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NFL Draft Town Kicks Off, Fans Flock Despite Gloomy Weather

 The scene at this year's free NFL festival in Grant Park. 
NFL Draft Town 2016 pictures
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GRANT PARK — Gray skies didn't keep hordes of football fans from flocking to Grant Park for the NFL's Draft Town festival Thursday. 

Fans from across the country spilled into the Downtown park hours before the actual draft is set to begin at 7 p.m. They were met with a Ferris wheel, games, football memorabilia and plenty of stands serving food and beer. 

RELATED: NFL Draft In Chicago: Here's A Map Of Everything To Do In Draft Town

"It's pretty cool to have this many fans from all the different teams," John Clark of the Grand Rapids, Mich. area said. "It's different than a game where everyone is taunting each other."

Lines were long at the Jackson Boulevard entrance, but fans who entered the festival through the Congress Parkway or Columbus Drive entrances said they got through hassle-free. 

Concessionaires include Tank Noodle, Cheesie's, Wow Bao, Black Dog Gelato and Dia De Los Tamales. Beers are being poured out of the festival's "Draft Tavern" at Jackson and Columbus and many other stands throughout the park. 

The actual draft action, including the announcing of picks, will be at the NFL's "Selection Square" stage just east of Buckingham Fountain. But fans who arrive to the festival will find about 20 football fields worth of games, pop-up museums, and shops. New attractions to this year's draft festival include a College Football Hall of Fame, "locker rooms" with video boards, and the aforementioned Ferris wheel.  


The scene at Draft Town on Congress Parkway. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]

Though guests were having fun, some admitted the weather was a bit of a downer. Unlike last year's sunny festival, today's Draft Town will be marred by cloudy skies and showers forecasted later this afternoon.

The festival will last until 10 p.m. Thursday. Check out more pictures from the park: 

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