WESTFIELD From youth tournaments to professional events, sports are playing a growing role in Hamilton Countys economy and community identity.

It truly has changed the game in Hamilton County, said Westfield Economic Development Director Janele Fairman.

Fairman said the opening of Grand Park nearly a decade ago turned former farmland into a destination that now draws about five million visitors each year.

Most of the land that Grand Park is currently situated on was farmland. And this was really a very small town, she said. As a result, were really seeing a boom of investment along State Road 32, along 191st Street and everything in between.

Carl Daniels with the Hamilton County Sports Authority said that sports tourism continues to make a major financial impact.

Last year that sport

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