Business View Magazine September 2018

230 231 THE SAVANNAH INTERNATIONAL TRADE&CONVENTIONCENTER AT A GLANCE THE SAVANNAH INTERNATIONAL TRADE & CONVENTION CENTER WHAT: A 330,000-sq.-ft. convention and meeting venue WHERE: Hutchinson Island in the Savannah River WEBSITE: www.savtcc.com by a local, special option, one-penny sales tax. So, another $37 million was appropriated from that sales tax and that gave us the funding to go forward. In the mid-‘90s, a site was selected on Hutchinson Island on land that was donated by the CSX Railroad Company. The building has been operating now for over 18 years and has contin- ued to build a foundation of business including trade shows, conventions, meetings, and special events.” The Savannah Convention Center includes: 100,000-sq.-ft. of exhibit hall space, a 25,000-sq.- ft. ballroom, a 367-seat auditorium, 13 meeting rooms, and four board rooms. It employs 50 full-time, and 50 part-time staff, plus hundreds of temporary employees, as needed, who host approximately 160 events per year. According to its General Manager, Sherrie Spinks, there is no “typical” client. “We do everything under the sun,” she declares. “Of course, we focus on trade show business, citywide business, and association business. Then we fill it in with sporting events, consumer shows - we have boat shows, tattoo shows, dinosaur shows; a rock’n’roll marathon; lots of corporate banquets, lunches, and dinners; we’re doing roller derby, volleyball; we’re going after everything we can.” One of SITCC’s advantages in the competitive world of convention centers is its location–Sa- vannah is one of the top visitor locations in the