Everyone’s buzzing over the influx of visitors that Super Bowl LIX will bring to New Orleans.
It’s not just folks from Philadelphia and Kansas City–there’ll be people bussing, flying, driving, and sailing in from all over the world. But when it comes down to it, only 100,000 people are expected to visit the city.
Of course, 100,000 is a lot of bodies. But when you compare it to how many people will be watching, the word only applies because over 200,000 million folks will tune in to watch the game with our city serving as the setting.
At the end of the day, if you live in the greater New Orleans area, you’re going to have a complicated relationship with tourism. But fundamentally, we need tourism to thrive and keep our city and culture alive and well.
It’s a big moment for this city. Especially in the wake of the Bourbon Street terror attack, there might be a lot of people out in the world skeptical about visiting New Orleans. That’s why our ability to project a positive image matters so much. And how well we do it will have ramifications for years to come.
People watching will see a thriving, functioning, beautiful city. Not only will they see that we’ve weathered many storms, but also that we can bounce back safer and better after great tragedy. It’s our chance to control the narrative, rather than a category 5 hurricane, a snowstorm, or some twisted radical who plots to drive his truck down Bourbon Street.
The effort to prepare our town has been massive, with many stakeholders invested in making sure this city shines by the time people pour into our streets.
Michael Hecht, CEO of GNO Inc. is a regular here on my show and a leader in the effort to get NOLA ready. He explained what's going on behind the scenes in this final push before the curtains get pulled back and the cameras broadcast the state of our city to the rest of the world.
“We’re in the red zone, and we’re ready for the tush push,” said Michael Hecht.
“There's stuff going on in the CBD. Gerard is getting finished with some asphalt,” Hecht says. “The Hardrock collapsed site which is at Rampart and Canal, that's getting finished up. The lights are getting turned back on in the French Quarter, there's some work getting finished up with the sidewalks on Bourbon Street. Charters, Nichols, Ursuline, and Saint Phillips are already done. Then there’s the asphalt paving on South Claiborne, that’s critical because one of the teams is going to practice at Tulane.”
It’s a huge opportunity to once again show the world why New Orleans is one of its cultural capitals. Hecht explains, “These beautification elements might end up being one of the things that distinguish this Super Bowl from the other ten because they're going to be a lasting element of amplification of the culture that we should enjoy for 10-20 years to come.”
Beatification is one thing, but safety obviously remains a top concern. Governor Landry announced today that the French Quarter will establish a “French Quarter Enhanced Security Zone” which includes checkpoints, bans on coolers and ice chests, and restricts vehicle traffic for an 8-block span.
I asked Michael Hecht about how he sees security shaping up as all these changes go into effect. He told me, “I've got to imagine that it's basically going to be pedestrianized, the first (eight) blocks of Bourbon, Royal, and Chartres. Fox is going to be broadcasting from somewhere down on Bourbon Street, that's certainly going to be closed the whole time… I think that you should consider the upper part of the corridor kind of a no-go zone for the immediate term."
However, although security is the number one priority, it’s not taking away from the fact that New Orleans is set again to host yet another huge party.
Hecht put it right when he said, “It's slightly manic, but it's a very special feeling, which I've only ever felt in New Orleans at the beginning of a festival. And that's that's really what it feels like.”