It takes a lot of planning and expense to put on a big event like the college basketball tournament that will be played in Glendale. We’ll talk to Dawn Rogers, executive director and CEO of the Phoenix Local Organizing Committee, about planning for the games and ancillary events.
tED SIMONS: THE RENOVATION STARTED OVER A YEAR AGO. IT IS JUST ONE OF THE MANY EVENTS CONNECTED TO THE NCAA FINAL-4. HERE TO TALK ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO PUT ON A FINAL-4 IS DAWN ROGERS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND CEO OF THE PHOENIX LOCAL ORGANIZING COMMITTEE. WELCOME BACK TO ARIZONA "HORIZON." GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. LAST TIME WE TALKED TO YOU THIS WAS IN THE FUTURE. IT IS HERE.
DAWN ROGERS: IT IS HERE AND WE DID THE DEDICATION AT HARMON PARK AND UNVEILED THE LOGO ABOUT 507 DAYS AGO. WE FELT EASY GOING THEN BUT IT CHANGED.
TED SIMONS: YOU ARE THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PROJECT. WHAT DOES AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DO?
DAWN ROGERS: A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS. I THINK THE BEST WAY TO EXPLAIN IS WE ARE THE PART PLANNERS FOR THE NCAA. I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO BE PART OF THE BID AND IT HAS BEEN FULFILLING. YOU ARE PROVIDING THE VENUES, MARCH MADNESS MUSIC FESTIVAL, THE FAN FEST AND MUSIC FEST, AND WORKING WITH THE CITY AND PROVIDING TRANSPORTATION AND DOING THE HOTEL BLOCK AND THEN RENOVATIONS LIKE THIS AT HARMON PARK AND A READING CAMPAIGN WE DID FOR EVERY THIRD GRADER ACROSS THE STATE OF ARIZONA. WE HAD OVER SIX MILLION MINUTES READ SINCE JANUARY 4TH BY A GROUP OF ABOUT 35,000 THIRD GRADERS.
TED SIMONS: THAT SOUNDS TREMENDOUS. TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC SAFETY, CHARITABLE EVENTS. YOU HAVE TO OVERSEE ALL OF THIS, DON'T YOU?
DAWN ROGERS: WE DO. WE HAVE A TERRIFIC TEAM. THERE IS ABOUT 15 OF US ALL TOGETHER THAT WEAR A LOT OF DIFFERENT HATS. ONE DAY YOU ARE TALKING TRANSPORTATION, THEN CREDENTIALS AND THEN HARMON PARK. THAT IS WHAT HAS MADE THIS SO FUN. YOU GET TO DO A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS.
TED SIMONS: AS FAR AS THE GAME, IS THAT MOSTLY AN NCAA EVENT? DO THEY TAKE CARE OF THAT FOR THE MOST PART?
DAWN ROGERS: THEY DO. WE PROVIDE LOGISTICS LIKE THE STADIUM IS HUGE AND THAT TRANSFORMS INTO A BASKETBALL ARENA AND THAT IS THE FIRST TIME WE HAVE DONE THAT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX STADIUM. WE PROVIDE ALL THE GAME PERSONNEL, THE HOST, THE PEOPLE THAT STAFF AND MEET THE BANDS AND TAKE THEM TO THEIR AREAS. SO THERE IS A LOT OF PIECES WE DO IN THE BUILDING BUT THIS IS AN NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP AND THEY RUN IT. THEY HAVE COME IN EVERY MONTH SINCE LAST JUNE AND PUT THE PIECES TOGETHER. WE SPEND THE BIGGEST PART OF OUR BIGGEST HEAVY LIFT IS THE ANCILLARY EVENTS THAT GO ON.
TED SIMONS: I WOULD IMAGINE A PRETTY GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CITIES?
DAWN ROGERS: ABSOLUTELY. I CANNOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE CITY OF PHOENIX AND GLENDALE AND WE HAVE ALL CITIES INVOLVED BOUGHT OF THE HOTELS BUT PHOENIX IS THE EPICENTER OR HUB DOWNTOWN WITH THE FAN FEST AND MUSIC FEST AND NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BASKETBALL COACHES HERE. I WALKED INTO THE LOBBY OF THE SHERATON AND IT IS A WHOSE WHO OF BASKETBALL COACHES. SO THE CITY OF PHOENIX HAS JUST BEEN SO GENEROUS, OUTSTANDING. I HAVE TALKED TO DIFFERENT PEOPLE AT THE CITY OF PHOENIX TODAY PROBABLY TEN TIMES TO HELP ME WITH DIFFERENT ISSUES. SAME WITH THE CITY OF GLENDALE. THEY ARE REALLY INVESTED IN MAKING THIS SUCCESSFUL.
TED SIMONS: WHEN YOU TOOK OVER, WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS ON THE JOB?
DAWN ROGERS: REALLY RAISING THE BUDGET. I WILL SAY THAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING. PEOPLE WILL ASK WHAT IF WE DIDN'T RAISE THE MONEY AND I WOULD SAY THAT IS NOT AN OPTION. WE FINISHED OUR FUNDRAISING AT THE END OF 2016, WHICH REALLY TOOK A GREAT, YOU KNOW, LET US RELAX A LITTLE BIT AND THEN MAKE SURE WE STUCK TO THE BUDGET FOR OUR DONORS AND COMPANIES THAT HELPED US OUT. THEN IT WAS PUTTING TOGETHER A TEAM AND FINDING THE RIGHT GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT COULD HELP US AND FIND THESE EXPERTISE WHICH WE DID. IT REALLY IS TRULY A YEAR LONG OF PLANNING, OF MEETINGS, OF TALKING ABOUT EVERYTHING FROM WHAT LANES YOU ARE GOING TO CLOSE SO THAT THE BUS CAN PULL UP AND PICK UP THE FANS, THE PERMITTING, HAVING THE CONCERT AT HANZ PARK IS THE LARGEST CONCERT SERIES THAT HAS EVER BEEN HELD THERE SO YOU ARE WORKING WITH ADOT, WITH THE CITY, THERE IS A LOT OF FOLKS YOU HAVE TO WORK THROUGH LOGISTICS. I HAVE LEARNED A LOT MORE ABOUT PERMITTING THAN I EVER WANTED TO. THERE IS A TEAM OF AT LEAST 100 PEOPLE THAT WORKED ON THIS ON A DAILY BASIS.
TED SIMONS: SO BASICALLY NOW ARE WE TALKING FINE-TUNING NOW? WE ARE DAYS AWAY OR ACTUALLY IN THE MIDST OF IT IN SOME RESPECTS. FINE-TUNING, TROUBLE SHOOTING?
DAWN ROGERS: ABSOLUTELY. WE FORGET THE NCAA STAFF RUNS THE WHOLE MARCH MADNESS. THEY HAVE BEEN ON THE ROAD AND CAME IN SUNDAY AND MONDAY FROM THE REGIONALS, WATCHING THE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP, AND THEN WE ARE REALLY 24/7 AND DEALING WITH DIFFERENT FIRES AS WE ARE ALL FIREFIGHTERS THIS WEEK. AND AGAIN, JUST THE ABILITY TO PICK UP THE PHONE AND HAVE DIFFERENT FOLKS THAT CAN HELP US OUT HAS BEEN ESSENTIAL. THAT IS REALLY THE NETWORK YOU ARE DEVELOPING. AS I LEARNED DOING THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME, I HAD THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON FINAL FOUR COME IN OUR OFFICE AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, YOU DIDN'T TELL ME WHAT THIS WEEK WAS LIKE. THIS WEEK IS A LITTLE BIT CRAZY. SO HAVING THAT NETWORK OF PEOPLE HAS BEEN REALLY IMPORTANT.
TED SIMONS: SO, REAL QUICKLY YOU LEFT A CAREER IN COLLEGE ATHLETICS. ATHLETIC DIRECTOR AT XAVIER. YOU WERE WORKING AT ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY. YOU LEFT ALL THAT FOR THIS. IS THE JOB WHAT YOU EXPECTED?
DAWN ROGERS: IT HAS BEEN MORE THAN I EXPECTED IT. IT WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR ME TO SEE THE VISION THROUGH OF WHAT WE HAVE PUT TOGETHER TO WORK WITH SOME REALLY EXCEPTIONAL PEOPLE AT THE NCAA. I DIDN'T REALIZE THE PEOPLE I WOULD MEET FROM THE CITY AND OUR GREAT TOURISM INDUSTRY AND THAT HAS BEEN FUN. PROJECTS LIKE HARMON USING THE PLATFORM OF THE FINAL FOUR TO IMPACT THE COMMUNITY WAS FULFILLING.
TED SIMONS: CONGRATULATIONS FOR ALL THERE HARD WORK. IT SOUNDS LIKE EVERYTHING IS A GO. GOOD LUCK AND GOOD TO HAVE YOU AND WE'LL SEE HOW IT GOES.
DAWN ROGERS: THANK YOU.
TED SIMONS: FRIDAY WE WILL LOOK AT WHAT HOSTING THE FINAL FOUR DOES FOR THE VALLEY'S REPUTATION. A SPECIAL SPORTS ROUNDTABLE ON THE NEXT ARIZONA "HORIZON." I AM TED SIMONS AND THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. YOU HAVE A GREAT EVENING. ARIZONA "HORIZON" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE FRIENDS OF ARIZONA PBS, MEMBERS OF YOUR PBS STATION. THANK YOU.
Dawn Rogers: Executive director and CEO of the Phoenix Local Organizing Committee
