County smashes visitors record

SARASOTA — Sarasota County had more than one million visitors in fiscal year 2015, marking the first time the county cracked the seven-figure milestone.

For the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, a total of 1,084,140 visitors stayed in paid lodging, a 9.3% increase over the previous year, according to a statement. Direct expenditures and economic impact increased 12% year-over-year, the report adds.

Virginia Haley, president of Visit Sarasota County, the county's tourism arm, says she's optimistic about 2016 as well. That's due largely to “new hotel inventory opening in the coming year, new cultural, sporting and natural offerings and a new creative campaign,” she says in the statement.