The Sedona Arts Center released the results of its latest study on the relationship between the arts and economic prosperity in Sedona, conducted in partnership with Americans for the Arts and sponsored by the Sedona Chamber of Commerce and the city of Sedona, at a luncheon at SAC on Feb. 1.

“When I got the results of our study, I was so excited,” SAC CEO Julie Richard told the audience. “I was extremely pleasantly surprised. Not only are our numbers the highest for any city of our size in the country, but in addition, our attendance numbers blow away the national average … Attendance by tourists is 10% higher than the national average, and Sedona-local attendees spend $41.55 compared to $29.70 nationally, and our tourists spend a whopping $159.91 compared to $60.57 nationally. That’s really, really impressive.”

The study results were gathered through collaboration with local arts organizations that conducted audience surveys. Randy Cohen, vice president of research at Americans for the Arts, called this a “very conservative approach.” Only nonprofit organizations were surveyed, including public facilities, while for-profit businesses such as commercial galleries and movie studios were not invited. Nationally, 373 regions with populations between 4,000 and 4 million participated in the Americans for the Arts study.

Total measured revenues generated by the nonprofit arts sector in Sedona in 2022 were $13,482,061. The city and counties benefited from the arts to the tune of $546,654 in tax revenue, while state revenue from arts activity in Sedona was an additional $587,636. Arts and culture organizations provided 230 jobs in Sedona and paid residents $8,626,008 in wages.

“Arts jobs are local jobs,” Cohen said. “This is not an industry that’s going to be off-shored.”

Volunteers also contributed time valued at “just shy of a million dollars,” Cohen added.

Statewide, nonprofit arts organizations had an economic impact of $1.1 billion in 2022, or $149.34 per person, compared to $1,392.20 per person in Sedona. Flagstaff, with a population eight times larger than Sedona, had an economic impact only 6.35 times larger — with $85.6 million from its nonprofit arts sector, which supported 1,062 jobs.

Sixty percent of those who attended local arts events in 2022 lived in either Yavapai or Coconino counties, while “40% of attendees came from outside the two-county region, much higher than the state and national averages,” Cohen said. When the non-local attendees were asked about their motivation, “a little over 50% said, ‘We came specifically for this arts event … 42% of those folks had a lodging cost. They averaged $269 per person.”

“Your arts organizations are putting a lot of people on the street who are spending money at local businesses,” Cohen summarized. He noted that the study had also found that 79% of the public thought that arts and culture programs were good for the economy.

Another 85% of survey respondents said they would feel a sense of loss if the program or venue which they were attending when surveyed were to become unavailable, while 88% said that arts activities and venues inspired them with a sense of pride in their communities.

SAC Board of Trustees Chairman Dr. Bruce Peek said the study’s results were sending a message to city officials about “that reinvestment that we need in the arts.”

“The pandemic hit everybody, so now we’re seeing a resurgence,” Peek told the crowd. “Things are starting to come back, but that reinvestment is very important