Crooked Road drives rural visits

A study released yesterday suggests Virginia is succeeding in its five-year effort to turn mountain music into moolah and bluegrass into greenbacks.

The Crooked Road, a state-marketed string of 28 musical venues and attractions in Southwest Virginia, has a total economic impact on the mountainous region of about $23 million per year, the analysis found.

The study, conducted by Sustainable Development Consulting International LLC of Lebanon, estimated that direct spending by visitors along the Crooked Road in fiscal year 2008 totaled $12.9 million, and that the road has created the equivalent of 445 full-time jobs since its inception in 2003.

"The Crooked Road is finding success in its mission, and we really need to keep pushing it and marketing it to the region," said Jonathan Romeo, executive director of the road. He added that the state and local governments have spent $1 million on marketing the Crooked Road since 2006.

As governor, Mark R. Warner worked to create Virginia's Heritage Music Trail, as the Crooked Road is officially known, as a way to jumpstart tourism in the area. Yesterday, U.S. Sen.-elect Warner issued a statement in which he said he is proud of the road's success and looks forward to finding other ways to highlight the area's culture.

According to the report disclosed yesterday at a press conference in Galax, communities along the 10-county stretch of venues have experienced a significant boost in tourism spending and business development since the road's creation.

The Crooked Road winds 253 miles, from Rocky Mount in Franklin County to the Breaks Interstate Park in Dickenson County.

In Floyd County, spending on hotels, motels and bed-and-breakfasts jumped 90 percent from 2003 to 2007, according to the report, while similar spending in Galax jumped 232 percent.

In fiscal 2008, about 264,000 people visited the venues, which include the Floyd Country Store, the Rex Theater in Galax, the Carter Family Fold in Hiltons and the Ralph Stanley Museum in Clintwood.

The study found that the state gets more than $400,000 in wage and sales-tax benefits annually from the Crooked Road. The state spends $70,000 a year to support the Crooked Road's administration.
Contact Rex Bowman at (540) 344-3612 or .