ClevelandThe city of Cleveland, which for years has been attempting to find the political and financial wherewithal to gain approval for a new convention center that would replace its venerable but outdated facility, finally has approved a plan for a new 1-million-sf building.
The Cuyahoga County Commission inked a deal last month with a private partner in Chicago to develop a "Medical Mart," which will pull double-duty for the city as a 500,000-sf permanent showroom for health care equipment and as a venue for exhibitions and meetings.
"We've debated building a new convention center for years but have gotten resistance from folks who don't understand the impact of a competitive center on the community," said Dennis Roche, president of Positively Cleveland, the city's convention bureau. "The Medical Mart concept has given the commissioners the hook they need to invest about a half-billion dollars into the new center."
Helping fund the project is a sales tax increase that would generate about $38 million. The city's partner, Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. (MMPI), will invest $20 million and run the complex. The existing 85-year-old Cleveland Convention Center consists of a gracious performing arts hall, but all of its 278,000 sf of exhibition space is underground. Its multiple building-support pillars severely limit exhibition space possibilities.
"It has been frustrating to see other cities build new centers," Roche added. "If you look at any definition of a competitive set for Cleveland, we've been at the bottom of the list. We're not getting our share of convention business."
Still undetermined is where the Medical Mart will be located. One possible site is where the existing convention center now sits, downtown near Lake Erie. Also under consideration is the Tower City Center, also downtown, where the Medical Mart would nestle on the Cuyahoga River, behind a large shopping and hotel complex. Both sites are near numerous hotels.
The Medical Mart, to open in 2011,will be patterned after Chicago's famed Merchandise Mart and run by the same company. Despite the large investment, the city is not hanging its hat on the new facility as a revenue generator itself.
"It's going to be an economic driver," said Roche. "We're going into this deal with eyes wide open. Nobody expects this to make a profit, and that's not our intent. Our intent is to drive business into Cleveland and the local hospitality venues."
Originally published April 7, 2008