Downtown Cleveland businesses are gearing up for a busy Thursday night as the Browns host the Pittsburgh Steelers at Huntington Bank Field, with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. The matchup doubles as the Browns' third annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Game, drawing both football fans and music lovers into the city center hours before the opening whistle.
Restaurants and bars near the stadium expect crowds to build throughout the evening, as fans stop for food and drinks before the game, according to WKYC. The Corner Alley, located on East Fourth Street, expected its biggest rush between 5 and 6 p.m. Thursday and brought in extra employees ahead of the crowds, the outlet reported. The bar planned to stay open later than usual for the night.
A Coach's Pep Talk Before the Rush
Scotty Russell compared preparing staff for the night to a coach getting a team ready for a game. “It's like a pep talk,” Russell said, per the same WKYC report. Businesses within walking distance of the stadium hope to benefit both before and after the final whistle, as fans spill back into downtown looking for a postgame bite or drink.
Music and Football Share the Spotlight
Thursday's matchup is the Browns' annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Game, celebrating Cleveland's connection to music alongside an NFL rivalry. “For the third straight year, the Browns will honor Cleveland's own Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” the team said in a statement reported by ClevelandBrowns.com, adding that Cleveland is the home base of rock & roll and that there is no better stage to celebrate that than a primetime game against the team's biggest rival. The night is set to feature music elements throughout the evening and a surprise halftime performance by a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, with Cheap Trick — inducted in 2016 — reported as set to perform at halftime, though that detail comes from a lower-confidence search snippet rather than a confirmed team announcement.
The first 30,000 fans who enter Huntington Bank Field were scheduled to receive a Browns-Steelers matchup poster, according to the team's announcement. The Browns described the night as pairing Cleveland's music identity with the franchise's longest-running NFL rivalry.
Drivers Should Expect Road Closures Around the Lakefront
Drivers heading downtown should prepare for traffic and road closures around the lakefront. The City of Cleveland announced game-day closures of East Ninth and West Third streets between Lakeside Avenue and Huntington Bank Field, including nearby State Route 2 exits, according to the Browns' announcement. For Thursday's game specifically, those closures were scheduled to take effect at 9 p.m., according to Ideastream Public Media.
The Route 2 westbound exit ramp was scheduled to close at West Third Street, while the eastbound ramp was scheduled to close at West Sixth Street, per the same Ideastream report. Erieside Avenue between East Ninth Street and West Third Street was also scheduled to close at 9 p.m. Thursday, according to FOX 8, which reported that ramps will stay closed until after the game ends and reopen only when police feel it is safe, depending on foot traffic.
Game-day parking restrictions were scheduled to run from 4 p.m. to midnight Thursday, and FOX 8 reported that violators may be ticketed and towed to the One Stop Vehicle Impound Center. Adding to the congestion, the Memorial Bridges Loop project, which started in June, was expected to continue into mid-November, according to the Ideastream report, meaning downtown drivers are contending with both game-day closures and ongoing construction at once.
