Business View Magazine
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This past January, the Center opened the doors on a
$325 million expansion – the largest capital improve-
ment project in San Antonio’s history. Today the Center
has the biggest ballroom in the state, the newest tech-
nology of any convention center in the country, and the
overall best value for its many customers who come to
this city of 1.5 million for their conventions and trade
shows.
According to Michael Sawaya, the Center’s Executive
Director, the city’s original convention facility dates
back to 1968. “The City decided to host the World’s
Fair,” he says, “and it was kind of a coming-out party
for the community; it opened it up to the world stage.
As part of that development, the City built both tempo-
rary and permanent facilities. One of the permanent
ones was the Convention Center. It included an arena
and a theatre for the performing arts.” Over the years,
as more and more convention business came to the
city-owned facility, it went through several expansions
and renovations. “This last expansion was part of re-
positioning and a re-envisioning of our downtown,”
Sawaya adds. “But it also was a way of modernizing
and expanding facilities so that we could compete ef-
fectively for the next 20-plus years.”
Most of the1968structurewas demolished. “Today, the
only thing that’s left of that original building is the Lila
Cockrell Theatre,” Sawaya says. In its place is a brand
new, LEED Silver-certified edifice with 514,000 square
feet of contiguous exhibit space, 86,500 square feet of
column-free multi-purpose space, 70 meeting rooms,
and the 54,000-square-foot Stars at Night Ballroom
with 1,652 LED lights in its ceiling to give the effect of
the stars at night in the Texas sky. On the footprint of
the original structure there will be an expansion of the
neighboring Hemisfair Park, a remnant of the World’s
Fair site, which will provide enhanced opportunities for
outdoor events. The expanded Center is set on the Riv-
AT A GLANCE
WHO:
The Henry B. González Convention Center
WHAT:
Named for the late US congressman Henry
González, the Center hosts more than 300 events
each year.
WHERE:
San Antonio, Texas
WEBSITE
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