ST. LOUIS (KMOX) — A consulting group thinks America’s Center needs a lot of work to compete with other major cities for big conventions.
“They’re recommending that we have to have, at a minimum, 500,000, but ideally closer to 600,000 square feet of exhibit space,” St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission President Kitty Ratcliffe told KMOX’s Mark Reardon Thursday. “That needs to be contiguous, comparable quality exhibit space.”
America’s Center currently has about 340,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space. That doesn’t include the Edward Jones Dome, which is accessible only through a small, winding hallway that exhibitors have said they don’t like. Ratcliffe says conventions are currently booking out through 2025, so any upgrade decisions should be made quickly.
Ratcliffe says design and cost estimates won’t be ready for some time.
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