Irving Continues to Surge Ahead with Convention Center Development

The Irving Convention Center, which will become the centerpiece of Las Colinas‘ Urban Center, is slated to open in November 2010.

Considered Phase 1 of the multi-phased project, the development of the convention center and mixed-use entertainment district will encompass over 40 acres within Las Colinas’ Urban Center.

• Las Colinas is a 12,000-acre, master-planned community which has over 75 hotels and 11,000 rooms to accommodate convention center guests.
• Las Colinas has a taxable base of more than $7 million and is home to more than 2,000 corporations and four, Fortune 500 companies.
• Las Colinas is located in Irving, which is conveniently located next to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and between Dallas and Fort Worth.

The flexible design of the convention center allows it to secure high-end exhibitions, conventions, meetings and other venues.

Currently, Irving’s largest hotel ballroom is approximately 10,000 square feet. The exhibit hall of the new convention center will be more than five times that size, thus attracting far more groups to meet in Irving.

Right now the Irving Convention and Visitors Bureau has begun filling the facility and is focusing on groups of 800 to 1,200 people, although the facility can hold up to 4,000 attendees for a single event.

The Irving Convention Center project is under the direction of the Irving Convention and Visitors Bureau and is managed by SMG Worldwide, which is a leader in facility management, marketing and development. SMG will serve as a project consultant until the convention center opens.

Irving Convention Center, Las Colinas by the numbers:

• Gross square footage = 275,000
• Total leasable space = 90,000 square feet
• Estimated budget = $137 million
• Estimated opening = November 2010
• Total amount of column-free exhibit space = 50,000 square feet
• Total ballroom space = 20,000 square feet
• Total breakaway room space = 20 breakout rooms, each at 1,000 square feet