The expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center in downtown Philadelphia will be complete in early 2011, three months ahead of schedule and within its $780 million budget, the project's builder, Tishman Construction Corporation (TCC), announced this month.
"Tishman is pleased to be able to deliver the Pennsylvania Convention Center Expansion ahead of schedule and under budget," said TCC Executive Vice President Edward Cettina. "The success of this huge public project can be attributed to seamless coordination between the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of General Services, and by our joint-venture construction management team of Tishman/Jingoli. Together, we created an environment to initiate and facilitate a series of ongoing integrated efforts, saving time and public funds, while delivering a world-class facility."
Originally scheduled for completion in March 2011 — with grand-opening celebrations scheduled for late June — the expanded Pennsylvania Convention Center will feature 935,000 square feet of new space, yielding more than 528,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space, not to mention 23 additional meeting rooms, three new exhibit halls and a 56,000-square-foot ballroom.
"The Pennsylvania Convention Center expansion is crucial to the economy of the City of Philadelphia and the entire region. We are proud to be part of the team that is bringing it to fruition," said TCC CEO Joseph Jingoli.
Added Project Executive Joseph Resta, "The convention center expansion has a fairly large footprint — nearly eight acres — in a uniquely urban environment, in the middle of Center City Philadelphia. The expansion became a textbook case of 'just-in-time' scheduling and construction that ideally matches the experiences of Tishman Construction, ultimately making the frenetic pace seem ordinary."