Pinellas County recorded its highest-ever hotel tax collections for January and February, with Tourist Development Tax revenue reaching $8.3 million in January and $10.8 million in February, both monthly records, according to Visit St. Pete-Clearwater. January increased slightly from a year earlier, while February rose more than 9%.
The figures were presented April 22 to the Pinellas County Tourist Development Council, a day after commissioners voted 6-1 to commit $85 million in public tourism tax dollars toward a $205 million renovation of BayCare Ballpark and the adjacent Carpenter Complex. The project is tied to a long-term agreement to keep the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater through 2047.
State law restricts how tourism tax revenue can be used, limiting spending to tourism-related purposes and prohibiting use for general services such as police, fire or property tax relief. County officials evaluate projects based on their ability to generate overnight stays, which drive the tax.
Commissioners cited spring training travel, particularly from the Philadelphia region, in supporting the investment, with an earlier estimate putting the Phillies’ annual economic impact at about $80 million tied to tourism and seasonal residents.
Visit St. Pete-Clearwater expects visitation to remain strong into early summer, with February typically representing the region’s peak travel period due to winter tourism and spring training.
Tourism tax revenue also supports major projects, including $127 million spent in 2025 on beach renourishment, the largest such effort in county history, funded through accumulated reserves.
The Phillies agreement includes an $850,000 annual marketing commitment to the county’s tourism agency, with scheduled increases later in the term, and reflects the broader use of tourism tax revenue to fund destination marketing, beach maintenance and visitor-related capital projects.
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