Florida and the Suncoast are setting new tourism records. Visit Florida reports that the Sunshine State welcomed almost 27 million visitors from July to September and 85 million during the first nine months of 2016. Governor Rick Scott’s goal is 115 million visitors by the end of the year and he says the state is on pace to achieve that. The benefits of the boost in tourism are being felt in Southwest Florida. Visit Sarasota County reported just last week that revenue from tourist development taxes during fiscal year 2016 totaled a record of more than 20-million dollars, up almost five percent from the year before.
