The Kansas athletic department announced on Thursday a variety of events and projects it plans to implement around Lawrence as KU football games relocate to Kansas City during the 2024 football season.
The initiatives include watch parties at local businesses, “zone parties” that drive fans to a specific area within Lawrence, ticket giveaways and more, with the objective being, according to a press release, “to continue to focus on and drive excitement to the city on and around football games.”
Explore Lawrence, which is partnering with KU to set up the watch parties, has a form available on its website by which local businesses can apply to host such events in the fall.
The “zone parties,” meanwhile, bring “music, giveaways, tailgate games, mascots and more” to a parking lot in one of six specific sectors around the city, one designated for the night before each home game. The zone party ahead of the TCU and Houston games have previously been announced; on Sept. 27, the night before KU plays TCU in Kansas City, the Rock Chalk Block Party will take place in downtown Lawrence, while on Oct. 18, the university will host Phogfest as part of the lead-up to Late Night in the Phog.
Other zones include west Lawrence (Aug. 28 before Lindenwood), the southwestern part of town (Sept. 12 before UNLV), south Lawrence (Nov. 8 before Iowa State) and North Lawrence (Nov. 22 before Colorado).
During the week of each home game, Lawrence businesses will also receive a set of two tickets and sideline passes to home games, known as “Big Jay’s Golden Ticket,” which fans will have a chance to win with their purchases during the week.
KU athletic director Travis Goff said on Thursday that in his conversations with local businesses and neighborhood groups, “they’ve been so gracious, they’ve been so understanding, they’ve been so supportive.”
“The business community gets it,” he said. “Of course, again, I think it’s helped that we’ve demonstrated impact for them, obviously, through football, these past couple falls in particular. So I think they’ve seen and felt that. And they know this is about the middle to long term, one year of potential pain, to then be able to do what everybody aspires to do in Lawrence and with the university.”
Shawn Valverde/Special to the Journal-World
