Preparations underway for 2025 NATO summit in Dayton
DAYTON ( WDTN ) — Almost a month after the announcement that Dayton will host the 2025 NATO summit, the Miami Valley is preparing to welcome world leaders.
Nearly 1,000 people from 50 countries are coming to the area next May. Congressman Mike Turner is inviting the community to be a part of the parliamentarian's first impression of the city.
This is the first time in more than two decades that the NATO parliamentary assembly is happening in the U.S.
Members will see sights all around downtown Dayton as they attend various sessions.
Congressman Mike Turner says the next step in inviting the parliamentarians here is to design the logo that will be used throughout the four-day event.
Turner says every city that hosts the assembly has a specialized logo that showcases monuments or symbols that represent the host community.
He says that this is Dayton's first chance to showcase what the community has to offer.
"This is exciting that the community will get to participate. This is an international event that's going to be happening in Dayton, Ohio. It will give a retrospect back to the Dayton Peace Accords that occurred at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base 30 years ago. So this gives us an opportunity to show off Dayton, Ohio," said Turner.
The winning logo will be selected by the NATO parliamentary assembly.
There's no estimation on the economic impact the assembly will have yet, but experts say it's hard to put a dollar amount on the level of exposure Dayton will receive.
"There aren't very many cities that get this kind of exposure from an international standpoint," said Jacquelyn Powell, president & CEO of Destination Dayton.
Powell says Dayton has worked hard to increase the number of hotel rooms and add amenities to host large events like this. The summit will put the city's hospitality in the spotlight.
"We have restaurants and dining options in our community with many independent restaurants that are second to none. And of course, we have world-class attractions here. So all of that speaks to the importance of having these things that make our destination great for bringing people in from outside of the community," said Powell.
