“There’s 40 international companies here. I have to believe there’s a correlation between that event and our economic vitality,” said Warren County Commissioner David Young.
To keep the tournament from being lured to Charlotte, Young said the county, city of Mason and state of Ohio pledged a combined 49% of the estimated $260 million renovation to the Lindner campus. The Cincinnati Open, from Aug. 5-18 this year, signed a lease for 25 years.
“So now we have right down the road here a campus that is evolving into a publicly owned asset that is going to be used a heck of a lot more than two weeks a year. Remember, that event is going from one week to two weeks, from 200,000 people to 350,000,” said Young, who added that spectators come from all over the U.S. and 80 countries. “The economic impact is going from like $75 million to over $150 million to the region. It’s a big deal.”
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
The professional tennis tournament is the preeminent attraction in Warren County, where tourism is the number one industry and supports over 13,500 jobs and $400 million in local wages. More than 14 million people visit Warren County each year.
“Fourteen million people that come here, shop in our stores, go in our restaurants, stay in our hotels, spend their money, pay our lodging taxes, pay our sales tax. All of that contributes to all of the things that we’re in a position to do because we have 14 million people who come, accounting for $1.7 billion of economic impact,” Young said.
Young and fellow Commissioners Tom Grossmann and Shannon Jones presented the annual State of Warren County address to nearly 150 local government and business leaders at a meeting of the Area Progress Council at Shaker Run Golf Course in Turtlecreek Twp.
All three commissioners touted the board’s fiscal discipline.
“It’s not just a slogan that we drag out at election time,” said Jones. “It’s the thing that we live and breathe every day above everything else. We want to provide high quality services to the taxpayers who rightfully demand high quality services from us but we want to do it in a way that’s fiscally prudent.”
The annual budget this year is about $93 million. The county has a carryover of $83 million and a $12 million rainy day fund, she said.
The unemployment level is 4.5%, which is the lowest among its neighbors, such as Clermont County with 4.9% and Montgomery County with 5.5%, Jones said.
A project Jones highlighted is Renaissance Pointe, in partnership with the city of Middletown, that is underway on 50-plus acres at Ohio 122 and Union Road along Interstate 75. The development will be anchored by a 3,000-seat arena and also will feature retail and office space, hotels, restaurants and housing options.
“We’re currently in negotiations with U.S. Hockey League for a developmental hockey league and team,” she said. “We have an international company that is interested in locating a team here alongside USHL.”
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Warren County has been in recent years among the top of the fastest growing counties in the state, Grossman said.
“We have had a very healthy growth rate in our county,” he said.
Between 2010 and 2022, the county experienced a population growth rate of about 17%, compared to the U.S. growth rate of 7.7% and Ohio’s 1.9% rate.
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