Buddy Dyer is Orlando’s longest-serving mayor. He has strived to make the city a place to live, work, learn and play
Involved in politics for nearly three decades, Buddy Dyer is popular among his constituents.
He was representative for the Florida Senate between 1992 and 2002, including three years serving as Senate Democratic leader. Now in his 15th year as mayor of Orlando – having been re-elected to the position four times since taking charge – the theme park capital continues to thrive as the US’s most popular tourist destination.
“Tourism is the single most important piece of our economic pie,” Dyer tells Attractions Management. “People around the world know Orlando. If they think of Disney or Universal, they think of Orlando. It’s a fantastic brand.”
In 2016, Orlando welcomed a record 66 million visitors. Of those, 5.5 million were international and 60.5 million were from the US, driven largely by the area’s theme parks, with Orlando boasting six of the 10 most visited parks in the world.
“The market continues to increase in volume and our attractions continue to renew their offering,” he says. “They’re in the business of not just finding first-time visitors, but attracting returning tourists.”
Dyer says major operators such as Disney and Universal are excellent “corporate citizens”, with taxes helping to generate further revenue sources for Orlando. “One in every three jobs here is related to tourism. Universal is the largest employer and largest taxpayer within the city limits, and Disney is the largest single-site employer in the country,” he says.
“I interact with them on a daily basis on things that involve the greater community or the greater region – one, for instance, being the tourist development tax.”
The tax, which applies to all of Orange County, Florida, is a bed tax charged at 6 cents for every dollar earned. That tax generates $260m a year for Orlando. When the city built its three new venues in the Downtown area – the performing arts centre, the Amway Centre and the Camping World Stadium – about half of the $1.2bn capital investment was generated through the tourism development tax.
“We continue to improve our tourism infrastructure, which in turn benefits Orlando even more. Tourism has been extremely good to us in terms of supporting community assets. Tourism doesn’t just support tourism, it supports everything.”
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 1
Industry Opinion: Waterparks
More water leisure operators are investing in becoming more accessible, writes WWA's Aleatha Ezra
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
Species survival expert Bill Robichaud shares the trials of the saola and what zoos are doing to save this near-extinct creature
Interview: Bob White
Bob White, COO of Village Roadshow, on
weathering a dip in attendance and keeping
his eyes on investment and expansion
Inclusivity: Open to All
Kath Hudson reports on some inspiring
initiatives to help include people who
face physical, social or economic
obstacles to visiting attractions
Heritage: Lofty Ideals
Westminster Abbey is getting an attic
conversion of sorts. We found out more
Waterparks: Under the Weather
Meet the team who helped bring
Epic Waters to fruition – an undercover
Texas waterpark on an epic scale
Profile: Andreas Andersen
IAAPA’s new chair Andreas Andersen sat
down with Tom Anstey to talk about industry
growth, sustainability – and queueing
Theme Parks: Think Big
Liseberg CEO Andreas Andersen reveals
details of the park’s €200m expansion
Themed design: The Story Builders
Disney’s Joe Rohde and Scott Trowbridge
and Universal’s Thierry Coup reveal the
secrets of their trade – well, some of them!
Buddy Dyer is Orlando’s longest-serving mayor. He has strived to make the city a place to live, work, learn and play
Involved in politics for nearly three decades, Buddy Dyer is popular among his constituents.
He was representative for the Florida Senate between 1992 and 2002, including three years serving as Senate Democratic leader. Now in his 15th year as mayor of Orlando – having been re-elected to the position four times since taking charge – the theme park capital continues to thrive as the US’s most popular tourist destination.
“Tourism is the single most important piece of our economic pie,” Dyer tells Attractions Management. “People around the world know Orlando. If they think of Disney or Universal, they think of Orlando. It’s a fantastic brand.”
In 2016, Orlando welcomed a record 66 million visitors. Of those, 5.5 million were international and 60.5 million were from the US, driven largely by the area’s theme parks, with Orlando boasting six of the 10 most visited parks in the world.
“The market continues to increase in volume and our attractions continue to renew their offering,” he says. “They’re in the business of not just finding first-time visitors, but attracting returning tourists.”
Dyer says major operators such as Disney and Universal are excellent “corporate citizens”, with taxes helping to generate further revenue sources for Orlando. “One in every three jobs here is related to tourism. Universal is the largest employer and largest taxpayer within the city limits, and Disney is the largest single-site employer in the country,” he says.
“I interact with them on a daily basis on things that involve the greater community or the greater region – one, for instance, being the tourist development tax.”
The tax, which applies to all of Orange County, Florida, is a bed tax charged at 6 cents for every dollar earned. That tax generates $260m a year for Orlando. When the city built its three new venues in the Downtown area – the performing arts centre, the Amway Centre and the Camping World Stadium – about half of the $1.2bn capital investment was generated through the tourism development tax.
“We continue to improve our tourism infrastructure, which in turn benefits Orlando even more. Tourism has been extremely good to us in terms of supporting community assets. Tourism doesn’t just support tourism, it supports everything.”
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 1
Industry Opinion: Waterparks
More water leisure operators are investing in becoming more accessible, writes WWA's Aleatha Ezra
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
Species survival expert Bill Robichaud shares the trials of the saola and what zoos are doing to save this near-extinct creature
Interview: Bob White
Bob White, COO of Village Roadshow, on
weathering a dip in attendance and keeping
his eyes on investment and expansion
Inclusivity: Open to All
Kath Hudson reports on some inspiring
initiatives to help include people who
face physical, social or economic
obstacles to visiting attractions
Heritage: Lofty Ideals
Westminster Abbey is getting an attic
conversion of sorts. We found out more
Waterparks: Under the Weather
Meet the team who helped bring
Epic Waters to fruition – an undercover
Texas waterpark on an epic scale
Profile: Andreas Andersen
IAAPA’s new chair Andreas Andersen sat
down with Tom Anstey to talk about industry
growth, sustainability – and queueing
Theme Parks: Think Big
Liseberg CEO Andreas Andersen reveals
details of the park’s €200m expansion
Themed design: The Story Builders
Disney’s Joe Rohde and Scott Trowbridge
and Universal’s Thierry Coup reveal the
secrets of their trade – well, some of them!
OMA has completed a major transformation of New York's New Museum, creating a larger
cultural campus that combines expanded exhibition spaces with learning, performance,
hospitality and public programming.
A US$50 million (£44.2 million, €51.2 million) transformation of Chicago's historic McCormick
Mansion has created a new destination that combines live magic, immersive theatre, dining and
private membership under one roof.
The Montana Historical Society has officially celebrated the opening of its new Montana
Heritage
Center, a US$107 million (£79 million, €92 million) destination that combines immersive
storytelling with cutting-edge audiovisual technology to bring the sta
San Antonio Zoo has reported a US$283 million economic impact for 2025, following a decade-
long transformation programme that has seen almost US$200 million invested into the Texas
attraction.
Plans for the AU$180 million redevelopment of Reef HQ Aquarium in Townsville, Australia, are
progressing, with the project set to transform the attraction into a global centre for reef
education and conservation.
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Disney has reaffirmed its commitment to investing US$30 billion in its US parks and cruise
business by 2033, using new America250 celebrations to underline the role its attractions play
in supporting jobs, tourism and economic growth.
Expo 2030 Riyadh is being planned as a permanent visitor destination, with organisers
confirming the six-million-square-metre site will become a Global Village after the event closes.
The owner of one of Australia's best-known waterparks has acquired a major competitor,
creating a new attractions business spanning two of the country's largest visitor destinations.
The Toverland theme park in the Netherlands has announced a €98m expansion programme
that will add a resort, new attractions and staff facilities as it pursues plans to become a multi-
day destination.
+ More news
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