Quantify What Your Project Means for the Community and the Public Coffers

An economic and fiscal impact analysis quantifies what a project means for the community and the public coffers. The economic side measures direct, indirect and induced spending tied to construction and ongoing operations — typically reported as total output, jobs, labor income and visitor spending. The fiscal side measures the resulting tax revenues across city, county and state jurisdictions. Together, the two views give public officials, civic leaders and project sponsors a complete picture of what a venue, stadium, district or development generates for the surrounding economy.

Economic impact measures total dollars circulating through the economy — output, jobs, wages and visitor spending generated by a project. Fiscal impact measures the slice of that activity that flows back to government as tax revenue — sales tax, property tax, hotel/lodging tax, prepaid food tax, payroll tax and others depending on jurisdiction. Most projects need both. Economic impact tells the story for community and civic leaders; fiscal impact tells the story for the budget office and elected officials weighing public investment.

Independent impact analysis is most often commissioned when a project is seeking public funding, a tax increment financing district, a state tax credit, bond financing or any form of public-private partnership. Independent analysis is also valuable for civic groups, downtown councils and economic development agencies advancing redevelopment proposals, and for teams or operators making the case for new venues. Any project where the projected public benefit will be scrutinized publicly benefits from third-party validation.

Victus uses a multi-step methodology built on industry-standard tools. The work begins with gross direct spending estimates for both one-time construction and ongoing operations. Net direct spending is then calculated by accounting for displacement — the principle that local resident spending would otherwise circulate within the local economy. Net direct spending is then run through IMPLAN economic multipliers calibrated to the specific economic area (city, county, MSA, state) to estimate indirect and induced effects. Fiscal impacts are calculated separately, applying the relevant tax rates to the appropriate spending categories.

IMPLAN is the industry-standard input-output economic modeling software used by hundreds of municipalities, universities and consulting firms across the country to estimate economic impacts. It produces multiplier effects specific to each economic area — meaning a project in Kansas City uses different multipliers than the same project in Honolulu or Pinellas County. IMPLAN's credibility matters because it gives impact studies a defensible foundation when they reach council chambers, legislative hearings or public comment periods.

Most Victus impact studies project across a 30-year horizon for permanent venues, districts and major capital projects, presented in net present value terms. Shorter horizons (10 or 20 years) are sometimes used for projects with defined operating windows or specific funding instruments. Net present value framing matters because it allows public officials to compare long-term economic returns against the upfront public investment in a single, apples-to-apples figure. 

Gross direct spending includes all dollars associated with a project — including spending by local residents who would have spent that money elsewhere in the community anyway. Net direct spending is the incremental piece: dollars genuinely new to the economic area, typically from out-of-area visitors, new residents and new employees. Conservative impact analysis reports net spending rather than gross, because net is the figure that represents new economic activity the project brings to the community. 

A typical Victus engagement runs 8–12 weeks and includes project scoping and economic area definition, gross-to-net direct spending modeling for both construction and ongoing operations, IMPLAN economic multiplier modeling calibrated to each relevant jurisdiction, fiscal impact calculations across applicable tax categories and a final report formatted for public presentation. Many engagements also include peer review of operator-provided projections, comparable project benchmarking and presentation support during council, board or legislative hearings. 

Yes. Many of the highest-value impact engagements cover both the anchor venue and the surrounding development it activates — mixed-use districts, hotels, retail, residential and entertainment programming. Ancillary development analysis follows the same gross-to-net IMPLAN methodology, but with separate spending and visitor models for the residential, retail, restaurant, lodging and entertainment components. The result is a layered view of how the anchor project and the surrounding activation generate economic and fiscal impact together. 

Victus impact studies are built for public presentation from the start. Reports include clear methodology disclosures, IMPLAN sourcing, defensible spending assumptions and economic-area definitions that hold up under scrutiny. Many engagements include presentation support — appearing alongside clients at council meetings, board hearings or legislative committee testimony to explain methodology and answer questions. The goal is a study that supports the public conversation, not just the client's internal decision-making.