Valuing Central Park's Contributions to New York City's ... - Appleseed

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The world’s largest marathon
– and the world’s most famous
finish line
The New York City Marathon was born in Central
Park in 1970, and for its first five years was run
entirely within the Park. In 1976 the course of
the Marathon was changed to the now-familiar
five-borough configuration. But the final three
and a half-mile section of the course is still within
or along the edge of the Park. Thus the most
dramatic moments of the race often occur in the
Park, as the runners approach and then cross what
has been called the world’s most famous finish
line.
Today the ING New York City Marathon is the
largest in the world, with 38,607 finishers in 2007.
Approximately 80 percent of all participants come
from outside New York City – and 50 percent from
outside the U.S. Based on a survey of participants
in the 2005 race, Economics Research Associates
estimates that the average non-New York City
participant brings four guests, and stays in the City
for four days. The Marathon thus drew more than
150,000 visitors to the City in 2006, for a total of
more than 600,000 visitor-days.
Based on this survey, ERA estimates that outof-town
participants in the 2006 ING New York
City Marathon and their guests spent a total of
approximately $110.7 million. Taking into account
the multiplier effect, ERA estimates that in 2006
visitor spending associated with the Marathon
generated $179 million in Citywide economic
output. The Marathon’s economic impact exceeds
that of any other single-day sporting event.
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The New York City Triathlon (18,000 participants);
The New York City Half-Marathon (10,000 participants);
The New York Road Runners Mini 10K – the world’s oldest organized road race for
women (3,500 participants);
The U.S. men’s Olympic marathon trial; and
The U.S. 8K championship.
Entertainment and cultural events at Central Park also draw visitors from outside New York
City. Examples include:
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Shakespeare in the Park, with a total audience of 85,000;
The SummerStage concert series, with audiences totaling 150,000;
New York Philharmonic concerts (66,000);
Performances by the Metropolitan Opera (15,700);
Other concerts sponsored by the Parks Foundation (72,000); and
The New York Book Festival (20,000).
Other visitors to Central Park
Visits to the Park for its recurring events make up a small part of its total annual attendance
(about 3 percent of visits in 2006-07). The Central Park Conservancy estimates that there
were 25 million visits to Central Park in 2006 – up from an estimated 20 million in 2000.
Since the Conservancy was founded, visits to Central Park have nearly doubled from 12.77
million visits in 1976.
While New York City residents account for most visits to Central Park, surveys conducted in
1989 found that 20 percent of Central Park visitors resided outside the City.
Assuming that 20 percent of the 25 million visits to Central Park were made by out-of-town
visitors and discounting spending that occurred with Park concessions, we estimate that about