Seminole County advances $100 million, 172,000-square-foot events center amid soft tourism revenue

Seminole County officials are pressing forward with plans for a Centralflorida-reported $100 million, 172,000-square-foot indoor events complex sited near Orlando Sanford International Airport to bolster flat tourist-tax receipts and sports tourism. Orlando Sentinel coverage on Feb. 17, 2026 noted county leaders are advancing the proposal as visitor counts have remained stagnant.

Danny Trosset, Seminole’s tourism division manager, framed the project as a growth lever for event business: “The indoor complex will take Seminole County to the next level,” and he added, “As you can see, the [tourism] forecast is flat. We have to find creative ways to right the plateau. And the indoor sports complex is going to allow us to bring in new visitors and new events.” Centralflorida’s reporting lists intended uses including basketball and volleyball tournaments, graduations and large gatherings.

The county’s tourism revenue picture is mixed. Orlando Sentinel reported Seminole’s 5% tourist bed tax produced about $7.2 million last year after a 7% jump, but officials project a $200,000 decline in collections this year after hotel occupancy dipped to about 70% in 2025. Centralflorida’s coverage says officials expect a new Seminole County Tourism Improvement District fee of $1.75 per night at larger hotels to generate roughly $3.1 million this fiscal year; Centralflorida also reports county planners anticipate combining that TID revenue with existing bed-tax receipts and potential concession income to help pay for the new indoor center.

County sports infrastructure has been a proven draw: the Boombah Sports Complex off East Lake Mary Boulevard near Sanford airport opened in 2016 and, according to Orlando Sentinel, hosted 46 events last fiscal year that brought 99,136 visitors and generated 14,197 hotel bookings. WKMG community coverage noted, “The Boombah Sports Complex near Sanford’s Airport brings in millions of dollars in revenue every year when players and families pack the facility. All of those people end up staying in and spending money in Seminole County.”

Seminole’s broader fiscal context is laid out in the FY25 Adopted Budget, which forecasts revenue growth of 0.4% and marks the first budget in three years without ARPA grant revenues. The county budget also allocates $3.4 million of Tourism Funds for replacement of field turf at the County Sports Complex and identifies Public Safety, Water & Sewer, Solid Waste and Transportation as 73% of total operating and capital expenditures.

Local tax policy changes intersect with the events plan. WKMG reported the county commission approved a 0.5 millage increase to 15.3177 for FY25-26 and published comparative millage figures for nearby counties. A county official identified as Herr defended the adjustments: “We made careful adjustments to ensure that essential services remain reliable and sustainable, including modest updates to local taxes that had not been touched in 16 years,” and added, “These adjustments were spread across multiple revenue sources to avoid placing the burden solely on property owners.” Herr also noted, “Independent data shows from fiscal year 2025 that we rank in the lower third of the state’s 67 counties for property millage,” and “We continue to rank below the state average and many neighboring counties.”

Key specifics remain unsaid in public materials: Centralflorida describes the project site only as “near Orlando Sanford International Airport,” Orlando Sentinel reported the county is advancing plans on Feb. 17, 2026, and neither outlet provides a parcel address, formal commission authorization for construction, bond or financing paperwork, a construction timeline, or detailed operating-cost projections. County officials point to the 5% bed tax, the $1.75 TID fee and concession income as the revenue strategy, while local budget documents and press reports show the county balancing modest tax increases and a constrained FY25 revenue forecast as it moves toward making the indoor complex a reality.