PRINCETON – As schools and colleges lay off students for the summer and the travel season warms up, local hotel chains are seeing more diners while Mercer County sees more hotel / motel tax revenue.
Mercer County’s hotel / motel tax revenue declined in 2020 as COVID-19 precautions and closings restricted tourism and other reasons for travel. Now with travelers returning to Interstate 77 and US Route 460, revenue is back on the rise, according to County Commissioner Bill Archer.
“They had a significant increase and we can attribute most of that to the various mandates related to easing the COVID outbreak,” said Archer. “It’s no surprise when you look at the traffic here with vehicles that take ATVs. This part of our economy has really skyrocketed since the beginning of summer. “
The Mercer County Commission had to pull out of its budget stabilization or “rainy day” fund to maintain some services while the trip was canceled, he said.
“During the peak of COVID last year, we benefited from budget stabilization at this point to fund ongoing programs funded by hotel / motel taxes; for example employees and operations at Glenwood Park and also a potion from our waste control program. Not quite, but part of it, ”said Archer.
The commission can now be paid back into your Rainy Day fund.
“Our current number is around $ 90,000 and we’ve been able to catch up on our budget stabilization deposits,” said Archer. “I’m not sure how close we are to bearing all the losses we have suffered. With $ 90,000 in our budget driven by the increase in the activity of our local hotels and motels, this is a very good sign and I’m glad people are still coming to Mercer County and South West Virginia and everything enjoy what we have to offer. “
The number of visitors who stop at local hotel and motel chains has also increased. Executive Director Jamie Null of the Mercer County Convention & Visitors Bureau said the office subscribed to a company called STR to monitor the number of visits to the county.
“It provides data, benchmarking and analysis, as well as market insights for hospitality vectors,” said Null. “Mercer County has several hotel chains that are reporting their details to STR. We can also watch it through a subscription service. “
The office can’t see what people are paying for rooms, but it can keep track of occupancy. Null added that the information only covers hotel chains, not ATV accommodations.
“It gives us information about how we’re doing with occupancy, how many rooms are being sold per month,” she said. “Of course we don’t compare anything (current figures) with 2020.”
The occupancy figures in 2021 and 2019 were zero.
“Since around February (2021) we have seen a trend towards increasing occupancy,” said Null. “It started to build up, and so by May we were sitting at 65 percent of the available rooms. We have about 932 rooms from the chains reporting numbers. The offer was 28,985 available overnight stays (in May). The demand (room nights actually used) was 18,964 room nights. “
Mercer County still lagged 2019 numbers when comparing May 2019 and May 2021, but that could be due to factors such as wedding receptions and family reunions that contributed to stays at local hotels and motels, she said. There is now more traffic north and south on Interstate 77 as people travel to beaches, visit families, and head to other destinations.
“But for us there is no question that these occupancy numbers will continue to rise,” said Null. “May is just the beginning of the summer travel season, because many schools don’t drop out until June. We expect a really good year until autumn. Many of the chain hotels are firmly booked for travelers on the weekends. ”
– Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
