News Release
July 20, 2010
Media Contacts:
David Blandford, Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau
(206) 713-8314/blandford@visitseattle.org
Brian Baum, Washington State Convention Center
(206) 510-2644/brian.baum@wscc.com
New Downtown Conference Center Opens Today
Washington State Convention Center Unveils New, Executive-Quality Meeting Facility;
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony Features Public Officials and Private Sector Business Leaders
SEATTLE - The Conference Center, Seattle’s newest meeting and event space, opens today at 11 a.m. in the heart of downtown Seattle. A ribbon cutting ceremony will include King County Executive Dow Constantine and members of Seattle’s tourism industry representing hotels, attractions, restaurants, retail establishments, tour and transportation companies and others.
Built by the Washington State Convention Center (WSCC), The Conference Center is located at Eighth Avenue and Pike Street, across from the original convention center facility and its 2001 expansion.
The Conference Center will function as a stand-alone, executive-quality meeting facility for regional and national conferences with up to 71,000 square feet of high-end configurable meeting and exhibit space. When combined with existing WSCC facilities, some 414,722 square feet of meeting and exhibit space can support large citywide conventions or more quickly and efficiently help dovetail back-to-back conventions.
[The Conference Center is certified LEED Silver through its use of sustainable construction practices, furnishings and equipment. Wall and partition fabrics are Greenguard certified, all food service equipment is Energy Star rated, and nearly 90 percent of all construction waste has been reclaimed and recycled. The striking linear ceiling treatment is made with Northwest-grown hemlock. Walls and doors are finished in eucalyptus. Two board rooms feature built-in, state-of-the-art equipment controlled from conference tables made with thousand-year-old Douglas fir. Between meetings, guests can relax or network in their choice of three lounges each furnished in leather and fine woods.
The Conference Center features leading-edge technology. All meeting rooms are equipped with intuitive audio controls and touch screen lighting panels, CAT-6 connections and fiber optic ports. Client-based wireless access is optimized with a 1 Gigabyte fiber optic backbone, and two OC3 circuits allow any program to handle up to 3,000 simultaneous wireless users. LCD signage supports all media formats for a high degree of customization.
###
About the Washington State Convention Center:
The Washington State Convention & Trade Center, the largest meeting and event facility in the state, is a non-profit organization established in 1982 by the Legislature to provide economic and civic benefits for the people of Washington.
About Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau:
Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau is a non-profit economic development agency responsible for competitively marketing Seattle as a destination for meeting and convention groups and leisure travelers. As a membership-based organization, SCVB connects more than 900 local businesses with the lucrative visitor market. Some 8.8 million visitors spend $6.9 billion in Seattle and King County annually, contributing $416 million in state and local tax revenues. Direct visitor spending benefits hotels, retailers, restaurants, attractions, transportation services and other businesses, and supports jobs for more than 50,000 people in the Seattle region. For more information, visit www.visitseattle.org.