Green Bay neighborhood associations getting re-engaged for the 2025 NFL Draft

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - The countdown continues to the 2025 NFL Draft is on and the Packers, local businesses, and organizations are busy preparing.

And the City of Green Bay is looking to re-engage some neighborhood associations ahead of the big event.

Neighborhood associations offer a variety of benefits including resources and opportunities - but Green Bay city leaders say they can really connect a community, increase safety, and keep people informed.

Toni Loch, one of the neighborhood support specialists for Green Bay, says right now they’re looking to re-engage the Lombardi neighborhood association ahead of the NFL Draft.

“You can trust them, talk to them, know them, and that helps out quite a bit for the sense of community,” Toni said. “One of the reasons why you have a neighborhood association is if you have good neighbors, you have a good neighborhood. The more you know your neighbors the safer you’re gonna be,”

Gregory Barnes and his wife live in the Lombardi neighborhood and they already know quite a few of their neighbors really well, but they too see the benefit of getting involved in a neighborhood association especially as planning and organizing for the draft continues.

“If we can help out in some way, I’m sure we would. I haven’t thought about the logistics are gonna be with that many people being in this, because at a home game, there’s another 70,000 people but to have that many people coming into this town, it’s gonna be awesome,” said Barnes.

District 8 alderperson Chris Wery says this will be good for neighbors.

“A lot of neighborhoods are driven by issues and this one is going to affect this neighborhood more than any in the city and it will be a good way for communication and questions to approach that big event,” he said.

Other neighborhoods are thinking ahead as well.

“Right now, I’ve had neighbors approach me that they were interested in getting a neighborhood association together and especially with the idea that the draft is coming so preparing that neighborhood and being able to work with them as much as we can,” said Toni Loch.

About 17 people attended a meeting Tuesday night for the creation of a new neighborhood association for the Bond neighborhood. As for the next steps, it will take a village to move forward.

“We need people to step up. Any good neighborhood association, you need a handful of people to be dedicated, and more people makes it easier because you’re not relying on a few and they get burnt out so the more the merrier,” said Chris Wery.

To get involved, be sure to check the city’s website for a list of future meetings for neighborhood associations ahead of the draft.

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