Owensboro Lands Kentucky 2A State Championships — Why High School Sports Are a Real Economic Driver

 Owensboro is hosting the Kentucky 2A State Baseball and Softball Championships this week—and this is exactly what it looks like when a community builds something that brings people in.

 

This isn’t just a tournament.

 

It’s the best 2A programs in the state earning the right to compete for a championship in one place. Teams like Edmonson County High School, Hancock County High School, McLean County High School, Union County High School and others are coming to Owensboro to play for a title.

 

They’re not coming alone.

 

They’re bringing families, fans, coaches, and entire communities with them.

 

That’s the part people miss.

 

Hotel rooms get filled. Restaurants stay busy. Downtown sees traffic. Local businesses feel it. This is outside money coming into Owensboro—and that’s what moves the needle.

 

This model didn’t just happen.

 

Back in 2017 and 2018, Visit Owensboro helped create the 2A Championship structure with partners across the state. The focus was simple—centralize competition, elevate the experience, and create something that drives travel.

 

That’s exactly what this does.

 

“Events like the 2A State Championships are why we stay focused on sports development,” said Mark Calitri. “You’re bringing in teams from across Kentucky who stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, and experience our community. That’s real impact, and it adds up fast.”

 

This is a different way of thinking about sports.

 

You’re not just hosting games. You’re hosting championships.

 

You’re not relying on local crowds. You’re bringing in new people every time.

 

You’re not guessing at impact. You’re building it into the model.

 

Facilities like the Owensboro Sportscenter and continued investment in sports infrastructure allow Owensboro to compete for—and win—events like this.

 

That matters.

 

Because every bus that pulls into town is more than a team.

 

It’s opportunity.

 

And when you stack enough of these weekends together, you don’t just host events.

 

You build a destination.

 

 

 

SOURCE LINK:

https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/sports/local/2a-baseball-softball-championships-coming-this-week/article_5ed70786-ab5f-5c39-b465-8d83ebb17404.html

High-level baseball and softball. Real state titles on the line. The 2A Championships give mid-size schools a true shot to compete, win, and be seen. That’s what this week in Owensboro is all about

Mark Calitri reports: Joslin national anthem video goes viral

Mark Calitri reports: Joslin national anthem video goes viral

A week ago, Chris Joslin, executive director of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum, played the national anthem on his banjo at the 2A Basketball Championships at the Owensboro Sportscenter.

The Hall of Fame and Visit Owensboro posted a video of the performance on their Facebook page and Joslin shared it to his private Facebook page.

And then, Facebook lit up with views and shares of the video.

Suddenly Joslin was the Jimi Hendrix of the banjo.

Hendrix’s performance of the national anthem on his 1968 Fender Stratocaster at Woodstock in 1969 is still talked about today.

https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/joslin-video-goes-viral/article_244e32f6-c5fc-53cf-bb0f-4e07da4e9ca5.html

Visit Owensboro is the official destination marketing organization for Owensboro and Daviess County Kentucky. www.visitowensboro.com Mark Calitri serves as President/CEO.

Calitri reports: Basketball, cattlemen to have $800,000 impact

Calitri reports: Basketball, cattlemen to have $800,000 impact

The combination of the Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association conference and the Kentucky 2A Basketball Championships in Owensboro this week should pump nearly $800,000 into the local economy, said Mark Calitri, president of the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The basketball tournament, which brings eight boys and eight girls teams from across the state to town, will have an economic impact of about $415,000, he said.

And the cattlemen’s meeting will mean about $374,000 to the economy.

Calitri said the tournament should attract crowds because the top two teams in the state, based on the Kentucky High School Athletics Association RPI rankings — John Hardin High School in Elizabethtown and Lexington Catholic — will be in the tournament.

Chris Joslin. executive director of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum, said, “I’m glad to see sports events and big conventions coming to Owensboro. Events definitely create a lot of energy downtown and provide compelling reasons for leisure travelers to be in Owensboro. People across the commonwealth, including those in Frankfort, recognize that Owensboro has created momentum and is capitalizing on that momentum.”

Chris Gendek, the CVB’s destination services director, said more than 90% of the rooms in the city’s chain hotels are already sold out and that’s projected to increase as the weekend approaches.

 Calitri reports basketball and cattleman to have $800,000 impact







Visit Owensboro is the official destination marketing organization for Owensboro and Daviess County Kentucky. www.visitowensboro.com Mark Calitri serves as President/CEO.

Mark Calitri announces: Visit Owensboro capitalizes on Kentucky Tourism’s ‘Year of Music’ marketing campaign!

Visit Owensboro capitalizes on Kentucky Tourism’s ‘Year of Music’ marketing campaign!

Mark Calitri, President & CEO of Visit Owensboro highlighted that on Wednesday, Gov. Andy Beshear unveiled the state's new Visitor's Guide in Frankfort. Calitri was very proud of the representation Owensboro brought the State’s Capital. Calitri said that Owensboro was fortunate to have strong collaborations with the world’s only bluegrass music museum and hall of fame. Calitri praised Chris Joslin for his efforts in building a world class museum that attracts guests from all over the United States. "The state has its sights set on us," Joslin said. "Wednesday lays the groundwork for more things. Good things breed good things. Out of the blue, they reached out to us to provide bluegrass for the press conference. It's great to see Frankfort reach out to Owensboro."

https://lnkd.in/g92qNt6
Visit Owensboro is the official destination marketing organization for Owensboro and Daviess County Kentucky. www.visitowensboro.com Mark Calitri serves as President/CEO.

Calitri reports: Sears home in Cincinnati Ohio, home to Clermont County Tourism office

Calitri reports: Sears home in Cincinnati Ohio, home to Clermont County Tourism office

Posted by Cindy Catanzaro on December 29, 2016 in Batavia

A while back I was doing some research on Beatrice Lask, who identified over 500 Sears Houses in Cincinnati, and came across an article published in the Cincinnati Enquirer dated January 30, 1993.

So, off to Google Maps I went, to see if I could spot the house. Surely it wouldn’t be too hard, since it was on Main St. in Batavia, which is a fairly small village. I did find it pretty quickly, and what a great Sears House it turned out to be.

https://www.discoverclermont.com/clermont-news/8215/


The Ivanhoe was offered in the Sears Modern Home catalogs between 1912 and 1918, but we do know of other instances of Sears selling a house kit for a design that was no longer shown in the catalog. Hopefully the family would have a pretty good idea of the year of build, but I did find the original owner, James Ashburn, listed on “Main St.”, with no house number, in the 1920 Census, which was conducted on the 8th and 9th of January, 1920 in Batavia. That might mean the house was completed prior to 1920, or that the original owner lived in a different house on Main St at the time.

Many thanks to Mark Calitri, Executive Director of the Bureau, for letting me take photos of a lot of the original interior details of the house, like the fireplace with the Rookwood tile, with the triple door bookcases on each side. This makes me feel like a newspaper photographer! (Just kidding.)



Visit Owensboro is the official destination marketing organization for Owensboro and Daviess County Kentucky. www.visitowensboro.com Mark Calitri serves as President/CEO.

Mark Calitri reports: Downtown hotel should boost tourism, officials say But indoor sports facility needed

Mark Calitri reports: Downtown hotel should boost tourism, officials say
But indoor sports facility needed
• By Keith Lawrence Messenger-Inquirer
• Dec 24, 2019

https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/local/downtown-hotel-should-boost-tourism-officials-say/article_24dc1d47-5698-5047-bb00-787ae949884f.html
Construction on the 120-room Home2 Suites by Hilton and the 200 apartments attached to it across Second Street from the Owensboro Convention Center should begin in the spring.
And Matt Hayden, who's building the complex with Jack Wells, said the 10- to 12-story project should be ready to open in April 2021 -- if not sooner.
The new hotel is important for the continued growth of tourism in Owensboro, Hayden and Mark Calitri, president of the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Bureau, said recently.
"In order to attract larger conventions, we have to have at least 350 rooms downtown," Hayden said. "The new hotel will take us to 389 -- 150 at the Hampton, 119 at the Holiday Inn and 120 at the Home2 Suites. That gives us a little cushion."
The new hotel will also bring the total number of hotel rooms in town to more than 1,500.
Mayor Tom Watson said, "The new hotel will be something to hang our hats on. It will create more convention business."
"The new downtown hotel will be transformative for Owensboro and adds another diamond in our crown," Calitri said. "The CVB sees the next few years as crucial for Owensboro as our market has already successfully absorbed the opening of two new hotels with no real decline in hotel occupancy. Our challenge is to be proactive and continue to aggressively pursue innovative ways to attract new visitors and sports and convention groups to fill the hotels.

Mark Calitri reports: 'Sportstown USA': Owensboro 2020 will see major events

Mark Calitri reports: 'Sportstown USA': Owensboro 2020 will see major events

In 2004, Sports Illustrated named Owensboro "Kentucky's Sportstown USA."

And the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Bureau plans to highlight that designation in 2020.

"We are determined to live up to the title of Kentucky No. 1 Sportstown," Mark Calitri, president of the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Bureau, said recently. "We earn this title by aggressively pursuing top events across a broad spectrum of sports."

And 2020 should see that effort kick into high gear.

Last week, the CVB announced that the Kentucky Scholastic 3D Archery State Indoor Championship will be at the Owensboro Convention Center from Feb. 27 to March 1.

More than 500 archers are expected to compete for a state championship in their division and class.

Chris McDonald, coordinator for the tournament, said it's moving from Madisonville because it needs a larger venue.

"Owensboro has the perfect venue and so much to offer our families that travel for competitions," he said in a news release.

Laura Alexander, the convention center's general manager, said the tournament's economic impact on the city should approach $400,000

https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/local/sportstown-usa-cvb-says-will-see-major-events/article_2bb6dcba-8069-5694-9240-6455d74be295.html



Visit Owensboro is the official destination marketing organization for Owensboro and Daviess County Kentucky. www.visitowensboro.com Mark Calitri serves as President/CEO.