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The Myrtle Beach Sports Center was renamed four years ago to the day, April 3, to the John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center. The name change honored the late mayor who played a huge role in its construction.

On Thursday, March 27, the John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center marked its 10-year anniversary. City leaders joined together to celebrate the facility and its positive impact on the community.

Terri Springs, wife of the late John T. Rhodes, spoke fondly of Rhodes' journey with youth sports, and the role he played in advancing girls and women's basketball. Springs said every other year, he traveled with the Team USA junior basketball team to Germany, coaching the nation鈥檚 top ten leaders in international competitions and brought home the winning ribbon six times.

She said when Rhodes was invited to join the McDonald鈥檚 All-American selection committee, a very elite group of basketball minds, Rhodes gave head of committee John Wooden an ultimatum: Rhodes would join the committee on the condition that a girls tournament be created. The committee said yes.

鈥淛ohn鈥檚 legacy isn鈥檛 in the buildings or the titles he accomplished along the way. It鈥檚 in advancing our young athletes in their chosen sports. It鈥檚 helping them to earn scholarships and an education. That was John鈥檚 dream,鈥� Springs said. 鈥淪o, today as we mark ten years, let鈥檚 celebrate not just a building or a man, but please celebrate a vision. A vision of family, of community and of opportunity.鈥�

The facility contributes $25 million annually to the local economy, according to Evan Elef, partner with Sport Facility Companies.

鈥淥ver the last 10 years we have exceeded $250 million worth of economic impact from this building, so more than 25 million per year. That鈥檚 difficult to do,鈥� Elef said.

The sports center was an early success in the then-budding sports tourism scene in Myrtle Beach, and since then, city leaders have continued to expand efforts into the industry.

The Community Playmaker Summit: SC celebrated the area鈥檚 sports tourism growth over the last decade with speeches and panel discussions last week. A panel of city leaders discussed the contributions the sports facility has brought to the city over the last decade.

鈥淚 will admit, my city manager will attest to this, I do not know a lot about sports. I get teased often about that, but one thing I understand is economic impact, and that is what this sports center has on the city of Myrtle Beach,鈥� Myrtle Beach mayor Brenda Bethune said at the summit.

She also mentioned a potential investment into another sports facility, which was discussed at the city鈥檚 annual budget retreat in March. Leaders discussed 21 acres neighboring the John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center as a potential location for a new facility.

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鈥淲e are going to be looking city wide, not just in the 21 acres, not just in this facility, but we are looking city wide,鈥� Bethune said. 鈥淲hat can we do that is bigger, bolder, better than what we are currently doing?鈥�

Rhodes Sports Center general manager Mark Beale said the condition of the facility has been well maintained over the last decade and continues to impress incoming event coordinators, parents and coaches. He said the facility has hosted events ranging from basketball to volleyball to archery.

Bethune said the people managing the facility 鈥� like Beale 鈥� are essential to visitors鈥� perception of Myrtle Beach.

鈥淭hey make the experience in the city special, welcoming and inviting and encourages people to return,鈥� she said.

The collaboration between facility management and the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce is key to the success of expanding sports tourism, Bethune said. She added being creative with the space is also important, hosting a variety of events.

On Friday, April 4, the Rhodes Sports Center is hosting bare knuckle boxing.

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Former Myrtle Beach city manager John Pedersen said the last 20 years of athletics-related initiatives the city has pushed have been an effort to promote the economy in the off season.

Pedersen said when he arrived in February 2002 the streets were virtually empty, there was very little going on in shoulder seasons, the winter was dead, and many businesses closed up and didn鈥檛 reopen until the spring time. He said businesses just tried to 鈥渉ang on鈥� until summer seasons when people started coming to town again.

The city, Pedersen said, had a fiscal asset in the south end with the decommissioned U.S. Air Force base and an incredible partner in the Myrtle Beach redevelopment commission. So, in the early 2000s, council recognized the opportunity to use a portion of that property to attract people in the off-season.

The decision was made to include an athletics facility in the heart of The Market Common, now known as the Colonel Thomas 鈥楤uddy鈥� Styers Athletic Complex which includes seven full-sized, multipurpose fields and two youth fields.

鈥淭hose fields really exceeded all the initial projections of income, visitation and impact on our economy. So, it was really a huge success right from the get go,鈥� Pedersen said, adding that the success of the athletic complex leveraged the approval and development of Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium.

The Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce found sports tourism made a $185 million economic impact to the city in 2024.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 exciting, that鈥檚 big. We are always looking for ways to expand what we are doing and another huge opportunity for sports tourism in this city by doing so,鈥� Bethune said.