MILWAUKEE — Visit Milwaukee on Tuesday touched down in Washington, D.C. to make its final pitch and try to secure the 2024 Republican National Convention for Brew City.
Fiserv Forum is one of the main locations that will be used if the convention makes its way here. At 11:15 a.m. eastern time the delegation will have one hour to state their case, hoping to welcome nearly 45,000 visitors into town and bring nearly $200 million into the local economy, according to estimates.
Milwaukee's final pitch went after Nashville's.
Milwaukee submitted its bid back in December of last year, highlighting the city's benefits to hosting the event - like the close access to Lake Michigan, the entertainment options and the space that Fiserv Forum and the Wisconsin Center offer.
A big part of Milwaukee's pitch also touched on security and hotels.
Visit Milwaukee CEO Peggy Williams-Smith says even though the chance of potentially securing the convention is a really big deal, because it will put Milwaukee on the world stage, she says she feels confident because this is something her team does as a convention and visitors bureau every single day.
“I think we showed extremely well and only time will tell how our chances are,” Williams-Smith said.
A big part of Visit Milwaukee's pitch includes touching on two key points.
“It was talking about our hotel package how many rooms we can offer and the commitment we think we can get from the hotels and the other big things obviously is security," Williams-Smith said.
Representatives from the mayor's office, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Wisconsin Center, Fiserv Forum and the police department will join them Tuesday morning to meet with the selection committee. Williams-Smith says it will take two to three months to hear back on the decision.
The conference would kick off in the later half of summer 2024.
