Subject matter experts indicate that the direct economic benefi t of the arts and cultural activities in Spartanburg are beginning to be quantifi ed. Although the indirect (aesthetic, social and cultural) contributions of the arts and cultural activities in Spartanburg cannot be quantifi ed at this time, these contributions are obviously signifi cant. Intuitive understandings that the arts add signifi cantly to the quality of life in a community lead us to know that they are key to economic development of a community. The presence of the Chapman Cultural Center, for example, has brought a wide range of social and economic benefit to Spartanburg County that is diffi cult to measure. New residents are drawn to communities with wide cultural amenities, just as they are drawn to communities with good schools. The number of new residents to the Upstate who are drawn to Spartanburg County, in part, because of the Chapman Cultural Center, is unknown. Because cultural opportunities directly affect the status of other community indicators such as education, economy and viability, an assessment of the breadth and range of local cultural opportunities is viewed by subject matter experts as being a project that should be undertaken in the short term.

A growing body of studies demonstrates the positive economic benefi ts of the arts within communities; however, there have also been vigorous debates about the feasibility and effi cacy of economic analyses. Economic impact indicators, formulas and interpretation of data vary widely from study to study. The case for impact measurement, however, has become sufficiently robust in recent years, in terms of economic development, such that a number of models are beginning to emerge through a developing discipline of cultural economics. It is likely that this will lead to standardization of research methodology and establishment of a national framework for arts impact analysis.

There are two principal categories of the economic benefi ts of the arts:

• Direct economic benefi ts that result from the arts as an economic activity and include such measures as employment, tax revenues, and primary and secondary spending in local economies.

• Indirect economic benefi ts that result when individuals and employers are attracted to areas where the arts are available. Typically, particular classes of workers (skilled) and employers (high value-added) are those who are attracted to arts communities. Non-quantifiable economic benefi ts such as the general edification and education of the local population are also indirect economic benefits.