Jacksonville mayor expects Trump convention speech to bring in $100M: 'We plan on having a full arena'
Republican officials on Thursday evening announced that they were shifting key events away from Charlotte, NC
Jacksonville, Florida will be hosting the 2020 RNC convention speech due to its venue options, critical role in re-election and welcoming local leadership. FOX Business' Blake Burman with more.
Jacksonville's mayor scored a major political coup this week: President Trump will deliver his Aug. 27 convention speech in the Florida city after a dispute over coronavirus-related crowd restrictions led him to mostly abandon North Carolina, where the Republican convention was originally planned.
"We plan on having a full arena," Mayor Lenny Curry, a Republican, told FOX Business' Stuart Varney on Friday.
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Republican officials on Thursday evening announced that they were shifting key events away from Charlotte, N.C., after a public rift with the state's Democratic governor over social distancing guidelines.
Curry said he expects "tens of thousands" of people to come to Jacksonville for the convention, which he projected could bring in about $100 million in economic impact for the city, located just south of Georgia.
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He said it was too soon to tell what type of safety protocols would be needed during the events, scheduled to be held from Aug. 24 through Aug. 27, when asked whether attendees would be required to stand six-feet apart.
"If there was an unexpected outbreak, health risks, hospitalization systems that couldn't handle it," he said, "we would obviously adapt at that point in time. But we are on the road to full recovery. And we expect to have a convention that demonstrates Jacksonville is open for business."
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A Republican National Committee official told FOX Business one possible event space options is the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, which holds 15,000 people. The RNC is still exploring how best to accommodate city visitors (during the 2005 Super Bowl, cruise ships were brought in to house city visitors).
The official said some guests may stay outside city limits.
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FOX Business' Blake Burman contributed to this report