LOS ANGELES - Ready for a whole lot of visitors to LA during Super Bowl LVI festivities? The president of the Super Bowl Host Committee Kathy Schloessman is expecting "way north of 100,000 people."
"It really isn’t about the 70,000 people that will be in the stadium," said Schloessman.
The host committee president adds that’s a conservative estimate.
Tourism like that, she says, is good for business, restaurants and hotels across Southern California.
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Does it mean thousands or tens of thousands of rental cars may be added to our already congested freeway traffic?
"Most people who come will use ride share or use public transportation," said Schloessman. "They won’t rent a car necessary. Some people will but not everybody will."
Officials hope that will be the case
There is a big upside to such a tsunami of tourists with fat wallets flooding into the region, which includes hundreds of thousands of dollars in economic impact.
A turnaround from the world of our pandemic economy. Anyone here during Super Bowl XVII at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena may remember fears of bad traffic never materialized. So here’s to hoping!
But 100,000 people?
"At least at a minimum, Hal," says Dan Skeoh with the LA Convention and Tourism Board.
How do you keep that economic enthusiasm going on the days after the Super Bowl?
"People from all over the world are seeing Los Angeles being put on center stage. So that helps brand our destination not just super bowl week but for months and months to come," Skeoh said.
Way before that is Super Bowl LVI and, as officials say, "north of 100,000" people are coming to visit us.
"The majority of the people that are coming to Los Angeles are not going to the game," said ESPN radio host Arash Markazi. "If you’re one of the lucky ones – 70,000 people – that’s great, but the majority of the people coming to Los Angeles – they’re coming for the parties, they’re coming for the events, they’re coming to enjoy themselves."
You can see more of our Super Bowl In Depth special on our sister station KCOP Channel 13 at noon this Sunday, February 6.
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