MAYOR DEAN ASKS COUNCIL TO TAKE NEXT STEP ON NEW CONVENTION CENTER
MDHA presents action plan for moving forward
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (January 17, 2008) -Mayor Karl Dean today asked the Metropolitan Council to take the next step on moving forward with a new downtown convention center.
The request came during a special meeting of the Council’s Convention and Tourism Committee called for the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) to present its action plan for the project, which Dean tasked the agency with creating in September.
“I am pleased with the report MDHA has completed. The next step lies with the Council. I’m optimistic they will agree with me that this project presents a unique economic opportunity for our city and that we should continue to move forward on making a new convention center a reality for downtown Nashville,” Dean said.
The next step involves approving funds to be spent on predevelopment work on the project, including designing a master plan and conducting final program and feasibility studies. Legislation will be proposed to the Council in February.
A construction manager and architect would be selected during predevelopment, as well as a minority business enterprise manager to ensure minority-owned and small businesses are involved in the procurement process.
Predevelopment work is estimated to take 18 to 24 months to complete with construction running another 30 to 36 months, putting the opening date in 2012.
Funding for the predevelopment will come from the collection of hotel and motel tax and other tourism-related fees, the same revenue source that would fund financing for the new convention center. Metro began collecting these revenues last summer after the Council passed enabling legislation.
Developing the MDHA action plan involved site visits to other cities that are working on or have just completed new convention centers or major renovations to existing facilities, and reviewing previous studies done by the Music City Center Coalition and the Civic Design Center, as well as a cursory review of current market conditions.
The MDHA report confirms the need for a new convention center in Nashville. The current downtown facility ranks 115th in the nation, making it competitive with cities such as Peoria, Ill. and Fargo, N.D. The center has lost over 240 events in the last five years due to the facility’s size limitations.
A new convention center would include a 375,000-square-foot exhibit hall, between 80 and 90 meeting rooms, two ballrooms, a 300-seat lecture hall and 2,500- to 3,000-seat theatre. Nashville’s current facility has an 118,000-square foot exhibit hall, 24 meeting rooms and one ballroom.
The MDHA report recommends the same location selected by the Music City Center Coalition and the Civic Design Center at Fifth Avenue South and Demonbreun Street just south of Broadway, citing close proximity to the city’s entertainment district and tourist attractions. The site also provides for potential future expansion with several adjacent properties that could be redeveloped.
MDHA revised previous cost estimates for the project to reflect recent increases in construction, land acquisition and utility relocation. The expected cost of a new convention center is $595 million, compared to the last estimate prepared by the Music City Center Coalition of $536 million.
Additionally, the MDHA report addresses the need for parking at a new facility, calling for two 1,000-car garages at a total cost of $40 million.
The action plan calls for an aggressive effort to keep the Council and public informed about progress on the project with quarterly reports to city leaders and a series of public presentations during planning and programming phases of predevelopment.
For media inquiries contact:
Bonna Johnson
615-862-6461
bonna.johnson@nashville.gov