GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC 26) -- The Packers schedule release may have some extra excitement after a year of football played mostly without fans in the stands.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says he expects stadiums at full capacity.
PACKERS SCHEDULE: Packers 2021 schedule features five primetime games and Christmas Day at Lambeau
"Coming to work will be exciting knowing that we get to run our butts off for once, knowing that it's a good reason," Ashwaubenon restaurant manager Julia Nolan said.
As the pandemic affected football, local businesses felt the impact. But Nolan has high hopes for the future.
As an employee of Kroll's West across the street from Lambeau, Nolan says this year's fans will bring more money and more excitement.
"Tip wise, we were hit hard," Nolan said about last football season. "It was like a normal day. It wasn't a Packer game where you make almost double what you're normally making on that wait."
With higher attendance expected at Lambeau next season, Nolan says she expects her restaurant to be filled with fans grabbing a bite to eat. But though her eatery isn't fully staffed yet, she says that shouldn't matter.
"We're getting more applications in, so I'm not really worried about Packers season," Nolan said. "I'm just ready for it to be here and to have some excitement, and to do our job again and be outside."
Local hotels feel the same way. Sales director Alexa Bartol says the Hilton Garden Inn is already getting calls.
"We are expecting full bookings," Bartol said. "Our occupancy is slowly even climbing as of right now. So it's a big difference between right now and the beginning of the year."
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, Wisconsin saw nearly a 19-percent drop in hospitality and leisure industry jobs over the course of a year.
"We had to cut hours and it affected not just the hotel -- the business part of it -- but also our coworkers and the employees," Bartol said.
But with fans in the stands, Bartol says they'll probably need a place to stay.
"As long as the stadium is accepting 100 percent of fans, there's for sure going to be a boost," she said. "It's going to be drastically different than what 2020 had."
Some hotels and restaurants are bringing in more staff members to handle the upcoming Packers traffic.
