by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
As staff members of the Super Bowl Host Committee pack their bags for next week’s Super Bowl in San Diego, they do so knowing that the hotel room and cruise ship contracts are basically out their hands.
After several months of work and help from the Jacksonville & the Beaches Visitors & Convention Bureau and the local Hotel & Motel Association, it appears the 12,000 hotel rooms needed for the 2005 game have been secured. The Host Committee is also well on its way to reaching agreements with three different cruise lines to provide another 5,000-6,000 rooms.
“The NFL is finalizing negotiations with three or four cruise lines for five or six ships. Those negotiations are in the final stages,” said Heather Surface, director of communications for the Host Committee.
Late last year, the Host Committee hired Miami-based Landry & Kling to serve as a consultant/agent. Landry & Kling is currently negotiating with several of the NFL’s major Super Sponsors to determine exactly how many rooms they’ll need and which ships they will stay on. Surface said she expects those negotiations to conclude soon, enabling the Host Committee and the NFL to sign contracts with the cruise lines for the week of Feb. 1-6, 2005.
Surface said the Host Committee will probably reach agreements with three different cruise lines.
“We are confident that Royal Caribbean will be part of the fleet,” said Surface. “They have several ships including Brilliance of the Seas, which several sponsors and some of the Host Committee toured. We are sure it will be one of the ships.”
The Host Committee is also negotiating with Radisson, Holland America and Carnival. Surface said the likely plan is to use three different cruise lines that will provide five or six ships. Those ships, depending on their size, will dock between downtown and Blount Island. Narrowing the field to three cruise lines marks the near end of an arduous task.
“When we sent out the RFPs [Requests for Proposal], we got back 24,000 rooms worth of proposals,” said Surface. “We sorted through the proposals and threw out the ones that didn’t make any sense. We got down to 12 and presented our slate to the NFL to pick and choose which ones they want.”
The Host Committee has also secured commitments from all the hotels needed for the game, and then some. According to Surface, the Host Committee has assurances from hotels ranging from Brunswick to Daytona representing 12,000 rooms.
“If you include Savannah, that’s another 1,000 rooms,” said Surface, who leaves Saturday for San Diego where she’ll help man Jacksonville’s media booth.
In addition to representatives of the CVB and Chamber, there will be several other members of the Jacksonville entourage this year. Last fall, Winn-Dixie signed on as the first major local sponsor of the game and this week Shands Health Care signed on as a community sponsor.
“Our sponsors are going this year,” said Surface. “Some folks from Winn-Dixie are going and two senior executives from Shands are going to see how health care providers function during the week of Super Bowl.”
Four of the six staff members of the Host Committee are also going: Surface, President and COO Mike Kelly, Vice President of External Affairs Shelly Marino and Pat Duncan, who’s in charge of lodgings and accommodations.