pittman said county officials are excited about the grant award and the funding will allow the county to gather the information it and the towns need as they move forward with regional and local planning.

Polk County EDC Director Robert Williamson said Polk and surrounding counties are experiencing unprecedented growth with TIEC.

“The initial 2014 events attracted record-setting crowds of exhibitors and spectators from more than 26 states with 300 to 600 horses competing in each of the four-day events,” Williamson said. “Between 1,000 and 6,000 spectators and competitors attended these events. Local services, lodging, dining, retail sales in a 30-to 50-mile radius from the TIEC will see unprecedented economic opportunities.”

The funding will be used to purchase tablets, to pay students for travel, for software license and surveys, website enhancements, reception kiosk and to print publications, according to the grant application.

The Tourism and Business Management Growth project from the grant is designed to determine the economic impact of visitors to major events in Polk County, according to Williamson.

The findings will allow the county to make decisions related to tourism and business growth, capital investment/infrastructure options and public agency support services, Williamson said in a press release.

Private sector businesses will also benefit strategically, Williamson said, from in-depth knowledge of visitor expectations and spending patterns.

The project will establish methods to capture, document, categorize and disseminate visitors’ activities, spending and expectations, said the grant application. The technology will be used to determine the near real-time economic impact of visitors on the various business sectors, agencies and governmental units in the region and help them better respond to visitor needs, according to the application.

Besides TIEC events, the surveys are also planned to be done at other major events, including the Blue Ridge BBQ and Music Festival, Foothills Equestrian Nature Center (FENCE) events, agri-tourism and winery tours and the Green River Games.

“Business development, growth and sustainability will be greatly enhanced with these actual ‘near real time’ economic indicators and visitors’ habits,” said Williamson.

Williamson will direct the project with Western Carolina University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI) leading the development of survey instruments, reporting and economic impact studies. Students with Western’s CEI will be involved in all phases of the project.