Flaggs: Vicksburg ‘economy is centered around tourism’

Published 7:31 pm Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Vicksburg’s economic health relies heavily on the tourism industry, Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said Wednesday.

“Our whole economy is centered around our tourism,” he said. “We understand tourism in Vicksburg. We understand how it is to be able to showcase a city with so much history and so much value to the tourism of this state and the tourism of this nation.”

Email newsletter signup

Sign up for The Vicksburg Post's free newsletters

Check which newsletters you would like to receive
  • Vicksburg News: Sent daily at 5 am
  • Vicksburg Sports: Sent daily at 10 am
  • Vicksburg Living: Sent on 15th of each month

Flaggs’ comments came as he addressed state and local officials, visitors and local residents at a reception and press conference in observance of National Travel & Tourism Week. At the Vicksburg Welcome Center on Washington Street.

Locally, Flaggs said, the city’s restaurant tax raises about $912,000 a year, while the city’s hotel tax averages about $798,000 year for an annual total of $1.7 million. The VCVB’s 1 percent tax on restaurants and hotels, he said, raises $1.178 million for the agency.

“The visitors’ expenditure is over $2.4 million,” he said, adding tourism accounts for 3,925 direct jobs, or 19.2 percent of the work force in Warren County.

“Over $22.5 million in state and local taxes are the result of travel and tourism in Warren County, and 89,300 visitors check into our visitor center every year.”

Flaggs highlighted the Vicksburg National Military Park, which he said is visited by 436,000 people annually, and commended former Sen. Thad Cochran for getting $5.9 million in the federal Omnibus Budget Act for repairs to the slide area at the park’s Texas Memorial.

The park, he said, is being linked with the state’s Grand Gulf State Park and the Champion Hill and Raymond Battlefield sites to give visitors a better understanding of the Siege of Vicksburg.

“What that says to us is that those people who were spending eight hours a day in our park now will have to spend a day and a half in Vicksburg to get the whole theme of our legendary park,” he said.

Flaggs said more tour boats are landing in Vicksburg, adding 100 boats docked here in 2017, and 125 boats are expected to visit the city in 2018.

“We have people from all 50 states joining in our military park and the city of Vicksburg. We have about 25 (foreign) countries represented each year to come to see the historic city of Vicksburg and to see Mississippi.”

Flaggs also put in a plug for opening the old U.S. 80 bridge to foot and bicycle traffic.

“I want you to know you are standing on the banks of the Mississippi and standing on the future of this (U.S. 80) bridge being open where we can enjoy (the river) like we never had before,” a comment that drew applause and cheers from the local residents and officials at the reception.

Glenn McCullough, executive director of the Mississippi Development Agency, highlighted the state’s benefits from tourism, pointing out 23.15 million people visited the state in 2017, an increase of 450,000 people. Many of those were from other countries, and tourists spent a total of $6.34 billion in the state, he said.

Tourism in the state, he said, accounted for 87,335 in direct jobs and $3 billion in income for workers involved in tourism. The travel industry, he said, contributed $398 million to the state’s general fund.

“We have a state that is so rich in culture, that is so rich in history, that is so rich in beauty, that is so rich in people,” he said.

About John Surratt

John Surratt is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree in general studies. He has worked as an editor, reporter and photographer for newspapers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post staff since 2011 and covers city government. He and his wife attend St. Paul Catholic Church and he is a member of the Port City Kiwanis Club.

email author More by John