Things are looking up – literally – as Edmonton moves ahead with plans to expand its 20-year-old convention centre.

There won’t be any huge chunks of land displaced by the $24-million project, which will add a fourth exhibition hall on top of a portion of the Shaw Conference Centre’s existing eastern terrace.

The project will include a glass-framed 28,900-sq.-ft. steel and concrete structure overlooking the city’s river valley.

When the convention centre was first built into the downtown valley hillside in 1983, it marked one of the largest rock and soil excavation projects undertaken on this continent. About 12,000 10-ton truckloads of earth were moved to erect the equivalent of a 10-storey building.

An artist’s rendering of Hall D in the Shaw Conference Centre.

In this case, however, 70 per cent of the building was constructed to remain underground.

Once completed in 2006, the Shaw’s total space will rise from 108,700 sq. ft. to 137,600 sq. ft. Major conference and exhibition space will jump from 82,000 sq. ft to 110,900 sq. ft., including 82,000 sq. ft. of continuous column-free space.

The move comes years after conference centre officials first talked of expansion – dating back to 1991 – and will help Edmonton move up the ladder in the North American convention marketplace.

In 1997, Edmonton’s convention facility was the 67th largest in North America, but fell to 84th in 1999.

This latest construction also comes as convention centres across Canada are focusing on expanding their facilities.

“The global meetings and convention market is going through a period of transition and Canada’s facilities are being affected as much as anyone else,” said Rod Cameron, manager of Convention Centres of Canada, a new industry lobby group.

“There are changes in the kinds of function spaces clients want, the level of technology they need, the quality of finish they’d like and the level of service they expect,” he added.

“At the same time, the large number of facility expansions and upgrades in recent years (particularly in the U.S.) are raising the bar in terms of customer expectations.”

While expansions and upgrades may appear to cost a lot of money, there is too much at stake for a community to not remain competitive, said Cameron.

“It isn’t just the immediate economic benefit you risk losing; it’s everything else that goes along with being able to attract such events to your community. The impact of meetings goes far beyond selling a few hotel rooms – in most places, they are a key part of overall business growth. And these days, not expanding and/or upgrading means you’re surrendering your competitiveness,” he said.

With a lot of competition and more than ample supply, Cameron said it’s become a buyer’s market.

“That means a facility must have attractive features and up-to-the-minute facilities to compete effectively.”

It was the need to compete that convinced Calgary to move ahead with expansion plans for its convention centre, part of a $150-million downtown redevelopment project that saw the addition of a Hyatt hotel and incorporated a row of historic buildings.

The tab for Calgary’s Telus Convention Centre (TCC) expansion came in at $69.4 million, including convention space, parkade and retail. Meeting and exhibit space in the expanded facility, which opened in May 2000, is 125,154 sq. ft.

Prior to the expansion, Calgary had lost its competitive edge in all market segments – national, international, provincial and regional – according to TCC general manager Marcia Lyons.

“The original convention centre was opened in 1974. It was completed at a time when the meetings and convention industry was just emerging in Canada,” she said.

“Its design met the needs of the time: a large ballroom for social events, a small tradeshow space and nine meeting rooms. Over the course of the next two decades, industry needs changed.”

With its expansion, the TCC now offers double its original space and provides a 50,000-sq.-ft. exhibit floor along with nine more meeting rooms. Another two will be added this year.

“This has allowed Calgary to regain its competitive ability in the all-important national conventions market, and to begin marketing efforts in the lucrative North American and international markets,” said Lyons.

Edmonton, meanwhile, will be significantly more competitive in attracting new business and will be able to retain existing major clients once the expanded Shaw opens in 2006, said Economic Development Edmonton’s Kenn Bur.

“These are clients who have signalled their intent to continue coming to Edmonton and the Shaw, but the size of their events were becoming too big for us to accommodate,” said Bur.

EDE, which runs the convention centre for the city, also plans to move its offices out of the centre. This would free up space required for the expansion while providing the organization with more visibility at an above-ground location.

The municipal organization’s office relocation request has yet to be approved.

Design work has already commenced on the expansion, known as the Hall D project due to the addition of a fourth major exhibition hall. Construction is expected to start no later than March 2004.

The City of Edmonton will cover $10 million of the $24-million tab, while the provincial and federal governments will each contribute $7 million.

Burr said from an investment perspective, Shaw with Hall D would return $67 to the city for every $33 invested, based solely on tax revenue.

Calgary’s convention facilities had an economic impact on that city of $60 million in 2002, up from about $30 million generated prior to the expansion.

“It also allowed Calgary to host events such as the World Petroleum Congress and the G-8 Media Centre . . . as well as prestigious international events such as the World Congress of Biomechanics, advancing its profile on the world stage and playing an important element for future economic development,” said Lyons.