Rutherford prepares for World Cup tourism
The restaurants will be offering soccer-themed specials, the retailers will be out along the streets, and the town history will be on full display.
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New Jersey’s business community is looking ahead to the benefits and challenges that hosting the FIFA World Cup will bring.
Transit will be integral for the World Cup with no parking at the stadium. The Rutherford business community is positioning itself - and its new headquarters at Rutherford Station - as the place to be before, during, and after the games.
“This is stop No. 1, from what I've been told, on a lot of the traffic that's going to be going into MetLife Stadium," said Rutherford Chamber of Commerce president Dan Meredith.
It means enlisting plenty of volunteers, like the local boy and girl scouts.
“They'll be out there during all these game nights, telling people what Rutherford has," Meredith said. "And sometimes, what the other side of the tracks has.”
The chamber has more than 30 businesses. The restaurants will be offering soccer-themed specials, the retailers will be out along the streets, and the town history will be on full display. But there are challenges with hosting an international crowd.
“Challenges would be crowd control when they're coming through," said Meredith. "Challenges would be parking.”
“The highways are going to be backed up," said Rutherford mayor Frank Nunziato. "Waze and all the different sites are going to be moving traffic and diverting them. They're probably coming right down Park Avenue in Rutherford.”
“When people are looking at the town online, they're going to be able to pre-plan," said Meredith. "They can park in our garage. They can go to our restaurants.”
The World Cup runs from June 11 to July 19, with eight games - including the finals - at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.
