As Super Bowl 50 inches closer and closer by the day, the City of Santa Clara has been gearing up in an array of ways for the historic event, to be held February 7, 2016 at Levi’s Stadium.
Focused on beautifying the City, having painted the top of a water storage tank viewable by aircraft and helicopters, the City also approved several contracts to support events leading up to the big game.
At the July 14 City Council meeting, the Council voted unanimously 7-0 with no discussion to authorize contracts with event management companies – for a myriad of events scheduled and themed around the Super Bowl.
Among the contracts is a nearly half million-dollar contract ($499,832) with Caravents, Inc., for “event management services,” for the Super Community Celebration held at Santa Clara University. The contract includes all aspects of event management including pre-production, project management, event design and creative development, on-site management, technical and show direction, event rentals, decor, tenting, staging, video/audio projecting, lighting, rigging and electrical, design and printing, pertaining to an all-day event. Clients of Caravents have included Target, Samsung, Twitter, Abercrombie and Dior.
An additional amount not to exceed $763,565 was approved for the production of Super Community Black & Gold Ball by E2k Events & Entertainment (e2k). The Silicon Valley-based company has widespread experience in managing and producing NFL events, including the Levi’s Stadium ribbon cutting and stadium gala, Gold Rush, Sourdough Sam, 49ers FanFest events, NFL Pro Bowl parties and more. E2k will manage all aspects of event planning including pre-production and project management, event design and creative development, event production, technical and show direction. The budget includes allocations for invitations, decor, entertainment, player appearances, staging, food and beverage and souvenirs. Costs are expected to be recovered from the sale of approximate 700 tickets ranging from $250 to $1,500 and corporate sponsorships.
An amount not to exceed $300,000 was approved to host the Super Community Exhibit, which will be displayed at the Triton Museum of Art. The costs include the setup and teardown of the exhibit, transporting the exhibit, staffing of the exhibit, licensing fees and player appearances and autograph signings.
Super Bowl Related Events in the Mission City
Super Community Celebration at Santa Clara University
The Super Community Celebration will take place on Saturday, February 6, 2016, the day before Super Bowl 50. The event will feature a full day of “programming centered on the rich history of the Super Bowl and the City of Santa Clara.” Among the events will be Flavors of Santa Clara, in the Leavey Center parking lot, which will serve as the hub of the event featuring food, community music, local craft beers and a diverse array or regional wines. The Leavey Center will house the Pep Rally where guests will gather for autograph sessions with NFL greats and some of the interactive elements from the Gridiron Glory exhibit. Fan Experience at Stanton Soccer Field will allow guests to be a part of an “authentic fan experience that’s fun for the whole family,” while Bellomy Field will feature a Community Youth Zone designed at getting kids “active through sports.” A VIP Experience will take place at the Locatelli Center and a Celebrity Sweat Flag Football game will take place at Stevens Stadium, the site of the main stage that will host the culmination of the celebration with a concert and fireworks show.
Super Community Exhibit
The Super Community Exhibit will bring the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 5,000 square foot Gridiron Glory: The Best of the Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibit to the Triton Museum of Art. Gridiron Glory is the purported as the most extensive and comprehensive exhibition featuring America’s most popular sport to tour. Organized by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in association with NFL Films, the exhibit paints a panoramic view of the NFL’s history, bringing together an extraordinary collection of artifacts. The exhibit will be showcased January 18 through February 14, 2016 with a “reduced” exhibit through April 1. The exhibit features over 200 football mementos, ranging from award-winning photos, one-of-a-kind documents, interactive exhibits, historic NFL footage, the Vince Lombardi Trophy and more.
Super Community Black & Gold Ball
The Super Community Black & Gold Ball will be held in the Mission City Ballroom of the Santa Clara Convention center on January 8, 2016. The event will be “the premier Super Bowl 50 event featuring gourmet cuisine, signature entertainment and a star-studded guest list.” The dinner will focus on locally sourced farm-to-table ingredients while a formal awards program will held, as well as a live fundraising auction benefiting local non-profits. The evening would conclude with a live band and cameo celebrity guest artist appearance.
In addition to these major events, the kickoff for Super Bowl festivities in Santa Clara will be a special “black and gold tree lighting” on Dec. 4. During the event, an outdoor ice skating rink will open – which will be open through Feb. 7, 2016. Celebrity skaters, Santa’s Village and fireworks at Central Park will all be a part of the tree lighting event festivities.
A no-cost, producer-funded 5K/10K/Fun Run produced by Easy Day Sports will transpire on Jan. 31, 2016. The turn-key event will be held at no-cost to the City.
A public art installation will also grace the area, as the bronze statue Anything’s Possible by Bay Area artist Linda Serrao will be erected on the front side of the Tasman Parking Structure, adjacent to Levi’s Stadium. It will feature a life-size football player and youth. An unveiling and reception is tentatively scheduled for January 6, 2016.
A major concert and fireworks celebration will take place on January 31 at Mission College. Another exhibit, Center of What’s Possible Innovation Showcase is being planned, with a theme of Experience From Afar, where leading technology companies will demonstrate the future of technology, showcasing many new technologies with a STEM-based focus and outreach to youth.
Cost Recovery
According to the staff report, Kennedy Event Marketing (KEM), which was hired in Dec. 2014 to solicit sponsors for the festivities surrounding Super Bowl 50, approximately 60 companies have been contacted. KEM is “in discussions with 20 potential sponsors.” The City is “close to reaching agreement with a sponsor” for the Tree Lighting/Ice Rink and is also in discussions with potential sponsors for other events. “Interest seems to be building as event details are taking shape and companies begin to focus on the Super Bowl and their budgets for the latter part of 2015 and 1st quarter of 2016,” states the staff report.