Bucks officials made their new arena and entertainment district a major selling point to the NBABUCKS
The Bucks and Milwaukee officials are "making a full-court press to land the NBA All-Star Game," according to James Nelson of the MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL. The Bucks are shooting for '22 or '23 -- their new $524M arena "opens this fall." Bucks Senior VP & Chief Revenue Officer Ted Loehrke said that there are "obstacles to overcome, including concern that the area doesn't have enough top-tier hotel rooms available for the well-heeled crowd that comes to such an event." He added that during a visit by NBA officials last month, local leaders "emphasized that Milwaukee has successfully hosted other events that draw thousands of visitors" like the MLB All-Star Game. They "showed off the new arena" as well as the Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panther Arena and Wisconsin Center District convention space, which are "important parts of the Bucks' bid." Wisconsin Center District CEO Marty Brooks and Bucks President Peter Feigin said that the weather in Milwaukee "won't hurt the city's chances." Loehrke said that the hotel room issue "was a concern, but one that can be overcome." He added that the league requires the local market to have 6,000 hotel rooms and "much of them must be 'four-star' quality." Loehrke: "We can get to the raw number, but maybe some of the quality isn't there" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 2/7).
