Guest Editorial: Barrett-Jackson Is Key To Scottsdale’s Tourism And Brand; Let’s Not Jeopardize That

By Recker McDowell —

Barrett-Jackson 2020 is in full swing in Scottsdale with more 1,950 luxury and vintage cars on the auction block.

Barrett-Jackson is one of the signature events for Scottsdale. The auction puts Scottsdale in an international spotlight and feeds into the city’s tourism and economic brand.

Barrett-Jackson is the king of Scottsdale’s car auction, helping attract tourists and furthers Scottsdale’s brand as high-end luxury market.

The latter has also seen the likes of Versace, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Neiman Marcus and Prada to land stores at Scottsdale Fashion Square and its new luxury wing.

Barrett-Jackson is also one of the drivers at WestWorld of Scottsdale. The city managed events center has a $183.6 million economic benefit for Arizona, hosts close to 917,000 visitors a year, according to a study last year by Arizona State University.

Events such as Barrett-Jackson help create 2,670 jobs at WestWorld.

Scottsdale voters approved important investments at WestWorld in November through the approval of three city bond questions. Those improvements and repairs will help WestWorld keeping hosting tourism driving events such as Barrett-Jackson and equestrian shows. WestWorld is also the only U.S. venue in the running to host to the Federation Equestre Internationale World Championships in 2022.

With all that in mind, the Scottsdale City Council, city planners and the community at large should make sure we continue to invest in WestWorld and support its events.

Scottsdale also needs to make sure it is protecting its brand by not allowing new developments that might hurt WestWorld and key events such as Barrett-Jackson with traffic congestion or encroachments.