SPECIAL REPORT: RNC bookings “underwhelming” and a “failure,” event venues and restaurants raise concerns
The Riverside Theater and Pabst Theater will sit empty during the convention, and some downtown restaurant owners worry over lack of activity, with RNC just weeks away.
The Recombobulation Area is a thirteen-time Milwaukee Press Club award-winning weekly opinion column and online publication founded by longtime Milwaukee journalist Dan Shafer. Learn more about it here.
Milwaukee is preparing for a busy week with the RNC coming to town, but with just weeks to go before the convention begins, some are raising concerns about a lackluster level of events being booked during the convention, raising questions about whether the convention will deliver on promises of economic impact.
Gary Witt, president and CEO of the Pabst Theater Group, told The Recombobulation Area that the majority of the group’s venues will have no events booked for the RNC.
Two of downtown Milwaukee’s most iconic venues, the Pabst Theater and Riverside Theater, will likely sit empty during the convention, he said, as will the Vivarium and The Fitzgerald, which are both located on Milwaukee’s East Side. Turner Hall Ballroom will host a yet-to-be announced organization, but that arrangement was made for the DNC in 2020 before the convention went mostly virtual.
Witt characterized the RNC planning as “underwhelming” and a “failure.”
“It’s 100% a case of ‘overpromise, underdeliver,’ on all parts, by everybody,” he said.
“We were told it was going to be one way over and over and over and over again when (the RNC) was confirmed, and it has turned out to be almost anything but the way that we were told it was going to turn out,” Witt said. “We were sold a storyline of how this is going to go, and basically it didn't go anything at all like the storyline that we were sold.”
Witt also said the Pabst Theater Group is in “constant contact with everyone else in town that does what we do, and I’m hearing the same thing from them.”
The RNC is set to take place in Milwaukee from July 15 to 18. In recent weeks, other event venues have pivoted from hosting RNC-related events. The Rave had planned to host events related to the convention, but is now hosting a concert featuring the band Thirty Seconds to Mars, with venue co-owner Leslie West telling the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel saying there’s been “silence” on booking RNC events. In an early-April story from The New York Times with the headline, “In Milwaukee, Restaurants and Venues Worry of Seeing Limited R.N.C. Boost,” it was reported that the Milwaukee Art Museum (MAM) would not be hosting private events, “citing cost and a desire not to entangle the museum with politics.” Since, MAM announced it would be partnering with Baird to provide free admission to the museum during regular hours throughout the convention.
Witt says his concern about event bookings and activity in the city during the RNC is less about the venues he operates and more about the impact on the city to host this convention.
“This business that we own operates only in the City of Milwaukee, and for us to succeed, the City of Milwaukee has to succeed, and at this point in time, I don't see the RNC delivering that kind of success,” he said. “That kind of anticipated economic impact that everyone was high-fiving and champagne-popping and press conferencing about. At this point in time, none of that really has come true, for the most part.”
The Recombobulation Area obtained a copy of a message sent from Witt to leaders at the RNC and VISIT Milwaukee in late May, where he raised concerns about lack of interest in event bookings for the convention.
“While I am saddened about the lack of business in our venues, I am even more concerned about how this incredibly disappointing lack of events will impact our restaurants and small event spaces, who might not be able to afford being closed for a week,” he wrote in the message.
Witt puts the blame for this at the RNC, not VISIT Milwaukee.
“I think VISIT has worked very hard on this, completely,” he said. “They put in a lot of effort, but they can only control so much.”
The response Witt received from the RNC after sending the message, he said, was “disappointing.”
“I think there was basically a kind of throwing-up-the-arms moment for them where they made claims that they never promised we’d be booked,” said Witt. “And like I said, first and foremost, this is not about me and about us only. This is about the city in general, And frankly, (the RNC) did promise, because (they) talked about the economic impact for the city.”
When it was announced that Milwaukee would be the city to host the RNC, many touted an estimated $200 million economic impact that the convention would have, a number that came from a VISIT Milwaukee-cited study. Some experts, including Recombobulation Area contributor and Marquette University professor Phil Rocco, questioned that number, and PolitiFact gave a comment from Mayor Cavalier Johnson on that $200 million estimate a “Half True” rating.
In an April 2024 blog post from the RNC Host Committee, Alison Prange, the chief operating officer for the Milwaukee-based RNC Host Committee said, “The 2024 RNC is expected to deliver a direct and indirect economic impact of around $200 million this year,” adding that “additional economic impact is expected for years to come.”
On Monday, at a Newsmaker Luncheon hosted by the Milwaukee Press Club and WisPolitics at the Newsroom Pub in downtown Milwaukee, Peggy Williams-Smith, the president and CEO of VISIT Milwaukee, said “The number one reason that we did this is we knew it would generate significant short and long term economic impact,” pointing to the $200 million estimated impact number. She also emphasized that, between the RNC and the newly opened expansion of the Baird Center, there’s been a significant increase in interest in hosting conventions and events in Milwaukee. Additionally, tourism spending in Milwaukee County set a new record in 2023.
As for the RNC, some events have begun to be publicly announced. “The Daily Show” will be broadcasting from the Marcus Performing Arts Center throughout the convention, with Jon Stewart hosting on Thursday, July 18. Fox News Channel will be broadcasting much of its on-air content from Milwaukee, based out of the “Gather” space in the Deer District, including airing the late-night show “Gutfeld!” live with a studio audience during its 10 p.m. timeslot.
Also announced this week was the “Red, White and Brew” welcome party at the Summerfest Grounds on Sunday, July 14, featuring country star Trace Adkins. That event is expected to draw 15,000 people.
But with less than three weeks to go before the RNC begins, Witt said there’s also been a great deal of confusion surrounding the event planning for the convention.
“I don’t think the RNC were great communicators,” he said. “I think the mantra was just to continue to wait, wait, wait. I think because of that, wait, wait, wait has turned into a tremendous disappointment. Because you’re told to be patient and then your patience leads to nothing. And then, like my conversation with the RNC, there’s no one taking responsibility to try to make it any better. They’re now backing away from it and trying to say, ‘we never promised you anything.’”
“The convention has been a disappointment”: Downtown restaurants voice concern over lack of RNC activity
Witt isn’t the only one raising concerns about the RNC not meeting expectations for economic activity in the city.
Multiple restaurant industry sources have told The Recombobulation Area that reservations and other RNC-related bookings haven’t been materializing as anticipated. Some are even wondering if the convention might have an adverse impact on their business because regulars are leaving town or avoiding downtown during the convention.
Lupi & Iris, a large downtown restaurant that was named a national finalist for best new U.S. restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2023 and was recently featured on “Top Chef,” currently has just one private dinner booked during the entire week of the convention.
“From an events standpoint — dining, private events, parties, shut-down-the-restaurant, etc. — the convention has absolutely been a disappointment,” said Cindi McLeod, spokesperson for Lupi & Iris. “There are not as many inquiries as hoped, and in general terms, there is not a lot of excitement around the convention. I’m sad for Milwaukee. We really wanted this. We really wanted to shine. We were really excited to host these events.”
McLeod said the restaurant had closed its books for reservations for the week of the convention, hoping for event interest to pick up, but changed course earlier in June, and the restaurant is now taking reservations for that week.
“We’re open, we want to stay open, we want to serve people,” said McLeod. “I really hope it works out. We are just crossing our fingers…We still want people to come down and support Milwaukee businesses. If this convention isn’t going to be as big as we thought it would be, which is what it sounds like, we still want people to come down and be a part of the excitement.”
Gregory León, chef and owner of Amilinda, located on Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Milwaukee, said the restaurant is getting no bookings or reservations the week of the convention.
“I have a feeling this is going to be a business killer,” he said in an interview with The Recombobulation Area, adding that many regulars are planning to leave the city or avoid downtown during the week of the convention. “If the (reservation) book stays the way it is, we’re not going to make enough money to cover costs.”
He added, “(This is) certainly nothing like we were told or promised, and I believe it is that way for almost every restaurant in the city, with the exception of the big restaurant groups. We were told that restaurants and venues would be booked months in advance…it’s turned out to be quite the contrary.”
León, who was a James Beard Foundation finalist for Best Chef in the Midwest in 2022 and 2023 and was a finalist for Outstanding Chef at the national level in 2024, took to social media on Monday to express frustration about the RNC.
León said he is generally opposed to Donald Trump and the Republican Party, but has many Republican customers and was hoping to host RNC attendees. He said that, as a Latino, Jewish and gay man, he struggles with some “intolerant” policies from the GOP, but said “If I closed my doors during the RNC, would I be just as intolerant?”
Has Donald Trump being the nominee negatively impacted RNC events in Milwaukee? Witt said it’s been a factor.
“(The RNC) is having a difficult time, I think, getting funding for a lot of their events, because once their candidate was announced — and this isn’t me saying this as my political choice — he is known for being divisive, and that’s created a difficulty in them raising money,” he said. “And last time I checked, conventions are built by other people’s money, so if people aren’t willing to give money, then they're going to have a hard time hosting events in town.”
Witt said conversations behind the scenes began to change once it was clear that Trump would be the nominee.
“I think people had a concern whether (the convention) was even going to happen at that point,” he said.
Additionally, some downtown restaurant and business owners expressed concern about the protest zone being located at Pere Marquette Park at a recent Common Council meeting, according to Urban Milwaukee. That location has since been moved.
Despite the underwhelming level of activity in Milwaukee for the RNC, Witt said it was not a mistake for Milwaukee to host the convention.
“We should make every effort possible to attract every event that should come to the city,” he said, noting that the Pabst Theater Group has hosted a CNN Town Hall with Republican presidential candidates in 2016 at the Riverside Theater, and hosted Joe Biden at the Pabst Theater for a CNN Town Hall in 2021. “You should not be political in these choices of whether it’s the RNC or DNC. Our goal when you have events like that is to be able to invite people here to experience Milwaukee, to shine a national spotlight on Milwaukee…The goal is to be able to shine a light on the city. You should always take risks and take chances to make these things happen. But life is about execution. You can't just want to do things. You also have to want to do them right. And not much about this has been done right.”
Dan Shafer is a journalist from Milwaukee who writes and publishes The Recombobulation Area. He’s also written for The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Heartland Signal, Belt Magazine, WisPolitics, and Milwaukee Record. He previously worked at Seattle Magazine, Seattle Business Magazine, the Milwaukee Business Journal, Milwaukee Magazine, and BizTimes Milwaukee. He’s won 18 Milwaukee Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards. He’s on Twitter at @DanRShafer.
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To be fair, anyone who expected a Trump enterprise to deliver on its promises has only theirownself to blame. Anyone who didn't know the RNC is a Trump enterprise, and is running a for-profit business in Milwaukee, has failed at due diligence.
Re "Some are even wondering if the convention might have an adverse impact on their business because regulars are leaving town or avoiding downtown during the convention." This is always the case. Event money doesn't add to local coffers. It replaces the money lost as people attend the event instead of doing other local things or avoid the area entirely.
And while Milwaukee obvious heard "convention," maybe they should have heard "a mob of gun-toting, women-hating traitors and sociopaths--for jesus" that Milwaukee won't vote for. Locals might not be avoiding the crowds. They might be ditching downtown to avoid getting killed.
Also, Republicans are hardly the type to enjoy local cuisine. They are Walmart. They'll only eat at national brands that match their identities. Your Chik-fil-A is gonna make a killing.
That said, it should be a boom time for photographers, who can snap pictures of the christian poobahs happily taking part in the local sex economy, then offer their subjects a chance to catch and kill the pictures before they end up in their local papers.