Green Bay-Corey Behnke was a 7-year-old who visited a game in the previous season in Green Bay Packers with his grandfather when he pointed to the houses on the other side of the street from Lambeau Field and swore to live there at some point.
Now he has one of the best places that can view the spectacle of the NFL spectacles of the NFL.
The annual pilgrimage of the NFL design in cities in the league will come in Green Bay next week with all the splendor that comes from the home of the only franchise company in public.
“I think it will be iconic, the other designs are,” said Behnke, now President of the area of the neighborhood association next to Lambeau Field.
As soon as the NFL started with its design across the country almost a decade ago, Packers' officers wondered what it would need to bring the event to Green Bay. They found that they would never get a super bowl because of the small population of Green Bay and a cold weather in February.
The hosting of a design would be the next best.
The possibility that the President/CEO of Packers, Mark Murphy, introduced it before so long, is now becoming reality when he is preparing for his retirement this summer. While the construction continues in connection with the design in the area around Lambeau, one of several signs on the subject of packers in the courtyards of houses on the other side of the street of the stadium contains the following message: “Design of dreams on Murphys”.
“We had seen how the draft grew and what it became, and knew what kind of effects he would have, not only on the local community of Green Bay, but the entire state,” said Murphy. “Since we are a team owned by the community, this is really one of our top priorities to return the community a bit. It will be the largest event in Green Bay.”
This is the challenge.
According to Nick Meisner, spokesman for Green Bay, the Green Bay area comprises around 320,000 people. The city itself has less than 110,000 inhabitants. If you bring the draft into a city of this size, obstacles through which the league officials did not have to worry about when the event took place in Chicago, Philadelphia and other large U -Bahn areas.
Green Bay has about 5,000 hotel rooms, a number that has up to 10,000 when Appleton is nearby. This means that many fans who see the design may have to stay in Milwaukee or Madison for a few hours, although many of them are already used to doing this for Packers home games.
“If people say: 'Can the city handle it, what does that mean?” Asked Behnke. “Do we have enough hotels? No, but we knew that. Has Wisconsin enough hotels? Yes, I think so.
“I think a lot of people (understand) the fact that it is a driver's event. People will drive here. But I also think that games are like that. … I think it is used to driving an hour and a half to get to Green Bay.”
The smaller population probably means a lower number of people in this design. Murphy said that a total participation of around 250,000 is expected, less than a third of the record amount of more than 775,000 who visited the draft last year in Detroit. The crowd numbers are measured by adding the presence figures for each of the three days of the draft. Therefore, a person who takes part in all three days is counted three times.
“The nice thing about the design is that you can adapt it to any environment in which you are,” said Jon Barker, Senior Vice President of the NFL for global event operations. “There will always be challenges with every design that you have to overcome, but there are also great opportunities.”
These opportunities focus on concentrating on the tradition and history of a place that Behnke calls the “best football city of America”.
For example, one of the largest rituals of the NFL ritual of the training camp in Green Bay takes place in Green Bay, as the players borrow children's bicycles to drive from the changing room to the practice field. Packers officials referred to this tradition in their design offer by sending a bicycle with a packers theme to the office of the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
“We had our draft pitch in video form in the basket in the Packer -Bike,” said Gabrielle Dow, the Vice President of the Marketing and Fan.
Without giving away too much, Barker said that part of the opening on Thursday will include this bike tradition. A bicycle parade for children is planned for Saturday.
There are also other local connections. When the picks hear their names called in the first round, they will go through a walkway with works of art by Ike Wynter in Milwaukee, which has made each of its furniture that has been collected throughout the state. Former Wisconsin Badgers such as Jonathan Taylor, Joe Thomas, Tim Krumrie and James White will announce picks on the second and third days of design.
Lambeau Field will also play a central role in the design, although the extensive event surrounded millions of square foot around the stadium. Entry is free and television screens in the whole region can view fans, even if they are far from the stage and take up the NFL Draft Experience, a fan festival with games, exhibitions, activities and autograph sessions.
If a likely selection in the first round makes your entry into the red carpet on Thursday, you will go to the field, which is known for his nickname “Frozen Tundra”. The fans can go to the stadium to track the design on the huge scoreboard. The stage on which the picks are announced is located in a parking lot east of Lambeau Field.
“I think it will be a three -day commercial not only for Green Bay, but for the entire state,” said Murphy. “So many different things that are unique and special for Wisconsin will see that as part of it.”
It will also show how much growth has taken place in the area around Lambeau Field.
The Resch Expo, a 125,000 square meter complex east of the stadium, was opened in 2021 and serves as a green space for prospects. The NFL design experience takes place in Tittletown, a 45-hectare development west of Lambeau Field with offices, shops, restaurants and apartments.
“If these developments do not take place, I don't think we will get the draft,” said Meisner.
According to Beth Jones Schnese, Vice President for Marketing/Members of Grean Green Bay, for Wisconsin, for Wisconsin, and should have an economic impact of 20 million US dollars for Brown County and 90 million dollars for Wisconsin. She said that this corresponds to the amount that three packers generated by three packers at the weekend. It also means some inconvenience for residents with all road closures and traffic head pain.
On the other hand, this community is used to expanding on several weekends in the football season. This is just an oversized example.
Behnke knows that just as well as everyone else. His family has Packer's season tickets since Lambeau Field opened in 1957. He was born in Green Bay, about five years ago from Lambeau Field in all day and came along with the Cheeshead TV Packers fan.
He believes that the packers in the Green Bay community are deeply rooted in a way that differs from other cities that have several professional sports franchise companies. They are used to accommodating fans who consider to visit Lambeau Field as a bucket-list of object.
“I think as a steward and ambassador of the city, people take it very seriously,” said Behnke. “We are not only Wisconsin Nice or Minnesota Nice or Midwestern Nice. People understand that we have an obligation and responsibility towards the people who come here to show them a good time what they see on match days. I think that will only be extended.”
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