GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Local businesses are hoping Paul McCartney fans spend plenty of their money while in town for his performance at Lambeau Field next June.
Brad Toll, President of the Greater Green Bay Conventions and Visitors Bureau, thinks the rock legend will have quite the financial influence.
“We expect the [economic] impact to be somewhere around $6 million,” he says.
The McCartney concert announcement on Tuesday morning is continuing the “every other year” pattern of big musical acts performing at Lambeau Field, with Billy Joel in 2017 and Kenny Chesney in 2015.
If those past concerts are any sort of indication, out-of-town fans won’t be sticking around as long as they would for a Packers game.
“A home game typically is a two-night stay,” says Toll. “We found that the concerts, historically, have been a one-night stay.”
Whether here for only one night, or two, or even longer, those individuals are expected to spend money throughout the Green Bay area.
“We may have some folks that come in Friday and spend the day enjoying our city, and a number of our attractions, shopping in some of our shops and enjoying our restaurants,” he explains.
The experience should also serve to cement Lambeau Field as not only an American football mecca but an iconic venue for multiple events.
“People a lot of times think of us as football only and certainly Lambeau Field is able to host a variety of events,” he says.
For Toll, the greater Green Bay area has never been better equipped to host an event of this magnitude.
“Green Bay has so much to offer, the entire metro area, and we’ll be able to feature a lot of that in 2019,” he explains.
Some notable amenities that will be utilized include the Lodge Kohler, which opened in 2017, and the Hotel Northland, which is expected to open very soon.
“Years back, prior to Lodge Kohler and Hotel Northland, we didn’t have a four-star hotel in our community,” says Toll. “We’ve got a great package already of lodging properties, but certainly adding that tier into the mix makes the whole product better.”
Tickets for the McCartney concert go on sale December 10 at 10 AM and American Express® Card Members can get theirs starting Wednesday.
Tickets will be available via Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000.
