Hosting the Super Bowl: Credit or Debit?

This past weekend I had the opportunity to travel to Indianapolis, Indiana, which recently put its name on the map as the host of the 2012 NFL Super Bowl. While walking through Downtown Indy, I gazed at the leftover signs and decorations outside of residences and storefronts, and wondered what a city would need to do to accommodate around 150,000 visitors. During my trip there, everyone coined Indy as an “underrated city.” Therefore, it was crucial for Indy to create a pleasant experience for its tourists that would make this Mid-Western city globally competitive.

Indianapolis prepared in several ways. First, the City constructed a new airport terminal in 2008 that was built about 16 miles away from Downtown. The new terminal was sited in a more efficient location than the old, allowing for more airlines and connections to be made at Indianapolis International. Built with energy efficiency in mind, in November of 2011 it also became the nation’s first LEED certified airport.

Next, Indy accommodated visitors by creating a compact Downtown and allocating it as the center of the Super Bowl. In 2008 the Lucas Oil Stadium was built about six blocks away from the Soldier’s and Saint’s Monument, the symbolic center of the City, giving it a “very walkable” Walk Score of 72. It was purposefully built to be within walking distance of Indy’s hotels, restaurants, and cultural district. While one would think that a stadium built right near the center of the Downtown would be distracting, the Lucas Oil Stadium fits surprisingly well with the fabric. This is mainly due to its brick design in that it looks more like a large building than a stadium. Additionally, creating a walkable Downtown was the formation of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, an urban bike and pedestrian path connecting the five downtown cultural districts. Indianapolis’s walkable Downtown urged Forbes to coin Indianapolis as the Super Bowl XLVI's “Real Winner."

While many Downtown businesses reaped the benefits of the Super Bowl crowd, businesses in outlying districts, such as Broad Ripple and Fountain Square, suffered as tourists and visitors concentrated Downtown. Additionally, the City faced many costs to hold the Super Bowl. In the planning phases, the City estimated that it would spend anywhere from  $7.8 million to $8.2 million on Super Bowl expenses such as police overtime, trash pickup, new signs, safety vehicles and supplies, and temporary permits. Many experts say that many of the benefits of the Super Bowl may only be short-term. Additionally, while the Super Bowl allowed Indy to re-think its Downtown and walkability, there are still many problems it faces in connecting the rest of the city. Primarily, the City lacks a reliable mass transit system and during my stay there not once did we use public transportation.   The infrastructures in the East and West neighborhoods are dilapidated and the public education system has countless failing schools. While large events like the Super Bowl bring in revenue, tourism, a walkable Downtown and attention to the city, the question is, is it enough to solve the city’s larger problems that prevent it from becoming globally competitive? 

Guest Contributor: Natalie Eller

 

Comments

[Ricky]

Natalie, I appreciate the observation. Having written a similar blog on another sports-engrained city, Augusta, GA, I understand some of the issues you bring up. When a major sports event comes through a city, does it actually benefit? A lot of money comes into town for a few days, and just as quickly as it came, it is gone. I’m reminded especially of the Olympics, and the ridiculous amount (whether justified or not hundreds of millions of dollars is a lot) that cities spend on hosting them. I recently read that London is already worried about losing out financially on the deal, especially in light of the recent economic recession. Your question seems to be, is the publicity and the infrastructure development enough to warrant going into the red? Is this enough to be globally competitive?

I think the short answer is no. I would consider, however, how the city is prepared to leverage the event. For instance, I’m particularly thinking about Barcelona and the improvements it made preparing for the Olympic Games. If I recall correctly their roadway system improved dramatically and became a resource they continued to use in partnership with economic growth. Surely, they needed to redefine themselves as a global city and encourage innovation. However, it wasn’t simply “let’s build a whole lot of stadiums we will never use again”. The improvements, in my mind, were a more concerted effort to serve the city as well. The idea behind a more walkable Indianapolis holds that potential IF they can coordinate it with growth.

So how do you promote economic growth? Well I don’t really know. There are tons of theories surrounding it, and some work and others don’t. I’m not sure how that should play out for Indianapolis. I will say, however, that Barcelona was ready to enter the world stage when they hosted the Olympics. In other words, besides simply making their city look pretty they were prepared to advertise the global positioning of their economy for business interests attracted by the Games. I’d say a key to making big events like the Super Bowl or the Olympics then is not simply making the event enjoyable (as Indianapolis obviously did), but by coordinating for how the city can benefit economically 10 or 20 years beyond. This may require innovative partnerships or strategies to utilize publicity and investments, but I think cities can really benefit. I’m interested now to see if Indianapolis does. Thanks Natalie!