Plans for $100 million makeover revealed for Charlotte Convention Center
The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority wants to spend $100 million to expand and renovate the convention center as part of a campaign to better compete with similar-sized cities such as Nashville and Austin, according to plans outlined at the City Council meeting on Monday.
Tom Murray, CEO of the visitors authority, told council that a combination of changes in the convention business and the age of the building make the changes necessary. The convention center, bounded by Brevard, Stonewall and College streets and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, opened in 1995 and cost $150 million to build.
An 18-month study by Jones Lang LaSalle Destination Planning Services and architect TVS Design led to the initial concepts introduced Monday. Murray told council the visitors authority will next refine the nine recommendations and sharpen the construction budget. The $100 million figure is a rough estimate, Murray said.