Event spaces breathe new life into cities again

Last summer, construction began on a $3.7 billion overhaul of the Kay Bailey Hutchison convention center that, when completed, will replace and expand that facility to 2.5 million sf that include 800,000 sf of exhibit space, 260,000 sf of breakout/meeting space, and 170,000 sf of ballroom space, as well as a new arena and theater. CoStar News reported that Visit Dallas, the city’s marketing group, earlier in the year had already booked 43 events for the new center. This upgrade would also free up 21 acres near the convention center to lease to developers for building new hotels, apartments, and other walkable amenities.

In an August posting, Northstar Meetings Group, an online platform for event organizers and planners, provided updates on the progress of 19 convention center renovation and/or expansion projects, ranging from the $95 million first phase reno of the Fort Worth (Texas) Convention Center that is adding new food-and-beverage facilities and four more loading docks; to imminent permits being issued for the addition of 72,000 sf of exhibit space to America’s Center in St. Louis, bringing that facility’s total exhibit space to 574,000 sf. This phase is adding an 88,000-sf outdoor green space that will be ready next summer to host concerts and open-air exhibits. 

These projects accentuate the importance that cities still place on event spaces for widening their welcome mats, be they for meetings, performances, athletics, or commerce. Recent construction activity seems to suggest that the event building sector has shaken off any post-pandemic hangover and is once again part of many cities’ plans to draw visitors and residents back into urban cores. 

A recent Urban Land Institute article about convention centers cited the Center for Exhibition Industry Research, which estimates that convention attendance in the U.S. rose by more than 15% in 2023. “The convention center is fulfilling a social function that used to happen in the office,” Rob Svedberg, a principal for the design firm TVS, told ULI.

Indy-area performance venue will host four teams

Convention centers aren't the only building types in the hospitality sector that are benefiting from renewed demand. A mid-sized event center claiming to be the largest of its kind in the midwest U.S. was poised to  open this month.

The 7,500-seat Fishers Event Center will anchor the $500 million expansion of the Fishers District, a lifestyle and entertainment destination in Fishers, Ind., a suburb of Indianapolis. The Event Center provides performance space, and will be home to four professional sports teams: Fishers Freight (football), Hoosier State Instigators (basketball), Indy Fuel (hockey), and Indy Ignite (volleyball).

The venue has 202,310 sf of usable floor space and 631,621 sf of outdoor plaza area. Its construction required 2,410 tons of structural steel. AECOM Hunt is the GC, and Thompson Thrift the project manager. SCI Architects designed the building, whose construction cost was $170 million (an estimate BD+C confirmed with a spokesperson for the city this week). ASM Global last year signed an initial five-year contract to manage the facility.

N.C. event center takes a multipurpose approach

As part of its effort to modernize its entertainment venues to drive economic growth, Cumberland County in North Carolina broke ground October 29 in downtown Fayetteville, N.C., on its 134,000-sf Crown Event Center that will replace that city’s Crown Theater and Arena, which was built in 1957.

Designed by Ewing Cole, the Crown Event Center’s construction is being managed at risk by TA Loving and Metcon Inc. On Sept. 11, the county’s committee overseeing this project approved a Guaranteed Maximum Price of $144,455,422. At that time, the committee recommended splitting the project into three phases: sitework and demolition of the old theater, at a GMP of $3,414,411; a second phase that includes structural steel, concrete, and long-lead items like switchgear and the generator; and a third phase that encompasses all remaining bid packages.

The Center is scheduled to open in the spring of 2027. It will be situated between the county’s Historic Courthouse and the Judge E. Maurice Braswel Cumberland County Courthouse. According to Ewing Cole, the new facility will feature a 3,000-seat main event hall, a multi-use banquet room, smaller meeting rooms, and a rooftop terrace. The Center will be enhanced by advanced acoustics, flexible stage configurations, improved backstage spaces, and upgraded amenities.

The County’s long-term goal is to become a top destination for entertainment and the arts in southeastern North Carolina, said Glenn Adams, chairman of the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, in a prepared statement. MBP Carolinas is the County’s Owner’s Rep on this project.