(WXYZ) — Construction on the NFL Draft stage in Downtown Detroit will begin this week, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said on Tuesday, and it will require roads across the downtown area to be closed.
Related: Here are the road closures that begin Friday for NFL Draft buildout
The draft stage and draft theater will be located in the area of the former Monroe Street Midway near Cadillac Square, and Duggan said construction will begin Friday. According to Duggan, it will take 3-4 weeks for the stage to be built, and then a couple of weeks to take the stage down.
Related: See how you can register for NFL Draft tickets below
Because of the construction on the draft stage, there will be several road closures in Downtown Detroit starting Friday and lasting through May.
Duggan said that road closures will span the entire area around the draft stage.
"Starting Friday, you won't be able to drive north on Randolph near the county building, Monroe, Farmer Bates, this whole section, the roads will be closed off," Duggan said.
The road closures will last from March 29 through May 7 are are:
- Randolph St. between Macomb St. and Fort St.
- Monroe St. between Woodward and Randolph
- Farmer between Randolph and Bates (Garage access only)
- Bates St. (No through traffic)
- Farmer from Randolph to Bates
He also said that the Visit Detroit team has been reaching out to surrounding businesses to make sure they know about the closures.
Eventually, in a week or two, Jefferson Ave. will also shut down for the NFL Experience, which is taking place at Hart Plaza.
The entire draft area will span Cadillac Square, Campus Martius, down Woodward Ave. and all the way to Hart Plaza. The draft stage itself will be near Cadillac Square while the NFL Draft Experience will be at Hart Plaza.
Eric Larson with the Downtown Detroit Partnership also said that there has been a committee working on parking and transportation for those coming to the draft, especially with the road closures.
Larson said there will be park-and-ride with shuttles from key locations outside of the core of the city, and that the NFL OnePass app will be a critical resource for people to navigate the draft area.
With the event being free, gates will open at 12 p.m. Thursday and Friday for Rounds 1-3, and then Saturday will open at 9 a.m. for Rounds 4-7.
The details for each day are below.
Thursday, April 25 (Round 1)
- Gates Open: 12 p.m.
- Draft Experience: 12 p.m.
- Draft Pre-show: TBD
- Draft Theater: 8 p.m.
- Draft close: 11 p.m.
Friday, April 25 (Rounds 2-3)
- Gates Open: 12 p.m.
- Draft Experience: 12 p.m.
- Draft Pre-show: TBD
- Draft Theater: 7 p.m.
- Draft close: 11 p.m.
Saturday, April 27 (Rounds 4-7)
- Gates Open: 9 a.m.
- Draft Experience: 9 a.m.
- Draft Pre-show: TBD
- Draft Theater: 12 p.m.
- Draft close: 7 p.m.
According to Barker, load-in and theater structure build will begin at the end of the month, and then construction on other areas of the draft will begin on April 8 and April 15. Woodward will close April 22, according to the NFL.
There will also be plenty of other major events involving the draft, and they plan to utilize several areas in Downtown Detroit for viewing opportunities and other events. Those areas include Capitol Park, Grand Circus Park, Beacon Park and more.
