DUKE IT OUT AND DEMOCRATIC
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES TRY TO
WIN FAVOR ON THE DEBATE STAGE,
THE CITY OF MILWAUKEE LOOKS
AHEAD TO NEXT SUMMER'S
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONTENTION
AND ALL THAT IT BRINGS.
IN TONIGHT'S CLOSER LOOK, WE SAT
DOWN WITH DNC HOST COMMITTEE
FINANCE CHAIR AND VICE PRESIDENT
OF THE MILWAUKEE BUCKS, ALEX
LASRY.
WE STARTED BY ASKING HOW MANY
PEOPLE ARE EX ECT EXPECTED TO DESCEND
ON MILWAUKEE FOR THE CONVENTION
NEXT JULY.
>> THE CONVENTION WILL HAVE OVER
50,000 PEOPLE THAT WILL BE
COMING INTO WISCONSIN.
MANY PEOPLE WHO PROBABLY HAVEN'T
BEEN HERE BEFORE OR OTHERWISE
WOULDN'T BE VISITING WISCONSIN
DURING THAT SUMMER.
SO THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO
HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO
OTHERWISE WEREN'T GOING TO COME
HERE SEE WISCONSIN FOR THE FIRST
TIME AND GIVE THEM A FIRST
IMPRESSION AND TO SHOW THEM A
REASON TO COME BACK AND MY HOPE
FOR THIS CONVENTION IS THAT WHAT
WE'RE ABLE TO DO IS PUT
WISCONSIN ON THE MAP IN A WAY
THAT IT OTHERWISE COULDN'T BE.
BECAUSE NOT ONLY WILL WE HAVE
50,000 PEOPLE COMING IN, BUT
WE'LL HAVE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE
WATCHING IT ON TV AND SEEING HOW
WISCONSIN HOLDS UP UNDER THE
NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT.
SO THIS IS MORE THAN JUST A
POLITICAL CONVENTION.
THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO OUT
MILWAUKEE AS A TOP TIER CITY IN
THE COUNTRY.
>> WHAT IS THE EXPECTED ECONOMIC
IMPACT?
>> SO WE'RE LOOKING AT ABOUT A
$200 MILLION PLUS ECONOMIC
IMPACT FOR THE STATE OF
WISCONSIN.
THAT IS BASED ON PREVIOUS
CONVENTIONS.
SO PHILLY, CHARLOTTE, DENVER
WERE NORTH OF $200 MILLION.
WE THINK WE'LL HAVE SOMETHING
NORTH OF THAT.
BEYOND THAT, THOUGH, THE
IMMEDIATE ECONOMIC IMPACT IS
GREAT, BARS, RESTAURANTS,
BUSINESSES THAT WILL BE USED TO
HELP PUT ON THE CONVENTION.
THAT WILL ALL BE GREAT TO HAVE
THAT TYPE OF IMPACT.
I THINK WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT,
THOUGH, IS WHAT DO YEARS TWO,
THREE AND FOUR AFTER THE
CONVENTION LOOK LIKE?
ARE WE STILL SEEING AN ECONOMIC
IMPACT FROM THE CONVENTION?
ARE WE SEEING MORE CONVENTION
BUSINESS?
ARE WE GETTING SIMILAR NATIONAL
PROFILES AND STORIES COMING OUT
ON WISCONSIN ON CITIES LIKE
MADISON, MILWAUKEE, RACINE,
KENOSHA?
THOSE ARE THE TYPE OF THINGS
THAT YOU CAN'T REALLY PUT A
VALUE ON, WHICH IS WHY I THINK
WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT AN ECONOMIC
IMPACT, YOU NEED TO TALK ABOUT
IT MORE THAN JUST IN DOLLAR
TERMS.
YOU NEED TO TALK ABOUT IT IN
TERMS OF MEDIA AND WHAT IT CAN
DO FOR THE FUTURE OF THESE
CITIES AND STATE.
>> I'VE SEEN THAT MILWAUKEE IS
DESCRIBED AS THE SMALLEST HOST
CITY FOR A CONVENTION SINCE
1988.
WHAT IS THE STATUS RIGHT NOW AS
TO WHETHER OR NOT THERE ARE
ENOUGH HOTEL ROOMS EVEN WITH
NEARLY HALF OF THE DELEGATES
GOING INTO ILLINOIS?
>> I LED THE BID.
WHEN WE PUT IN THE BID, YOU HAD
TO BE ABLE TO SHOW THAT YOU HAD
20,000 HOTEL ROOMS WITHIN A 20
TO 30-MINUTE DRIVE.
THEY WOULDN'T HAVE CHOSEN US AS
A FINALIST AND THEY WOULDN'T
HAVE CHOSEN US AS THE CITY IF WE
DIDN'T MEET THAT QUALIFICATION.
SO FROM A HOTEL PERSPECTIVE, WE
HAVE ENOUGH HOTEL ROOMS TO BE
ABLE TO HOST THE CONVENTION
WITHOUT ANY BEING IN ILLINOIS.
WHAT THEY'VE DONE IS THEY
DECIDED WAS THEY WANTED TO PUT A
SELECT NUMBER OF THE TOTAL HOTEL
ROOMS, SO THEY I THINK ONLY USED
ABOUT 3,000 OF THE ROOMS IN
ILLINOIS.
THERE ARE STILL GOING TO BE
ANOTHER 15,000 TO 20,000 ROOMS
THAT THE DNC IS GOING TO PLACE
AND PROBABLY ANOTHER 10,000 TO
15,000 MORE ROOMS THAT PEOPLE
JUST COMING INTO WISCONSIN WILL
NEED TO UTILIZE.
SO I'M NOT AS WORRIED ABOUT
WHERE PEOPLE ARE STAYING,
WHETHER THEY'RE STAYING IN
ILLINOIS OR MILWAUKEE OR IN
WISCONSIN.
I THINK IT'S ACTUALLY KIND OF
NEAT THAT PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO
STAY IN ROSEMONT, ILLINOIS TO
COME TO MILWAUKEE.
AND THAT'S HOW BAD PEOPLE WANT
TO COME TO MILWAUKEE, BECAUSE
THE DEMAND IS SO HIGH TO BE NEAR
MILWAUKEE THAT THEY'RE WILLING
TO STAY IN ILLINOIS, AN HOUR
AWAY, TO BE ABLE TO COME TO THE
CITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE
CONVENTION.
SO I THINK THAT'S GREAT.
I COULDN'T BE MORE THRILLED THAT
PEOPLE WANT TO DO THAT AND
LOOKING FORWARD TO PEOPLE MAKING
THAT TRIP MORE AND MORE AFTER
THE CONVENTION.
>> YOU CHAIRED AS YOU SAID THE
BID COMMITTEE BUT YOU ALSO HAD
THE NONPROFIT GROUP RAISING $70
MILLION TO SUPPORT THIS CON
VENG.
HOW IS THAT EFFORT GOING?
>> IT'S GOING REALLY WELL.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE MOST WERE
ABLE TO SHOW THE DNR WAS THE
COMMITMENT THAT THE STATE OF
WISCONSIN, THE BUSINESS
COMMUNITY HAD TO MAKING SURE
THAT THIS IS SUCCESSFUL.
SO WE ACTUALLY DOUBLED THE
FUND-RAISING THAT CITIES LIKE
HOUSTON AND MIAMI WERE ABLE TO
RAISE IN THE BID PROCESS.
WE STARTED WITH A REALLY STRONG
NUMBER.
WE WERE ABLE TO RAISE $10
MILLION DURING THE BID PROCESS.
I THINK WE'RE NOW WELL ON OUR
WAY TO GETTING TO THAT $70
MILLION MARK.
WE'RE OPENING UP TO NATIONAL
SPONSORS AND TALKING TO A LOT OF
PEOPLE WHO DON'T LOOK AT THIS AS
A PARTISAN EXERCISE, BUT THEY
LOOK AT THIS AS A WAY TO REACH A
BUNCH OF CUSTOMERS WHO ARE GOING
TO BE COMING INTO MILWAUKEE AND
THEY LOOK AT IT AS A WAY TO HELP
BUILD UP A CITY AND BE A PART OF
A CITY ENTERING A NEW MARKET.
>> WHAT IF THE EVENTUAL NOMINEE
BANS CORPORATE DONATIONS TO FUND
THE EVENT AS CANDIDATE BERNIE
SANDERS HAS SAID HE WOULD?
>> WHAT WE'VE LOOKED AT IS WE'RE
TRYING TO WORRY ABOUT RIGHT NOW
PUTTING ON THE CONVENTION.
SO WE'LL TAKE AND WORK WITH
WHOEVER THE EVENTUAL NOMINEE IS.
BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE MOVING
FORWARD WITH THE BELIEF THAT THE
DNC HAS TO PAY FOR THE
CONVENTION AND WE'RE MOVING
FORWARD WITH KIND OF ALL THE
PEOPLE THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING
TO AND THAT WE'VE BEEN ERK
WITHING WITH.
I THINK WHAT WE ARE A REALLY
TRYING TO SHOW IS THE HOST
COMMITTEE IS A NONPARTISAN
ENTITY.
THIS IS NOT THE DNC AND THE HOST
COMMITTEE ARE TWO SEPARATE
ENTITIES AND THE HOST COMMITTEE
IS RAISING MONEY NOT FROM A
PARTISAN BASIS, BUT ON A
NONPARTISAN BASIS.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE ARE
CONTINUING TO SHOW AND ARE