OKC lands another major convention

[sgray]

I think our issue with bigger conventions/events (ones that involve lots people coming in from out-of-town from all over) is the link between DOWNTOWN and TRANSIT centers (AIRPORT, BUS station, TRAIN station,etc). The bulk of the people are not driving cross-country, ya know?

Any downtown circulator (streetcar or whatever) will help WITHIN the downtown area...to get people around from HOTEL to CONVENTION to FOOD/ENTERTAINMENT...but it is merely one COMPONENT of the puzzle. We MUST have some friggen awesome (read: FAST) linkage between transit centers and the downtown area.

Someone mentioned CES, good example of a larger-scale convention. Not entirely impossible, though unlikely. Consider this: most major air carriers have a presence here with a good flight frequency and alternate equipment (read: planes) can easily accommodate the influx of people since the carriers themselves can already bring in and service whatever mainline they have in here, for the most part.

I'm not saying this needs to be built yesterday or el-pronto, but it would need to happen prior to ramping up to larger conventions and would make us look much more attractive to conventions/events of all sizes.

Someone here mentioned hotel rooms. We have witnessed examples of how FAST okc can get hotel towers built...BAM! Entertainment options/hours-of-operation would expand almost overnight, once the businesses see the demand.



Given the ACCESSIBILITY and FACILITY combination, I think we can do some serious damage to the convention market!

[Spartan]

Spartan,

I agree, it seems low to me as well. his "750 AT LEAST" puts us right in the average. The Chamber's report said the average was 770 and they only suggested the 650 number. Why go below the average? Seems you are selling yourself short from the beginning. Can't recall if it was the Chamber's Report or the ULI (may have been both) stated that the C.C. hotel isn't going to commit 100% of their rooms to the convention either, so the 650 number becomes even smaller.

The numbers suggested (sf, rooms etc) are based on current needs. If the Mayor is correct on the timing and we are 10 years (mol) away, what are the needs going to be by then? Again, seems like we will already be behind the curve on opening day.

Precisely. Even in the most extraordinary circumstance, a CC hotel will only commit 90% of rooms--so that's less than 600 from 650. Severely limiting, not much bigger than OKC's current largest hotel..

[jbrown84]

I think our issue with bigger conventions/events (ones that involve lots people coming in from out-of-town from all over) is the link between DOWNTOWN and TRANSIT centers (AIRPORT, BUS station, TRAIN station,etc).

We MUST have some friggen awesome (read: FAST) linkage between transit centers and the downtown area.

What does San Antonio have??

[betts]

What does San Antonio have??

The Alamo.

Seriously though, I haven't been in San Antonio since the Spurs-Nets finals, which has been a few years now. I don't remember much of any mass transit besides buses, and I remember that I usually walked everywhere rather than wait for a bus. Maybe it's changed.

I think San Antonio got a lot of good press by having the River Walk before anyone else had anything like it, and it became a destination for conventions because of it and their decent weather. I guess Sea World might be a draw as well.

[jbrown84]

San Antonio has no better options for getting downtown from the airport than we do at this point.

[OKC@heart]

Just got back from a trade show there and walked everywhere. There was a trolley system (rubber tires) and then bus and cabs...thats all. The river walk is a draw and it is a matured entertainment and retail locale so that helps. As far as access from the airport no better than OKC, and maybe worse due to the traffic and distance.

[betts]

I'm trying to think of how many cities have much mass transit from the airport. I would know, because my husband adores subways and he pretty much forces us to take the subway from the airport if it exists. London, of course. We take it in Chicago if my daughters can't pick us up and I used to use it in Atlanta sometimes. We always take a cab in New York, and I'm going through my head trying to think of other cities where we take anything but a cab. Miami. No. New Orleans. No. Washington D.C. I can't remember. Dallas. No. Houston. No. Denver. No. Seattle. I don't think so. LA. No. I haven't been to SF in quite a while.

So, I'm thinking that while many cities have mass transit, transit from the airport can be problematic. If other people think differently, please correct me. But, I don't think having to take a cab to a hotel in OKC would prevent people from coming to a convention here. What I do think is a problem is if you have to rent a car to get around. It's after I get to the hotel that I really like to be able to use mass transit. That's another reason why the streetcar is so critical, IMO.

[Spartan]

The Alamo.

Seriously though,

Hahaha

[stlokc]

In St. Louis you can take light rail from the airport into downtown. You can transfer at Forest Park to Clayton and the inner suburbs. The St. Louis system is not extensive, but they did do a good job of configuring their two lines in such a way as to link the primary business and entertainment districts. From experience, it's good for commuting if you happen to live right along it but it's not practical for going all over the city. It is, though, a great setup for conventioneers or the casual sightseer.

[HOT ROD]

betts, here is what I know (rail transit from airport to downtown):

New York: subway (JFK AirTrain), to NYC Subway; I think subway goes to LGA
Chicago: subway (the L) to both airports, Metra is close to O'Hare
Vancouver: subway (SkyTrain)
DC: subway (Regan National), subway under construction (Dulles)
Baltimore: light rail
Seattle: light rail *brand spanking new
Portland: light rail
SF: subway (BART)
Oak: trolley to subway (airBART)
STL: light rail
ATL: subway

Im pretty certain about the aformentioned cities/airports. I think LA has light rail under construction and Denver had/has a plan for it. I think Detroit has a link and Boston also. I can't remember if Philly had, so long ago for me.

Sorry to detract from conventions; Maybe we should do another thread for this, but it is interesting.

[Spartan]

In St. Louis you can take light rail from the airport into downtown. You can transfer at Forest Park to Clayton and the inner suburbs. The St. Louis system is not extensive, but they did do a good job of configuring their two lines in such a way as to link the primary business and entertainment districts. From experience, it's good for commuting if you happen to live right along it but it's not practical for going all over the city. It is, though, a great setup for conventioneers or the casual sightseer.

I think that the general lay of St Louis makes it easy to configure transit lines (it all just generally goes west out of downtown STL)--OKC not so much.

[Spartan]

I think Detroit has a link and Boston also.

Boston has the Big Dig going to their airport..

[metro]

Philly has SEPTA. They also have a nice Amtrak setup to just about anywhere.

[Oil Capital]

Boston has the Big Dig going to their airport..

Boston has the Big Dig and Boston has subway service to Logan Airport, and part of the Big Dig project does go to the airport. BUT, the subway service to the airport has nothing to do with the Big Dig.

[Oil Capital]

betts, here is what I know (rail transit from airport to downtown):

Im pretty certain about the aformentioned cities/airports. I think LA has light rail under construction and Denver had/has a plan for it. I think Detroit has a link and Boston also. I can't remember if Philly had, so long ago for me.

Sorry to detract from conventions; Maybe we should do another thread for this, but it is interesting.

Correct on Boston. I'm pretty sure there is no rail service at Detroit's airport.

Philly is definitely connected by rail.

[easternobserver]

In Boston, Logan Airport is a stop on both the Blue Line (subway) and the Silver Line (Bus Rapid Transit via dedicated lanes, actually does use the a dedicated tunnell that was part of the Big Dig). Both offer easy connections to the entire regional transit system, including commuter rail, subway and bus.

[easternobserver]

A major national conference was in town last week. The Association of State Floodplain Managers held its annual meeting at the Cox Center. Rooms sold out fast in the Renaissance, Sheraton and Courtyard. One problem having public-sector conventions is a lack of available government rate rooms. This conference partially solved this problem by also blocking rooms at the Skirvin, which does not offer government rates, and directing the exhibitors and sponsors (mostly private sector consultants with expense accounts) to stay there. The Hampton Inn had not been open at the time the conference was planned, but I know that a number of attendees also stayed there.

The preliminary reviews of the conference were fantastic. Some minor complaints about the HVAC systems and A/V systems in the Cox Center, but overall attendees LOVED downtown and Bricktown. In the case of these conferences, transit from the airport is actually far less important that location directly adjacent to restaurants and entertainment venues. Conference planners can easily offset airport transit needs, and most travelers will take a cab or shuttle to and from the airport if they know they will be able to walk around during the entire conference with no need for taxis, etc.

There is no doubt a need for another conference hotel, but it may need to be subsidized in order to offer the block rates and especially the government rates necessary to attract major conventions. The Renaissance can do this because it is, in effect, subsidized by the fact that it controls and operates the bulk of the actual meeting space (and the food service for this space) in the Cox Center. Still, a hotel subsidy would be a very small investment given the economic impact that a large meeting has on downtown and Bricktown.

[Oil Capital]

In Boston, Logan Airport is a stop on both the Blue Line (subway) and the Silver Line (Bus Rapid Transit via dedicated lanes, actually does use the a dedicated tunnell that was part of the Big Dig). Both offer easy connections to the entire regional transit system, including commuter rail, subway and bus.

Correct. Just to avoid any misunderstanding, only the silver line (brt, not rail) uses the big dig tunnel. The blue line rail is not in a big dig tunnel.

[easternobserver]

No, blue line subway long predated the big dig...and to be fair, the blue line transfer from the station to the terminals is a real pain, especially with any baggage.

[Naptown12713]

Cleveland, OH has a rail line that runs directly from its airport to a main downtown terminus. If my memory recalls, it was one of the first public transit lines (1967) to directly link a major airport to a downtown.

[Urban Pioneer]

You know, in talking to people on the street, I get the sense that even the more educated yokel doesn't understand how big this is going to be for OKC.

Someone mentioned that its a "coming out party" for OKC (which is incredibly funny in the other context) but quite correct in the "Big Fish" context.

There will be a "get to know OKC party" every night and probably every moment that these guests are in town.

[Larry OKC]

Agree...think most are saying, "<<BIG YAWN>>...a bunch of Mayors are getting together...so what?" Now if you wee talking Governors or something like a national political convention...

[metro]

I think many of us get it UP, and if I'm not mistaken, it should coincide with the deadCENTER film festival, which Mat Hoffman and other celebrities will be appearing at. Should be a HUGEEEE week downtown and for the City.

[jbrown84]

And don't forget about the Flaming Lips teaming up with the Philharmonic for a concert during the convention. GENIUS, I say.

[barnold]

Not to rain on the parade, but 400-600 attendees does not make a MAJOR national conference. The softball hall of fame had over 7000 per session during the tournament this saturday and pumps tons more money than the mayors convention. I'm happy for any conventions that we can land here in Okc but quit breaking your arms patting yourselves on the back for something that won't put as much money into city coffers as a weekend poker run. We are still taking babysteps when it comes to sizeable national conventions.......but that's Ok. Lets quit blowing this out of proportion.