New Orleans Super Bowl prep is down to punch list items
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Ever since Gov. Jeff Landry tapped him to wrangle the public, private and nonprofit groups racing to get the city ready for Super Bowl LIX, Greater New Orleans Inc. CEO Michael Hecht has been slowly but surely checking items off a 500-plus item to-do list.
Why it matters: The entire project was upended by the New Year's Day attack on Bourbon Street — but the NFL has said it stands by New Orleans, and the city now has just a month to be ready to host tens of thousands of NFL fans.
State of play: New Orleans hosts the big game Feb. 9, but official events begin Monday, Feb. 3. Hecht tells Axios New Orleans he expects about 90% of his original list will be done by game-time.
- "Our resolute focus remains on completing infrastructure and beautification projects, so that in February the world sees a New Orleans that shines as brightly as ever," Hecht says.
Zoom in: The 10% or so remainder on his list, he says, will be "ticky-tacky stuff," like an unfinished bit of sidewalk here or a bit of graffiti there.
- And all that unfinished business should primarily be on the edges of high-traffic areas for Super Bowl crowds.
- "I think we'll be in pretty darn good shape, all things considered," he says.
Behind the scenes: Hecht has been checking in with city and state leaders at least weekly for months and funneling what he learns over to consultants with The Tobler Company.
- Those consultants are keeping tabs on a massive project management timeline that essentially serves as a birds' eye view of the city's preparation.
- In other words, it's a way to make sure construction crews don't get in each other's way by showing up on the same sidewalk at the same time to try to finish two different projects.
Yes, but: All that planning can only take you so far.
- At the end of 2024, prior to the attack, Hecht said the things that kept him up at night can't be check-listed to completion. The wildcards in his deck, he said then, are the intricately complicated problems raised by managing the city's unhoused population, and crime.
To that end, a New Orleans police spokesman said last week that the department has increased its security presence, which "will continue daily, not just during large events."
- The department also plans to share details about additional safety measures, such as road closures, during major events like Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9 and Mardi Gras, but won't include "specific details about operational plans" in an effort to protect the integrity of our security efforts."