Public Outreach Meetings Scheduled on Proposed San Diego Convention Center Expansion

Wednesday, 29 June 2011
Contact: Marguerite Elicone (619) 686-6222

The San Diego Convention Center Corporation and the Port of San Diego will be hosting two public meetings to solicit citizen opinions on critical elements of the proposed expansion of the San Diego Convention Center.

The first meeting will be held on Thursday, July 14, 2011 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel, 1 Park Boulevard (map), San Diego. Free parking is available at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront garage on the corner of Harbor Drive and Park Boulevard.

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The second meeting will be held Saturday, July 16, 2011 from 10 a.m. to noon at the San Diego Convention Center, Room 32 AB, 111 West Harbor Drive (map), San Diego. Free parking is available underneath the Convention Center. Please use the entrance at the San Diego Marriott Marquis & Marina driveway on Harbor Drive at Front Street.

At the forefront at the meetings will be discussions on public access, view corridors and design and programming of the rooftop public space.

The expansion of the Convention Center would add about 225,000 square feet of exhibit space, 80,000 square feet of multi-purpose ballroom space, 16,000 square feet of kitchen space and 101,500 square feet of meeting room space. Additionally, there would be an outdoor promenade, retail shops, pedestrian walkways, a rooftop open space and a water transportation center.

• San Diego Convention Center Phase III Expansion Project

In November 2010, it was announced that Fentress Architects, a firm based in Denver, Colorado, was selected to create the design for the expansion. The proposed concept includes the creation of approximately five acres of accessible public space, which includes the rooftop public space and possible performance venue.

• Related: "Design Team Selected for San Diego Convention Center Expansion" (November 2010)

The expansion project also includes a 250-500 room hotel to be located on either the Plaza Park on the southwest corner of Harbor Drive and Park Boulevard or on a site next to the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel.

The San Diego Convention Center Corporation is the applicant on the expansion project and the Port of San Diego is the lead agency on the project’s Environmental Impact Report and the proposed hotel.

The Convention Center project is currently under environmental review. The Environmental Impact Report is scheduled for completion in February 2012. Construction is anticipated to begin in January 2013 and will take about two and a half years. The expanded Convention Center should be open for business in 2015.

The Port of San Diego is an economic engine for the San Diego region, providing jobs through its maritime cargo and cruise business lines. The Port also supports responsible commercial development that brings jobs and economic impact to the San Diego region.