11 things Wichita promised to land the 2018 NCAA men’s basketball tournament

Wichita gave everything it had to host the 2018 NCAA men’s basketball tournament after two unsuccessful bids to host the tournament.

“This is an extensive process every time. This is our third bite at the apple,” said Brad Pittman, Wichita State University’s associate athletic director, who led the school’s efforts.

“The NCAA wants an event, not a game. A place people can go to have a magical, memorable experience.”

The tournament, which officially will be hosted by WSU and the Missouri Valley Conference, also is supported by the city of Wichita, Sedgwick County, the Greater Wichita Sports Commission and GoWichita Convention and Visitors Bureau.

It’s more than three years away and details are still being ironed out by officials. But here are some of the things that the NCAA was promised as part of Wichita’s bid:

1. 14,157 tickets

There’s no doubt the tournament means big money. The total estimated budget to host the tournament is $858,673 and the budgeted ticket revenue is nearly $3.5 million. You do the math.

Bid documents show an estimated 14,157 tournament tickets will be for sale from $230 to $290 each. Those numbers could change in the next three years, but they’re based on what other host sites have charged, Pittman said.

While the total capacity for Intrust Arena is 15,004, some seats have to be set aside for media and tournament officials, Pittman said.

“The arena has some seating normally (on the floor) up to the court, but for this event, because of media, those seats won’t be allowed to be out,” he said.

Club seat holders in section 103 and personal seat license holders in section 104 get first dibs on tickets. There will be no comped tickets, meaning even sponsors will have to pay for tickets, Pittman said.

As hosts, Wichita State and Missouri Valley are allowed a total honorarium up to 10 percent or $200,000 of profits. The NCAA will get the rest of the tournament’s profits, Pittman said.

The city expects the tournament to generate additional tax revenue.

About $19,000 of the taxes paid on ticket sales would go to the city and the majority would go to the state, said City Manager Robert Layton.

The city estimates that $30,000 would be generated in guest taxes paid at hotels. There also will be taxes collected on other purchases and food, he said.

2. New or recently renovated hotel rooms

More than 2,000 hotel rooms for the eight teams, media and officials – not counting fans – could be rented as part of the deal, according to documents.

One team will stay at the Ambassador Hotel, two teams will stay at the Hyatt Regency, two teams will stay at the Wichita Marriott, two teams will stay at the DoubleTree by Hilton Wichita Airport, and one team will stay at the Holiday Inn Wichita East.

The Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview, which was renovated in 2011, and the Courtyard by Marriott Wichita at Old Town, renovated this year, will host tournament officials.

3. Reduced hotel rates

Rates have already been confirmed for the five hotels hosting teams, according to bid documents. The nightly rate for the Ambassador is $159, while the cheapest rate for hotels is the Holiday Inn Wichita East at $134 a night.

Contracts with the hotels also include free meeting rooms, upgraded rooms for coaches and at the Drury Plaza, where the headquarters will be, a complimentary room for every 50 rooms booked.

Negotiating hotel group rates helped Wichita get the deal, Pittman said.

“Basically we went to them and told them to bring their ‘A game’ on rates,” he said.

4. A $250,000 Fan Fest

Go Wichita Convention and Visitors Bureau will plan a three-day Fan Fest in the old Spaghetti Works parking lot. The fest will include outdoor basketball courts for free throws and other competitions, bands and DJs, Jumbotrons for watching games, food trucks, a beer garden from House of Schwan, hot dogs from Cargill, bouncy houses, karaoke and mascot appearances.

If there’s rain, it will be moved to the Century II Convention Hall. The fan fest also will have off-duty police present for $30 an hour.

5. Free police escorts for teams

Police escorts will be free for the NCAA and hosts and paid by the city of Wichita and Sedgwick County. The escorts will accompany teams from the airport to their hotels and to and from the arena.

City Manager Robert Layton said that the city estimates it could cost the city about $20,000 for the police escorts. However, the city will do things to try to bring down that cost by assigning some officers already on the street, minimizing overtime. They’ll also be in discussions with the Sheriff’s Office for help, he said.

6. A dedicated bar for every team

The bars would be in Old Town, within walking distance of the arena.

“What they try to do, if it’s possible, is to have a gathering point for every team and for fans,” Pittman said. “It’s another thing we can do to make people feel welcome.”

7. Community welcome

The welcome will include digital billboards, fireworks at $500 a minute and welcome banners at the new Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport.

There will also be 40 welcome banners on light poles downtown at a cost of $325 per light pole, totaling $13,000, according to bid documents.

8. A $38,000 media buffet

Because writers and photographers have to eat.

The NCAA allows for a maximum $50,000 budget on entertainment, which is where the media buffet falls in, Pittman said.

Other entertainment items budgeted include $1,000 for participant refreshments; $500 for pre-tournament meetings; $500 for game officials’ meeting; and $10,000 for the pre-game, halftime and postgame, according to documents.

9. Nearly $400,000 to rent Intrust Bank Arena

As part of the deal, Intrust Bank Arena will get a nearly $85,000 facility fee and a $313,323 facility rental charge, totaling about $400,000. That isn’t all profit, though. The arena will still have to pay its staff and for any other items not included in the budget.

The facility fee is made up of a $2 charge for every ticket sold, Pittman said.

Other facility charges budgeted include $3,000 for supplies, $25,000 for decor, $5,000 for an ambulance and $5,000 for directional signs.

10. Rabid basketball fans

Part of the pitch for the tournament was the excitement of Wichita’s basketball fans.

In 2011, Wichita hosted the NCAA women’s basketball championship with overall attendance of 9,048 people, which was seventh out of 16 sites and first among sites without a host team participating, according to bid documents.

The recent success of the men’s Shocker team was also a factor, Pittman said.

11. Covered signs in the arena

The NCAA has strict rules about advertising in the arena during the tournament. Alcohol, tobacco or lottery and gambling signs must be removed or covered if they can be seen from the general seating area.

Commercial advertisers Spirit AeroSystems, Cessna, Pepsi, House of Schwan, Cox Communications, Bud Light and possibly Intrust Bank will have their signs in the arena covered as part of the deal, according to bid documents.

This story was originally published November 29, 2014 at 7:00 AM with the headline "11 things Wichita promised to land the 2018 NCAA men’s basketball tournament."