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Officials Head To Super Bowl But Not To Watch Game

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By ELLEN GEDALIUS and VALERIE KALFRIN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 23, 2008

TAMPA - Never mind what happens on the field between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants: Some officials attending the Super Bowl encourage Monday-morning quarterbacking behind the scenes.

With Super Bowl XLIII coming to Tampa next year, emergency planners, rescue workers, hotel executives and tourism representatives want to see how Glendale, Ariz., handles what the National Football League calls "America's unofficial winter holiday."

About 60 Tampa officials will travel to Arizona next week to absorb as much as they can. The delegation includes Fire Chief Dennis Jones, two Tampa police commanders, the city's emergency planner, host committee staff members, representatives of the convention and visitors bureaus and other public officials.

"It's to observe events, to observe what happens at the stadium, to observe the downtown area, how it affects the airport, how traffic is affected," said Reid Sigmon, executive director of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl Host Committee. "It's things like that we can pick up by being there."

The host committee will pay for hotel costs and airfare for representatives from the Tampa Police Department, Hillsborough County sheriff's office, Tampa Fire Rescue and city administration, Sigmon said. The committee also will cover airfare costs for Henry Saavedra, executive director of Tampa Sports Authority.

Other payment arrangements are being worked out with the other groups. The host committee gets three-fourths of its money from private, corporate sponsorships. The remaining 25 percent comes from tourist taxes and the Florida Sports Foundation.

For some, like Saavedra, the Glendale trip involves networking with NFL representatives to better compete for future events. Tampa Neighborhood Services Administrator Santiago Corrada said he wants to see how involved Glendale was in beautification projects, how much municipalities spent on in-kind costs and how Glendale coordinated with other local governments.

For police Maj. John Bennett the trip isn't "nearly as glamorous as people would think."

Bennett said he got "soaked to the bone" in the Miami rain last year while trekking among roll calls, entry gates and venues during that city's Super Bowl.

"I saw the opening kickoff," he remembered. "You really don't see the game because you're back house most of the time."

The last Super Bowl held in Tampa was in 2001, before the terrorist attacks later that year catapulted the event to a national security concern.

Brian McCarthy, an NFL spokesman in New York City, said 30 to 50 local, regional, state and federal agencies must coordinate to ensure the event goes off safely.

"We do encourage advance planning," he said. "There's nothing like seeing an event in action."

A Jan. 14 threat assessment by the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis noted that more than 300 thefts of fire, first-responder, military and police equipment such as body armor, vehicles, badges and credentials have been reported stolen in Arizona since October 2004, raising a possible security risk.

Even so, Arizona Department of Public Safety Cmdr. Mike OroseÖ said the Glendale stadium is well prepared. Anyone who will be on site has special credentials beyond his or her law enforcement identification, he said.

"We feel pretty confident we'll know who should be there and who shouldn't," Orose said.

Some members of the Tampa delegation arrive on Wednesday. Thursday, the group attends a safety briefing, then tours the local Emergency Operations Center, according to an itinerary. The group will spend hours touring the stadium, the screening area for deliveries and the NFL Experience, an interactive theme park open during the Super Bowl that encompasses about 1 million square feet, McCarthy said.

Friday and Saturday will be spent at the local media center, the NFL headquarters, the practice field and again at the stadium before Sunday's kickoff.

McCarthy said the group likely will walk miles — not just the hundred yards of the football field but surrounding areas examining traffic control, electrical wiring and other requirements of such a mammoth event.

The Glendale stadium has a capacity of 70,000 people, but 120,000 people are expected to be in the area during the week, McCarthy said.

Tampa Fire Rescue Capt. Bill Wade said the fire officials plan to debrief each other nightly on how the Arizona group handles whatever emergencies arise.

Bennett said he already is thinking about how to staff the event efficiently without overtime — "I don't think we'll be able to do that," he said — and without depriving the city of personnel for emergency calls.

The Super Bowl in Miami pulled law enforcement from Dade and Broward counties and used overtime, Bennett said.

Arizona has a public safety coalition whose agencies contribute staffing and equipment so no one city bears the full burden, Orose said.

Bennett also is curious to see how the hotels for the competing teams and the NFL will be staffed and how escorts for the players and VIPs to different venues are handled.

He can't plan too far ahead in Tampa because the area around Raymond James Stadium will be re-engineered for traffic and venues associated with the event. He's sure, though, that Tampa's personnel will manage.

"We've had the Super Bowl. We've had the Bucs win the Super Bowl. We've had the Stanley Cup. We've had every kind of parade imaginable," Bennett said. "I can't imagine anything that hasn't been thrown at this city."

Reporter Valerie Kalfrin can be reached at (813) 259-7800 or vkalfrin@tampatrib.com. Reporter Ellen Gedalius can be reached at (813) 259-7679 or egedalius@tampatrib.com.

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