Monday, June 9, 2014

Decreasing Tampa Bay Unemployment Rate, Growing Companies, and Baseball Attendance



Last week, the Tampa Bay Business Journal announced the unemployment rate in the Tampa Bay area dropped to 5.9%. According to the TBBJ, the rate is 1.3% lower than at the same point in 2013.

According to the Tampa Tribune:
Hillsborough County’s unemployment rate now stands at 5.6 percent, down from 6.9 percent in April 2013. Pinellas dropped to 5.7 percent from 7.1 percent last year. And Pasco dropped to 6.5 percent from 7.9 a year ago.

The Tampa Tribune also reported a job gain of 30,900 in the Tampa-St. Pete-Clearwater area, the third highest gain in the state.

Here is the link to the US Department of Labor breakdown for Tampa Bay.

Many are attributing the job gain to the influx of new companies in the Tampa Bay area. Specifically cited are USAA, Amazon, and Bristol-Myers Squibb, all of whom are hiring hundreds in the Tampa Bay area for professional, non-seasonal jobs.

That's great news.

But how far are these new jobs from baseball stadiums? Will people have time to drive to the ballpark after a typical 9-to-5 day? If people in the workforce don't go to games, attendance must rely on the retired, the unemployed, college students, or the independently wealthy. While I am sure there those in the Tampa Bay area that fit that demographic, the percentage of non-work force people able to go to baseball games is probably quite low.

According to the US Department of Labor, the Tampa Bay workforce is comprised of 1,348,606 people, a little less than 50% of the 2.8 million people in the Tampa Bay metro area. With corporate ticket sales as low as they are for the Tampa Bay Rays, the Tampa Bay workforce is probably a majority of the season ticket holders and overall ticket purchasers.

Let's look at the three biggest new employers and see how far their employees will have to travel to see baseball.

Amazon.com

With the completion of another construction stage of the their new facility in Ruskin, online merchandiser Amazon.com is beginning to hire. While they are not yet hiring packers and entry-level positions, they are hiring Facility Managers, Project Managers, and Technicians.

I couldn't find the exact address of the Amazon plant, but I did find out it was near the Sun City exit, which means Tropicana Field is 34.7 miles away. Fortunately, that is all highway driving, as the fastest route is south from Ruskin to North 275, over the Skyway Bridge, and into St. Petersburg. According to Google Maps, estimated travel time from the estimated Amazon.com plant to the Trop is 33 minutes.

Travel time to the Tampa Bay Minor League parks:

All times figured without traffic. According to TomTom.com, Tampa Bay is the 12th most congested area in the US. The delay per hour at peak driving times is 26 minutes. (Click the link, see page 64.)

While the drive from Ruskin to St. Petersburg or Bradenton would face only minor traffic, the drive to Steinbrenner Field, Bright House Field, and Florida Auto Exchange Stadium would incur the peak point of traffic for those looking to go from the new Amazon plant to any of those stadiums.

Bristol-Myers Squibb

Late last year, pharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb began hiring for their new 600 employee plant by the Tampa International Airport. According to the company's website, they are currently hiring "Business jobs, Finance jobs, IT jobs, and Marketing Services jobs in Tampa". In October, the Tampa Tribune reported the "company is relocating 200 positions from one of its offices near Princeton, N.J., to Tampa, and it’s expected to relocate another 325 or so jobs here from other offices".

So how far is 5401 Eisenhower Blvd from Tampa Bay baseball?

According to Google Maps, the distance from the Bristol-Myers Squibb plant to Tropicana Field is 21.6 miles and should take an estimated 22 minutes via the Veterans' Expressway to South 275 and across the Howard Frankland Bridge into St. Petersburg.

Of course, that's with no traffic. The TomTom estimate of 13 minutes per half hour (26 min per hour divided by two) seems highly conservative here, but we'll go with it.

Travel time to the Tampa Bay Minor League parks:

USAA

Insurance giant USAA currently has a large corporate center off I-75 and Bruce B. Downs in North Tampa. Even with their current offices, the company is growing. According to the Tampa Tribune, "Insurance giant USAA is upping its already big presence in Hillsborough County by adding as many as 1,215 new jobs in the next five years, one of the biggest economic development projects in years."

While some of these jobs will be in North Tampa offices, most will be located at a new 420,000-square foot office building in Brandon, Florida, just outside Tampa. According to the Tampa Bay Business Journal, this location will house approximately 1,200 new workers.

This new USAA office building is by the intersection of the Selmon Expressway and US 301. From this location, a trip to Tropicana Field is 31 miles and 37 minutes according to Google Maps. I'm not sure Google has the right idea here as Google advises traveling from the Selmon Expressway to I-275. That would require going through downtown Tampa, which would be crowded at peak traffic times.

A much easier route, in my opinion, would be taking the Selmon to the Gandy Bridge into St. Petersburg. According to Google, that route is 30.3 miles and 39 minutes. Using this route, travelers avoid most of I-275.

Travel time from the new USAA location to the Tampa Bay Minor League parks:

Conclusion

Employment is on the rise in the Tampa Bay area, and many more new jobs are on the way. It is a good time to be looking for work in Tampa Bay. This growth provides new opportunities and new fans for baseball organizations in the area. Whether corporate partnerships or individual ticket sales, baseball teams in the Tampa Bay area should look towards these new or growing employers for new sales.

Unfortunately for the Tampa Bay Rays, only Bristol-Myers Squibb is expanding near St. Petersburg. The other two employers are on the far east side of the Tampa Bay area with the new Amazon location the furthest away - although that location would face the least amount of peak traffic.

Also, no matter where new workers are employed, a Tampa Bay area minor league park will be closer. For baseball fans, this could prove to be an interesting dilemma forcing them to choose between Major League Baseball or a cheaper substitute product. It will also be interesting to see if the Minor League teams reach out to the growing employers for sponsorship or other corporate partnering.
on
Labels: ,