MORE TITLES FOR TITLETOWN.

Those "best places to live" surveys come up with all sorts of criteria for finding the best place to live.  Men's Journal discovered that U.S. News don't just rank colleges and universities.

The 2023–2024 list just named a Midwestern city that's home to a leading NFL franchise—yet also boasts a decidedly small town feel—at the very top of its list.

Set in the heart of northeast Wisconsin, Green Bay was chosen as the number one spot for having the "perfect mix of big-city amenities" without feeling like you're living in a big city. With a thriving entertainment and arts scene, revitalized downtown, and two college campuses, the report makes a strong case for Green Bay appealing to both young families and retirees alike.

Other features that makes Green Bay an attractive place to live include a booming craft beer scene and restaurant industry, museums, boutique shopping, and proximity to the Green Bay Packers' stadium, Lambeau Field. The city's waterfront on the Fox River is also a draw, perfect for summer activities and al fresco dining; as well as the wooded Fox River State Trail that runs parallel with the river.

Green Bay was the only Midwestern location to crack the top 10 list, although Madison appears at No. 11. North Carolina, Florida, and Colorado all had a strong showing—with Raleigh, Durham, and Charlotte; Sarasota and Naples; and Boulder and Colorado Springs, respectively.

I suspect Green Bay beating out Madison is going to have some subset of the metrofexual population crying foul; and yet, there are as many criteria for ranking places as there are people seeking to change places.  Tieboutian competition is a good thing.

Titletown will now be hosting the 2025 professional football draft party.  There are Packer fans from the British Isles who will be planning a trip.

"With the draft being such a spectacle now and with our love of Green Bay, we will look to take a trip over when it is on," said [UK & Irish Packers Group] founder Stephen O'Brien. "It just shows the hard work Mark Murphy and team have put into the bid. I don’t think it can be understated. The way Bob Harlan is viewed in terms of bringing financial viability to the smallest market in sports, Murphy has built on that with the Titletown District and developments. Now the draft? A master stroke by the Packers."

That development? Years ago, what was then City Stadium was way on the outskirts of Green Bay, with a sugar beet mill and a steel service center greeting visitors arriving along Ashland Avenue, which was then U.S. Highway 41.  Some of that industry, as well as the Green Bay Curling Club and assorted trades shops is still there, but the residential and recreational development proceeds apace.

I recorded that from the parking lot of a Hampton Inn that opened a week or so ago, and still has that new-carpet-and-fresh-paint smell to it.  No sooner did people learn about the draft event than they started calling to make reservations.  No such luck, there isn't capacity in the reservation system for that far away yet, although there is a waiting list.

Because the stadium is also near a lot of tract housing and neighborhood churches, there will be entrepreneurial opportunities.  "St. Mark's Lutheran Church, which owns a church and school on Oneida Street, and, significantly, a parking lot three blocks north of Lambeau Field, expects the draft to be a fundraising opportunity."

The rent seekers shall ye always have with you.

Two Green Bay-area lawmakers are asking colleagues crafting the next two-year state budget to include $2 million to pay for costs associated with the Green Bay Packers hosting the National Football League draft in 2025.

Rep. David Steffen and Sen. Robert Cowles, both Republicans from Green Bay, said the money would cover a portion of the expected costs to the Packers to host the event, which Cowles and Steffen said could cost $7.5 million overall.

The measure would require the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. to provide a grant to the Experience Greater Green Bay Corp., according to a draft of the budget motion Steffen's office provided to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Wednesday.

I'm inclined to disagree, the dubious forecasting doesn't change my mind.

The Packers estimate 240,000 people will attend the draft in Green Bay, generating a $94 million economic impact statewide and $20 million locally. Kansas City reported 320,000 visitors for the 2023 draft held in April.

“A $2 million investment for a $94 million return is phenomenal," Steffen said in a statement. "I am proud to have advocated for state support of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, given the significant positive financial impact this event will have on our state."

That's $2 million of state money, as opposed to $94 million in anticipated gross revenues, of which the state's take will be?

The U.S. News ranking, and the draft party, are fine things to have, but how goes the basis for Titletown being Titletown?  "The Bucs’ opponent in Sunday’s NFC Championship Game is the only not-for-profit franchise in major-league sports in America. In a city with a population just over 100,000, the Packers are owned by 361,311 shareholders. The stock, by the way, pays no dividends and cannot be resold."  So much for having home field for the duration of the playoffs.

Fortunately, the Tampa reporter didn't obsess over the craft beer scene, whatever that means.

“To me, my certificate is just another piece of Packers art. It’s no different than hanging a picture of Aaron Rodgers on the wall,” said Leonhard, whose family has owned Lenny’s Tap for 45 years and who bought his stock in 1997. “It’s the only game in town. Yeah, we have the Wisconsin Badgers and the Bucks and Brewers. But this is it in Green Bay.

“And if you own a little piece of the team, some people get to walk around like they’re one of the bosses.”

All of which doesn't mean a thing if the team doesn't measure up.  "We know what the standard is in Green Bay, and how far from that the team has been, despite all those playoff appearances and a quarter-century of Hall of Fame caliber quarterbacking."