Huntington Convention Center expansion opens to praise
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The expanded ballroom and rooftop terrace. Photo: Sam Allard/Axios
The Global Center for Health Innovation is dead. Long live the Huntington Convention Center expansion.
Driving the news: At Friday's grand opening, local leaders lauded the transformation of the building at St. Clair Avenue and Ontario Street from earlier, ill-begotten iterations as a medical supplies emporium and a hub for biotech startups.
- Those gathered praised the project's completion "on time and under budget" and heralded future conventions and the economic activity they would spur.
The big picture: Taxpayers paid $52 million to refashion the structure as a convention center addition.
- The facelift included expanding the first-floor ballroom, building an outdoor terrace and installing escalators.
- Cuyahoga County Council balked at the high cost in 2022, though members ultimately authorized the project.
The latest: The expanded square footage and premium amenities are already attracting new convention business, according to David Gilbert, president and CEO of Destination Cleveland.
What they're saying: Gilbert said Destination Cleveland has booked 19 major events through 2030. Many of them, he claims, wouldn't have happened if not for the expanded square footage.
- "It took a lot of courage to do this," he said, thanking former county executive Armond Budish and others.
- "We tried to show that this addition is exactly what the customer wanted, and you took a risk skating where the puck was going."
What's next: In two weeks, the expanded convention center's first major event will be the annual meeting of the American Society of Association Executives, the so-called "Super Bowl of conventions," with more than 5,000 attendees expected.
- "These are decision-makers in the industry," Gilbert said. "They are going to see this building, and they are going to book this building."
Zoom in: Key among the convention center's enhancements is its expanded ballroom with improved audio-visual technology.
- The square footage of the marquee first-floor space has doubled to 22,000 square feet and is now subdivisible into smaller meeting spaces.
Plus: Ron King, the convention center's general manager, says a new outdoor terrace above the ballroom has already generated interest as a wedding venue.
- New "suites" on the second, third and fourth floors can be used as meeting rooms, lounge areas or branded event spaces.
- The open atrium offers expansive views of the city and lakefront.
What's next: The plaza outside the ballroom will soon be the site of a Superman statue by local artist David Deming, said County Council President Pernel Jones Jr.