KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Construction is underway at the new downtown Knoxville stadium, which is backed by taxpayer dollars. County leaders said a boom in tourism is helping cover the county's cost.
Over the last year, Knox County added around $14 million in hotel and motel tax dollars — the most profitable year on record.
"To put that into perspective, 13 of the last 15 months, the county raked in more than $1 million from the tax," said Chris Caldwell, Knox County's CFO.
The large tax profit can be used to cover tourism-related purchases, and it is happening at a good time. The county will need to begin paying its part of the bill for the new stadium in 2025.
"The county will cover their portion of debt payment for the stadium by using the hotel-motel tax, because it is related to tourism needs," said Caldwell.
Knox County has the fourth-highest revenue from the hotel tax in the state. The amount a county collects from hotel taxes is based on two factors — the occupancy rate of area hotels and motels, and the rate those businesses are charging.
The county said that as tourism in the city continues to grow, so will the profit they make off of it.
"I've been doing this for 20 years and what we have seen in the last two years is just amazing. There's more places to shop, to eat, to visit and the future is looking bright with the new development. It's really cool to see where we are today versus 20 years ago," said Kim Bumpas, the president of Visit Knoxville.