Sports and entertainment venue has $2B impact on Greenville community since opening – GSA Business Report

The Greenville Arena District, owner and operator of Bon Secours Wellness Arena, this week said the sports and entertainment venue has had a $2 billion-plus economic impact on the community since it opened 25 years ago.

The arena’s annual net new economic impact on the city of Greenville has more than doubled from $21.5 million to $55.8 million since the previous economic impact study in 2016, according to a news release from the Greenville Area District. Conventions, Sports & Leisure International conducted the study as part of its master planning initiative.

Key findings of the CSL report include, according to the release:
• City of Greenville: The arena, including construction and ongoing operations, has driven $482 million in cumulative net new direct spending, contributing $875 million in total economic output. Over 750 full-time-equivalent jobs have been supported, generating $250 million in personal earnings.
• Greenville County: The impact extends to $468 million in net new direct spending, yielding $850 million in total output and creating 760 full-time-equivalent jobs, resulting in $243 million in personal earnings.
• State of South Carolina: Statewide, the arena has accounted for $402 million in net new direct spending, leading to $827 million in total output and 1,150 full-time-equivalent jobs, with $284 million in personal earnings.

The study also highlights the arena’s success in attracting more than 600,000 attendees annually across concerts, sports and community events, with visitor spending outside the facility on lodging, dining and retail. This economic activity benefits local businesses, supports infrastructure development and enhances the region’s cultural vibrancy, the release stated.

“We are extremely proud to contribute to the prosperity of Greenville and the entire Upstate by generating revenue, creating jobs, enhancing the quality of life and helping position this vibrant destination as a premier hub for live events, concerts and sports,” Bon Secours Wellness Arena General Manager Beth Paul said in the release. “Our goal is to be an arena deeply connected to the community of which we are fortunate to be a part and seeing the economic impact grow so significantly is a testament to this commitment.”

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In its comprehensive analysis, CSL’s “net new” methodology accounted for leakage (spending occurring outside of the studied jurisdictions) and displacement (funds that would have otherwise been spent within the jurisdiction even without the arena). The resulting metrics represent the net positive contributions that would not have otherwise occurred without the presence of the arena to the economies of the city, county and state, according to the release.

Economic impacts across places like the city, county and state can’t be added together because the same spending might be counted more than once. For example, if someone from another part of Greenville County eats at a Greenville restaurant before attending an arena event, a portion of that spending would be new money for Greenville but not as much for the county because that person might have spent that same money elsewhere in the county had they stayed closer to home and not instead gone to the arena to attend the event, the release stated.

Since its opening in 1998, the arena has hosted more than 12 million fans and nearly 3,000 commercial and community events, including high-profile attractions like the Southeastern Conference women’s basketball tournament. In 2024, this tournament generated an estimated $16 million in economic impact over five days, marking it as the city of Greenville’s largest event to date, according to the release.

The arena is self-supporting with a dedicated administrative team of 32 full-time professionals. It is one of the busiest venues of its size, hosting approximately 130 ticketed events annually alongside 75 to 100 community and non-profit events. In 2024, events at the arena resulted in approximately 28,000 hotel room nights from overnight visitors to the city.

Bon Secours Wellness Arena is located at 650 N. Academy St.

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