Celebration of Community

The city of Indianapolis was awarded the 2012 Super Bowl on Tuesday, on a fourth secret ballot vote of NFL owners. Super Bowl XLVI will be played Feb. 5, 2012 at Lucas Oil Stadium, but the new home of the Indianapolis Colts is not what ultimately swayed league officials and owners to award the biggest game in sports to a cold-weather city for just the fourth time in NFL history. In fact, Indianapolis landed the Super Bowl via its plans to transform an Eastside neighborhood in a massive revitalization project. A $9 million athletic facility at Tech High School will serve as a centerpiece practice facility for the Super Bowl, but in turn will be handed over to the IPS schools following the event's conclusion. The Tech football stadium will be turned into an IPS district field that will be available to other schools, with an enclosed area adaptable for other sports such as soccer, volleyball and basketball. "That's a facility that will be used for many generations by people who play sports," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said following the decision. "I think that's a great thing for the NFL and the community." The redevelopment will begin in an area where many residents are below the federal poverty level. The legacy project will be entirely privately funded. The city has already begun improvements on sidewalks, sewers and streets in the area. While area residents and the IPS, which is under a revitalization project of its own under Eugene White, will certainly benefit from the expansive and luxurious facility, the Central Indiana area stands as perhaps an even bigger winner in the economics category. The Super Bowl is expected to generate and economic impact of at least $100 million and up to $ 20 million in tax revenue. A Super Bowl Village will host tens of thousands of visitors. Though Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard noted that the city will have to play $1 million to $2 million for public safety support, the city does not stand to find itself in the position of Glendale, Ariz. The Phoenix suburb reported to the NFL that it lost money after hosting this year's Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and New York Giants due to the lack of hotels and restaurants in its immediate cityscape, thus forcing Glendale to share the large economic impact over a larger region. In landing the Super Bowl, joining only Minneapolis (1992) and Detroit (1982 and 2006) as the only cold-weather cities to host the NFL championship, Indianapolis and its surrounding communities can celebrate their efforts - and their investment. Central Indiana counties raised taxes in order to build Lucas Oil Stadium. Come February 2012, the Super Bowl will be in Indianapolis - and it will be a celebration of community.