«I fear that, as has happened to him on other occasions, the Mayor Melucci took a blunder. In fact, between 2022 and 2023, the percentages of arrivals and presences in Taranto, compared to the entire Puglia region, decreased and not increased as the Mayor says.”
The controversy over the numbers produced by the catamaran regatta reignites. Just in recent days, Mayor Melucci had spoken about 25 thousand attendances in the days of the event of an economic impact on the territory of beyond 6 million euros. Figures that are contradicted by the data provided by the city councilor Gianni Livianoaccording to which «the SailGp effect is at best null (in reality unfortunately a waste of money), or, wanting to be ironic about it, even pejorative».
«It is in fact true – says Liviano – that between 2022 and 2023 there was an increase in arrivals in Taranto (i.e. people who came to our city). We passed from 84,247 in 2022 to 98,227 in 2023 with an increase in absolute value of 13,980 units (for a percentage equal to 16.59%). This increase in arrivals, however, is decidedly lower than the increase suffered by the entire Region which grew by approximately 25% (it went from 4,261,001 arrivals in 2022 to 5,344,230 arrivals in 2023). Therefore, the increase in tourists that the city of Taranto had between 2022 and 2023 is clearly in percentage terms inferior compared to that suffered by the entire Region”.
«If in fact – explains the municipal councilor – in 2022 out of 100 tourists who came to Puglia in 2022: 1.98 (about 2) passed through Taranto, in 2023 out of 100 tourists who came to Puglia from Taranto 1 passed, 83%. So we passed from 1.98% to 1.83 out of 100. Compared to the number of overnight stays in the accommodation facilities of Taranto, however, in the year 2022 in Taranto there were 279,852 overnight stays which, commensurate with the overall number of overnight stays that there were in that year in all the Apulian facilities, (15,814,230) represents in percentage 1.76%. In the year 2023 in Taranto there were 294,034 overnight stays which, when compared to the overall number of overnight stays in all Apulian facilities (18,927,872), represent 1.55%. So even in this case there is an increase in absolute values (14,182 more nights) compared to the overall number of overnight stays in Puglia there is even a decrease in percentage value (from 1.76% in 2022 to 1.55% in 2023)”.
«Wanting to go into even more detail – continues the councilor – in the whole of Puglia there was an increase in overnight stays in accommodation facilities of 19.97% between 2022 and 2023 and instead in Taranto the increase was 5 .06% (therefore a quarter of the increase of the entire Region). The truth is therefore not what the Mayor told, namely that SailGP would have increased tourist presences in Taranto. The truth is that being the number of tourists who came to Puglia increased, some of them (in a negligible percentage and in any case decidedly lower than the increase of the entire Region) came to Taranto. To put it bluntly, the percentages of arrivals and presences between 2022 and 2023, compared to the overall number of tourists who came to Puglia and who stayed overnight, even decreased.”
In recent months, Liviano had already refuted the enthusiasm of Palazzo di Città by using the proceeds for the tourist tax. An argument that he now relaunches: «In fact, the Municipality of Taranto collected 20,560 euros in tourist tax in the month of June 2023, 22,960 euros in the month of July, 27,739.50 euros in the month of August and in the month of September 13,781 euros. Therefore in the month of September (the period in which the SailGp took place) the collection of the tourist tax was significantly lower compared to the other summer months. This means that SailGp has not produced any type of direct tourism in our city. It could happen that a few people seeing the city on television thanks to the images of SailGp decide in the future to come to Taranto, but there was no direct tourism, in fact the takings in September were less than half of those in August and also lower than June and July.”
