Polk Economy Wraps Tough Year With More Suffering

LAKELAND | 2009 was an unsparing year for the local economy as tourism, real estate and the job market all struggled with the recession, according to The Ledger's Polk County Business Barometer.

With business and pleasure travelers cutting back in 2009 Polk's tourism revenue took a hit. Revenue from hotel and vacation home rentals totaled about $129.3 million last year, down nearly 20 percent from 2008, according to the Polk County Tax Collector's Office.

"It was the toughest year I've seen in my experience in the tourism and sports industry," said Mark Jackson, Polk's director of tourism and sports marketing. "I'm glad we're at 2010."

Last year's closure of Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven hurt local tourism but Polk continued to be a strong draw for hosting regional and national sporting events, Jackson said.

For December, Polk's tourism revenue came to $9.8 million, versus $9.9 million the year prior.

It was an uneven year for real estate.

Existing home sales hit a three-year high of 4,290 units and were up 23 percent from 2008, but distressed properties accounted for more than half of local sales and weighed on prices.

Polk had a total 376 existing homes sold in December, compared to 296 the year before and 356 in November, according to My Florida Multiple Listing Service. The county's median sale price for December, $107,300, was down 17 percent on the year.

With unsold homes still plentiful, local homebuilders had a record low 2009. Only 1,072 permits for new home construction were recorded here, down 52 percent from the year prior. It also was the lowest annual total in Ledger records dating to 1994.

Polk had 86 permits in December, an increase from 83 the year before, and 63 in November.

As for the job market, Polk's average 11.6 percent unemployment rate for 2009 was the highest in 25 years, according to the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation.

The county's December jobless rate saw a slight decline, falling to 12.8 percent after hitting 12.9 percent in November, but was up from 8.6 percent in December 2008.

Even in the wake of a recession unemployment tends to remain high because companies are reluctant to start hiring, said Gordon Kettle, an economic consultant for Polk government and professor at Polk State College.

Last year's taxable retail sales came to $5.1 billion through October, the most recent month available from the Florida Department of Revenue. That figure compares to $5.8 billion during the same period in 2008.

October's retail sales figure was $475.6 million, down from $523.9 million the year before.

[ Kyle Kennedy can be reached at kyle.kennedy@theledger.com or 863-802-7584. ]