Hall of Fame Village Update: Center For Excellence ready for primetime

HALL OF FAME VILLAGE UPDATE:

Center for Excellence ready for prime time

BY BRIAN LISIK | PHOTOS BY SCOTT HECKEL / RENDERINGS PROVIDED BY THE HALL OF FAME VILLAGE

With retail tenants expected to begin occupying the Hall of Fame Village Powered by Johnson Controls’ Constellation Center for Excellence building within the next year, HOF Village Executive Vice President for Public Affairs Anne Graffice said the “core and shell” of the building will be completed and visible “rising out of the west end zone” of Tom Benson Hall of Fame stadium by the end of summer.

“I am really proud of the work that is coming up out of the ground,” Graffice said. “(Hall of Fame Resort and Entertainment Company President and CEO) Mike Crawford has been wonderful in reframing the project in a way that is doable.”

Graffice said the company’s decision to reframe the project in phases has been important from both a construction and public perception perspective.

“I completely understand the (public) skepticism,” Graffice said. “Also, when you build everything at the same time, you are not listening to consumer demands (about) how you should grow.”

Graffice said the HOF Village team has understood the public’s frustration with “a lot of talk and not much getting done.” But those days, she said, are in the past.

With the first phase of the Hall of Fame Village project, including the renovation of Tom Benson Stadium and the installation of youth athletic fields completed, the second phase of the project — led by the Center for Excellence groundbreaking — began in September 2020.

The Constellation Center for Excellence is a 75,000-square-foot, mixed-use facility planned to include a variety of sports-centric research and programming, office space and retail pads. Crawford described the center as an innovative hub and interactive environment for companies and individuals to collaborate to further the sport.

Meanwhile, Graffice said, Phase III of the project is in the rendering phase, with an expected $300 million in additional development.

“But again, we will be looking at customer reaction (to the first two phases),” she said.

Overall, Graffice said future opportunities for multimedia cross marketing of

HOF Village — designed as a resort, entertainment and media company centered around professional football — abound. On the ground, Graffice said, the complex is positioned to be a premier vacation destination for the entire Midwest United States.

She again noted the importance of having Crawford, who previously developed hotels, theme parks and retail and dining establishments worldwide for Walt Disney Company and Four Seasons Resorts and Hotels.

“There really is nothing like this in the area — a destination, resort, vacation (location) — obviously rooted in football, but a place people come to for multiple days,” Graffice said.

“THERE REALLY IS NOTHING LIKE THIS IN THE AREA — A DESTINATION, RESORT, VACATION (LOCATION) — OBVIOUSLY ROOTED IN FOOTBALL, BUT A PLACE PEOPLE COME TO FOR MULTIPLE DAYS.”

—Anne Graffice, HOF Village Executive Vice President for Public Affairs