INDIANAPOLIS -
Indianapolis is celebrating its super success as Super Bowl host city. While the influx of visitors brought a big economic boost to many local businesses, Eyewitness News checked around Monday and discovered that not everyone was a winner.
The Giants won the Super Bowl and Indianapolis won praise for hosting a spectacular party.
"The people are really nice, wonderful. It's fantastic, no problems," was the typical response we heard from visitors.
The often hard-to-impress national press was also touting Indianapolis, which was on the front page of the Boston Globe and generated buzz on sports blogs.
Area hotels scored big, especially the downtown Marriott, which hosted the Giants.
"It doesn't get much more super than the experience we had here. It was an unbelievable experience," said Phil Ray, Indianapolis Marriott Downtown manager.
The team alone spent more than a million dollars at the hotel, with Champions doing its best weekend ever.
"The tips were awesome. It's always nice when you have a big bucketful," said AJ Williamson, bartender.
"It was definitely lucrative. It's going to my savings or for a vacation," said Emily Wheeler, bartender.
IndyGo, which offered free rides all week, saw ridership double. Cabbies, too, were kept on the go. One taxi driver told us he'd made in a week more than he makes in a typical month.
The Hilbert Circle Theatre, home to the Indianapolis Symphony, was home to Jimmy Fallon for a week.
"It's showcasing the theater nationally unlike anything ever before, and we're proud to say this is now one of the many great homes for a great show," said Jessica DiSanto, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra.
In Broad Ripple it was more of a mixed bag. The Bagel Deli got off to a slow start.
"We were swamped during the weekend like we thought we'd be, but maybe a little busier during the week would have been better. But I'm not disappointed," said Audra Boarman, Bagel Deli.
While the Super Bowl drew tens of thousands of people downtown, those hoping to cash in on parking were finding it a tough sell. Parking near the stadium may have begun at $200 to $300 a pop but it quickly dropped.
Two hours before the game, some lots charging higher amounts hadn't parked a single car. Even lots that offered live music and tailgating were having a tough time on game day, and were forced to drop their prices.
Basey's may be right next to the stadium, but that also put it in the secure zone, limiting even foot traffic until 2:00 pm Sunday. It definitely hurt the bottom line.
"It's great for the city. I will say that, but I'd have to think long and hard if I'd want it back, to be honest," said Greg Basey, restaurant owner.
Several Broad Ripple bars also saw less than super sales. Union Jack Pub did 30 to 40 percent less than they expected.
"We brought in extra staff, extra product and pretty much that went to waste. We didn't need it because it was more like a normal weekend," said Tom Campbell, Union Jack Pub.
Also disappointed was the owner of Santorini's in Fountain Square, another celebration site.
"I think it was a lot of anticipating and it was a letdown, because there was such a big build-up. We didn't get much business at all," said Jeanette Sawi, Santorini.
Free shuttles to Fountain Square and Broad Ripple didn't generate the expected numbers.
The manager at Three Wise Men Brewery believes the weather and the zipline also factored in.
"My guess would be just the fans were downtown. The draw of downtown was so great that kind of affected the surrounding areas a little bit," said Scott Lewandowski, Three Wise Men.
