Granite Shoals plans to capitalize on 2024 eclipse by renting RV spaces
Quarry Park in Granite Shoals is expected to house about 200 recreational vehicles for the April 8, 2024, solar eclipse. The city just approved renting out RV spots at $500 each for the celestial event. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
Hundreds of thousands of visitors are expected to descend on the Highland Lakes for a rare total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, and the city of Granite Shoals is getting ready. The City Council approved a proposal from City Manager Peggy Smith and Fire Chief Tim Campbell to rent out roughly 200 recreational vehicle spaces on city property at $500 for a four-day stay — April 5-9 — which would net Granite Shoals about $100,000. The eclipse happens around midday on April 8, which is a Monday.
“We’re just getting everything lined up and rolling right now, but as a city, we need to plan for (the eclipse) and make sure we’re prepared to take care of our employees and citizens,” Campbell told the council during its regular meeting on Tuesday, June 13.
Granite Shoals is just a few miles from the eclipse’s “path of totality,” or the centerline of the moon’s shadow, which will offer the longest exposure to the event at four minutes and 22 seconds. Campbell has been participating in eclipse preparedness meetings across the nation and shared some staggering statistics with the Granite Shoals council.
The current estimate on the number of eclipse-specific visitors to Central Texas is 300,000 to 1 million with up to 44,000 additional vehicles on local highways. To compare, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates the population of Burnet County at about 51,000 people. The combined population of Burnet, Llano, Blanco, and Lampasas counties is about 106,000.
Smith explained that the city of Granite Shoals had previously considered hosting an eclipse festival, but the idea was scrapped when the magnitude of the event became apparent.
“We don’t want out-of-towners to come and overwhelm our facilities to where our citizens can’t utilize them,” she explained.
In their research, Smith and Campbell found that other small cities with massive influxes of visitors from solar eclipses had to deal with visitors not respecting private property.
They agreed to offer RV parking spots as a low-maintenance and easy-to-manage way of bringing in money for the city. With the council’s approval on Tuesday, the city will begin marketing the spots and accepting non-refundable $500 payments. The RVs will be parked in site-specific spaces in and around Quarry Park at 2221 N. Phillips Ranch Road.
As of now, Granite Shoals has no plans to set up additional utilities, sell concessions, or offer services to the visitors on the city’s behalf. Councilors tossed around the idea of creating eclipse T-shirts or hats to sell but made no decisions.
Campbell and Smith warned that local grocery stores and gas stations would likely run out of goods in the days leading up to the eclipse. They also noted that the expected $100,000 in revenue would be necessary to help cover the expected overtime and preparation costs associated with managing eclipse traffic.
“This event, no doubt, is going to have an impact on our community and we’ve got to be prepared for that,” Campbell said.