By Micah Davis
With the exodus of Olympic visitors tapering off, Utah economists and officials say the effects are both short and long-term.
According to a summary put out by the Governor''s Office of Planning and Budget, the Utah economy in total will see a $4.8 billion dollar output as a broad measure and result of the Olympics.
Chief economist for the Governor''s Office of Planning and Budget Neil Ashdown said in the midst of a national economic recession Utah had a shield protecting it.
'Without the Games we would have been feeling a more severe impact.' Ashdown said, emphasizing that while the rest of the national economy felt the effects of the recession, Utah benefited from the Olympics.
While Utah has been shielded somewhat, still the area of employment in service industries will see a slight slump in the next quarter and the following months.
'I think there will be a post Olympic slump for the quarter, and that happens with all Olympics, then we expect it to flatten out with moderate growth in the Utah economy,' Ashdown said.
In the past seven years there was an estimated 35,000 job years of employment created, with each job year representing one year of employment as all employment is averaged.
In addition, Utah''s economy will see a net revenue of $76 million in tax revenue to state and local governments.
Ken Jenson, senior economist for the Department of Workforce Services said much of the information concerning the true impact of the Games has yet to be calculated.
'There is a great deal of uncertainty as to how all of this is going to pan out, reports won''t come out until summer, right now all it is, is analysts approximating numbers for reports,' Jensen said.
Jenson also stated when reports come out, January will show an increase in employment, with February and March sloping downward.
While Utah economists believe there may not be much immediate benefit to Utah''s economy there will be long-term benefits in tourism and business.
David Buhler, member and chair of the Salt Lake City Council, said in addition to the economic benefits, he believes Utah has benefited in other ways.
'One of the areas that should turn out well is our tourism and skiing industry,' Buhler said.
Buhler also mentioned that Utah''s image was not bad previous to the Games, but there has been a large improvement as a result of the exposure.
In a poll done by Valley Research of Salt Lake City, 92 percent of respondents said that Utah''s impression on the world improved.
'The exposure is very good, we have more of a positive image,' Buhler said, emphasizing that Utah has now become a larger dot on the world''s radar screen.