Super Bowl 50 fan village details revealed

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (KGO) -- Super Bowl 50 will be held at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara next February, but San Francisco will become something of a national playground.

The Super Bowl 50 Host Committee announced Tuesday its plans for "Super Bowl City," a free-to-the-public fan village that will be across from San Francisco's Ferry Building.

PHOTOS: Super Bowl 50 Fan Village

It will be the hub of fan energy and excitement leading up to game day at Levi's Stadium.

The Super Bowl is on February 7, but the festivities in San Francisco will begin on January 30, with the day's activities topped off by the official re-lighting of the iconic Bay Lights on the Bay Bridge.

Super Bowl City will be located at Justin Herman Plaza, on the Embarcadero at the foot of San Francisco's Market Street and will feature family-friendly activities for fans of all ages.

At least one million people are expected to be in the city, which will cause some logistical challenges. Market Street from Beale Street to Justin Herman Plaza will be closed to traffic and southbound lanes of the Embarcadero will also be impacted as the area is transformed into a fan village.

Super Bowl City will be designed to showcase the best the Bay Area has to offer, with interactive games and activities that highlight the region's technological prowess, culinary excellence and cultural diversity, as well as celebrate the 50th Super Bowl.

In a break from tradition, Super Bowl City will be open for an extra weekend this year, providing many local residents the opportunity to experience the excitement of Super Bowl 50 before out-of-town guests arrive.

"Super Bowl City will give every San Franciscan a chance to share in the fan experience of Super Bowl 50," San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee said. "As San Francisco hosts the most philanthropic Super Bowl ever, our Bay Area region's small local businesses, hotels and restaurants will share in the all these events. I'm excited that the San Francisco Bay Area and all we have to offer will be once again on seen on one of the world's largest stages," he added.

"But it's the Bay Area, so the pressure is on us to do it differently, so we'll have great food and wine, we'll have entertainment, we'll have our artist community on full display, we'll have our technology," Super Bowl Host Committee spokesperson Keith Bruce said.

Robert Walls worries about losing customers at his Market Street shoeshine. "I don't think it's fair you mess up people's businesses just for the Super Bowl," he said.

But one customer sees the benefit. "It's a big boon to the economy, restaurants are going to be filled," one man said.

San Francisco's Super Bowl Host Committee also wants community non-profits to benefit. The plan is to give them 25 percent of every dollar raised.

Former San Francisco 49er Ronnie Lott is onboard. "I like the fact that we're going to be known as a giving Super Bowl, I like the fact that it's going to represent more than the game itself" he said.

In addition, to the free fan village at Justin Herman Plaza, Moscone Center is the site of the NFl experience, a ticketed league event.

For full coverage on Super Bowl 50, click here.