A version of this article was originally featured in SEMCOG’s Economic Development special edition magazine: What’s Our Edge?. Let us know if you would like to request hard copies. Southeast Michigan’s success depends on the unique strengths of its communities, businesses, and educational institutions. Regional cooperation, data-driven strategies, and a skilled workforce are key to driving growth. The Gordie Howe International Bridge, access to water, and education play vital roles in shaping the region’s future. By aligning these assets, the region can achieve greater prosperity, guided by the Economic Development Council’s new strategy.
Community events are economic development at its core.
That is the message Kristi Trevarrow, executive director of the Rochester Downtown Development Authority (DDA) delivered to the audience at a SEMCOG University workshop focused on community events in May 2024. From November through February each year, Downtown Rochester puts on its famous “Big, Bright Light Show,” which sees the building facades along Main Street decked out in over 1 million shimmering holiday lights for all to enjoy. In addition to the vivid lights, most of the businesses add their own flair with creative, holiday-themed displays. People flock from all over the region to stroll up and down the street, take pictures of the buildings, and visit the variety of shops and restaurants.
Community events have long held the power to bring people together and highlight a community’s history, culture, and identity. Now more than ever, communities are holding events of all types and sizes – and during all four seasons – to help catalyze economic development and placemaking efforts. From signature community festivals, holiday celebrations, summer concerts in the park, and art fairs to sports tournaments, slow rolls, marathons and 5K races; there is no shortage of amazing community events in Southeast Michigan!
Attendance at Michigan’s 1,300 fairs and events, including 84 county fairs, exceeds 35 million people annually according to the Michigan Festivals and Events Association. In 2022, visits to Michigan welcomed 125 million visitors, according to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
Lake Street Cruise-In, City of South Lyon
Community events offer countless opportunities for people to experience cool art and diverse culture, local history, entertainment, food and drink, and interactive fun and games. These events also allow people to be around other community members, to gather socially and create memories.
These events attract visitors who spend money in town, which helps boost the local economy. Businesses benefit from increased foot traffic that often translates into new customers and free marketing. Events and festivals also help foster community pride, teach people new things, and strengthen relationships – between both community organizations who plan and host the events and the neighbors who come for the experience. Successful events require collaborative planning, creative partnerships with community groups and businesses, and close coordination with public safety agencies.
The resurgence of Detroit continues to attract major sporting events to the region, often putting the city in the national spotlight for all to witness. In 2005, the Major League Baseball All Star Game was held at Comerica Park – the game’s first time back in Detroit since 1971. Ford Field hosted Super Bowl XL in 2006 and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four in 2009.
In 2024, Little Caesars Arena hosted the NCAA Men’s Tournament Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games and will host the 2027 Men’s Final Four and the 2028 Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament. Across the country, people are seeing firsthand that Detroit is a great location to hold these national sporting events and that the city and the region are very good at hosting them.
A Whole New Ballgame
There is perhaps no greater example of the capacity for Detroit to host big events than the 2024 NFL Draft, which was held downtown from April 24-27. Over 775,000 people attended over that three-day span, which set a new attendance record for the NFL. A worldwide audience of millions watching draft coverage on TV were repeatedly exposed to aerial and close-up shots of the city. The city was praised by visitors and national media alike. All the preparation and partnering well before the crowds ever converged on the city resulted in a sea of positivity during and after the draft, which provided a huge boost to the regional economy.
In July 2024, Visit Detroit and the Detroit Sports Commission announced that the NFL draft event had a $213.6 million economic impact for the city and Southeast Michigan. They also announced that $161.3 million (or 75%) of the total economic impact was new spending within the region due to the draft, which also created a tax impact of about $12 million. Roughly 30% of the attendees traveled over 100 miles to be there in person.
Bringing Communities Together
Beyond sports, Southeast Michigan is also home to a rich and diverse heritage in automotive, music, and arts and culture – all of which provide additional opportunities for events and experiences.
SterlingFest, City of Sterling Heights
In Sterling Heights, the city has been hosting SterlingFest – one of the major signature festivals in Southeast Michigan – for 42 years. City officials note that the festival is sponsored by over 40 local businesses who view the festival as an important marketing and outreach platform. SterlingFest features an arts and craft show with over 100 artists and crafters, many of whom are small businesses or microbusinesses. It also provides a stage for more than 30 local music acts and national headliners, the latter attracting fans from outside of the state who come to the show and stay in local hotels.
The City estimates SterlingFest brings in 150,000 visitors over the three days of the festival each summer. It naturally brings people and families together to have a fun experience and gather as a community. As the City’s community relations manager Melanie Davis notes,
Our Suds ‘n’ Sounds beer pavilion has become the unofficial epicenter of local family and high school reunions and social media sites promote the pavilion as the place for thousands to reconnect under the pavilion to dance, since, and celebrate fellowship of days gone by.
– Melanie Davis Community Relations Sterling Heights
Signature events throughout the region have become annual staples and boost local economies.
- Spanning 16 miles and nine dynamic communities, the Woodward Dream Cruise draws more than 1 million people and roughly 40,000 classic vehicles. It’s the world’s largest one-day automotive event according to event organizers.
- The Michigan Challenge Balloonfest, hosted annually by the Howell Area Chamber of Commerce, attracts over 100,000 guests each year and provides local businesses a valuable platform for increased visibility and community engagement.
- The Detroit Jazz Festival generates $24.5 million economic activity and supports the equivalent of nearly 500 full-time jobs, with $26 million in household income going to local residents and approximately $3 million in tax revenue according to an economic impact study by the festival’s Foundation.
- The Ann Arbor Art Fair hosts about 1,000 artists across 30 city blocks each year, which attracts nearly 500,000 people to the city over three days in July each summer.
Many events coincide with other activities, such as fun runs, music concerts, and parades. Around any given holiday, you can find one or more communities holding a parade to celebrate.
Smaller towns and rural townships also host their own signature events that bring people together and enhance the quality of life for residents. In many of these places, the gathering spot is the big community park or a school or church property. Family movie nights, music in the park, scarecrow festivals, paddling events, vintage car shows, carnivals, egg hunts, and ice sculptures provide fun experiences for folks in smaller communities. Combined with other placemaking and economic development efforts, unique events and festivals help make our communities more attractive and vibrant places in which to live or visit.
SEMCOG’S Location Analysis and Visitation Tool
SEMCOG recently launched a new economic development and placemaking tool to assist our local communities with understanding location and foot traffic. This tool is powered by Placer.ai and provides detailed data analysis for location, visitation, and foot traffic of key places and destinations across the region. This includes visitation data for downtowns/DDA districts, parks, and any community events/festivals that are held during certain times of year. For each of these areas, the Location Analysis and Visitation tool can provide the following analysis and results:
- Visitor and foot traffic numbers (how many people visited an identified location, year over year, specific day(s), week(s), month(s))
- Post/Prior visitor journey information (where people visited before and after their visit)
- Visits by origin (zip code information from home or work)
- Demographic information of visitors (including generational profiles)
Learn More
SEMCOG members can find more information about this tool and fill out a data request by visiting the Location Analysis and Visitation tool webpage.
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