A delicate balance: Rock Hill tries to revive sports tourism as COVID-19 lingers
The message over the public address system wasn’t urgent, but it was louder than the noisy hum of normalcy in the Rock Hill Sports and Event Center on Saturday afternoon.
“Please have your mask on at all times,” a deep voice distorted over the speakers.
The tournament’s spectators, coaches, players and workers heard a similar announcement every 30 minutes. It served as reminders of the COVID-19 reality that was blurred inside the center’s walls — of the pandemic that had canceled so many planned events in the same center from mid-March to mid-June.
In the summer of COVID-19, live, full competition basketball doesn’t exist everywhere. But it does in York County. And it does, in a big way, in Rock Hill. Since July 9, the Rock Hill center has hosted four basketball tournaments in as many weekends — each one hosting over 100 teams.
These tournaments have vast economic potential. And they’re allowed in South Carolina amid the novel coronavirus crisis. Many out-of-state teams, particularly Charlotte-based teams, travel across the state line to play.
While some local officials deem these sports tournaments “necessary” for York County, others worry it sends a conflicting message to the public.
“Obviously there’s an appetite for these recreational leagues to travel and go somewhere. But does it have to be in Rock Hill?” York County councilman William “Bump” Roddey told The Herald.
“What message is this sending to the Rock Hill, York County community about this virus? It certainly sends a mixed message.”
Economic impact of youth sports amid COVID-19
Hosting elite youth sports tournaments in York County isn’t solely an economic decision, said John Taylor, the city of Rock Hill sports, recreation and tourism director.
But the money these large tournaments bring in can’t be overlooked.
Rock Hill started putting on sports events that attracted tourism in outdoor facilities like Cherry Park, Hargett Park and Manchester Meadows in mid-June. The sports center opened to tournaments in early July.
Taylor said that in about six weeks, the sports events have generated almost $6.9 million in economic impact — a number that accounts for jobs created, hotel stays, eating in Rock Hill restaurants and other revenue streams.
“Of course, our revenues are climbing back up, but we’ve got a big hole to climb out of,” Taylor said.
The Herald reported that by April 15, just a month from the beginning of the pandemic, the city of Rock Hill was forced to cancel 20 sports events. Taylor said that equaled the loss of over $9 million in economic impact and up to $500,000 in direct revenue (money made from the event itself, like admission, parking and concessions).
And those numbers don’t account for the May events that were postponed or canceled because of the pandemic.
“We’re putting anywhere from (8,000) to 14,000 people in Rock Hill on a given weekend, and what that does is it ramps us up quicker to recovering from the coronavirus issue that we had a few months ago, when things were just at a standstill,” said Billy Dunlap, the CEO of tourism group Visit York County. Dunlap said hosting these tournaments has “put us in a position where we are ahead of most destinations because we’re able to hold these types of events.”
Rock Hill Mayor John Gettys said hosting these events is important, considering the investments the city has made for decades to cultivate its sports tourism industry.
“I think for our community, they’re necessary,” Gettys said.
Playing youth sports safely during COVID-19
There’s no doubt putting on a large, indoor basketball tournament presents health and safety risks amid a global health pandemic, particularly while COVID-19 cases continue to rise in York County.
As of Monday, York County has over 3,229 confirmed coronavirus cases since March, according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control. The county added less than 200 new positive cases in May. In July, it added 1,876 cases.
Gov. Henry McMaster signed an executive order in May allowing youth sports competition with or without spectators to begin June 15, following social distancing guidelines. According to those guidelines, “the discretion to re-open athletic fields and allow youth sports activities on or after these dates” was up to the “recreation department or local government having jurisdiction and control of the field and its facilities.”
Immediately, college and high school summer baseball leagues started. Soccer tournaments, and eventually basketball tournaments, did, too.
North Carolina, on the other hand, remains in an extended Phase 2 of reopening until at least Friday. There, mass gatherings are limited to 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors, and although spectator sports are allowed, they’re subject to the mass gathering requirement.
This past weekend at the Rock Hill tournament, 70 of the 129 teams were from North Carolina, with 29 from Charlotte.
“Whatever the state protocol is — if the state says we can do it, then we’re going to try to do it,” said Rick Lewis, president of Phenom Hoop Report and lead organizer of the weekend’s basketball tournament in Rock Hill.
As of Monday, most indoor entertainment spaces, including the sports center, cannot exceed 250 people or 50% occupancy, whichever is less.
Lewis detailed several of the COVID-19 safety protocols at the tournament, including:
▪ Temperatures were checked before entering the building.
▪ Masks were required inside, unless you were playing or refereeing. (This tournament rule aligned with Rock Hill’s mask mandate, which requires people to wear masks in public places through Sept. 1.)
▪ Basketballs and benches were sanitized between games.
▪ Coaches and players were required to answer a COVID-19 questionnaire, confirming that they had not recently been in contact with anyone who had COVID-19 and that they did not have symptoms.
▪ Teams were asked to leave the facility after play to help with social distancing.
▪ Players, coaches, referees and spectators also had to sign waivers — one for the city of Rock Hill, one for Phenom Hoops. “It is basically saying that you understand that there is a risk, and you cannot hold us accountable,” Lewis said.
Lewis said at the first tournament he organized this summer in Rock Hill, five people were escorted out of the gym because they repeatedly didn’t follow the tournament’s coronavirus guidelines.
“We have been promoting our event to say we’re going to be doing everything we can to make it as safe as possible,” he said. “That strategy has paid dividends because more and more teams want to play because they know we do things the right way.”
The travel basketball COVID-19 safety debate
Local support for these tournaments vary. But the decision to put on these tournaments has not been met with the same pushback or scrutiny as other local coronavirus-related debates.
While travel sports leagues started months ago, the mask mandate has been brought up by every municipality in York County. Plans to back to school caused protests in Rock Hill. And the South Carolina High School League, the group charged with formatting fall middle and high school sports seasons, agreed on a sports schedule that could still change.
“Safety is a big concern of what we do,” Taylor said of the Rock Hill tournaments. “That’s why all the protocols are put in place. That’s why you get your temperature checked when you go into the facility. That’s why you’re being told to wear your mask. That’s why technical fouls are being called against coaches who don’t wear their mask. That’s why teams are forfeiting games because a parent wouldn’t wear a mask.”
He also said that while he can’t “guarantee” safety, the city of Rock Hill follows Center for Disease Control, AccelerateSC and all government guidelines to put on safe events.
Michael Johnson, chairman of the York County Council, said via email that the tournaments should go on as long as they are adhering to DHEC guidelines and CDC standards.
The CDC states on its website that “full competition” between “teams from different geographic areas” presents the highest risk for spreading COVID-19. It also labels basketball as a “close-contact” sport. However, the National Federation of State High School Associations considers basketball at moderate risk for spreading the coronavirus.
County councilman Roddey called the risk of such tournaments “huge.”
“At some point, this city and these tournament organizers will have to evaluate the risk of, ‘Do we need to continue to put these on at the risk of someone getting sick, getting ill and possibly dying from COVID?’” he said. “That’s a tough position to be in.”
This story was originally published August 5, 2020 at 7:57 AM.
.jpeg)