Alachua County approved two plans attempting to make the county a sports destination at a meeting Tuesday.
The Alachua County Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to continue with its proposed Sports Event Center Transition, which would create a government division dedicated to tourism.
In Spring 2023, a 130,000 square-foot Alachua County Sports and Events Center opened in Celebration Pointe. The project was funded with $30 million from the Tourist Development Tax, which is a tax collected from hotels, motels and short-term rentals such as Airbnb.
The center’s operation changed hands earlier this year when its private operator failed to live up to its contractual obligations. Starting Oct. 1, Alachua County will be responsible for the center’s operations.
With Alachua County operating the center, it hopes to drive economic impact, elevate Alachua County as a sports destination and provide access for local teams to use the space, according to the county’s presentation.
“We want to serve the public. We want to have a facility that serves the public,” Commissioner Ken Cornell said.
The commission also approved its bid to host the 2027 World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships. The event would bring money into the county through tourists staying at overnight accommodations and eating at local restaurants.
The commissioners approved the county to spend a maximum of $750,000 in preparation to bid. If Alachua County outbids the competition, the event will be held at the events center in Celebration Pointe.
Alachua County just finished hosting the 2025 rendition of the indoor track and field competition in March. The event brought 17,433 visitors to Gainesville, and over $10 million was spent in the county during the competition, according to a UF study.
Contact Megan Howard at mhoward@alligator.org. Follow her on X @meganmhxward.
Megan Howard is the Spring 2025 Senior News Director and a third-year journalism major. She's also worked as the Opinions Editor and a Metro and University reporter. Outside of the newsroom, Megan takes care of her 4-year-old dog Lucy, reads and journals.
