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Convention Center Headquarters Hotel project

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Metro and the convention center hotel project development team are engaged in a process of identifying a financially feasible hotel construction package. Find out why Metro is involved in analyzing the construction of a headquarters hotel.

A document with answers to frequently asked questions is available below. Download the FAQ

What is the Oregon Convention Center Headquarters Hotel project?

The project entails construction of a headquarters hotel adjacent to the Oregon Convention Center that specifically serves the conventions and meetings industry so additional large visitor groups, who, independent studies show, spend millions per year on local businesses, will visit Portland and nearby destinations.

A headquarters hotel has long been planned as part of the Oregon Convention Center package of facilities to serve the state and region's tourism industry. Metro, the City of Portland and the Portland Development Commission have worked diligently to define the appropriate size and type of headquarters hotel to maximize the economic impact of the Oregon Convention Center.

Currently, the city, PDC and Metro are completing a feasibility analysis of the headquarters hotel and must now decide whether or not to proceed with the next planning phase, called the pre‐development phase. This next pre-development phase is estimated to cost up to $12 million and, by employing local firms to complete the architectural and engineering drawings, will enable the project team to develop a guaranteed project construction cost. A significant portion of pre‐development phase costs – $9 million – is scheduled to be repaid to the city and Metro.

Any final decisions – such as approving the entire project or issuing the City of Portland's tax‐exempt revenue bonds to cover the construction costs – won't be made for a minimum of 1‐2 years and will involve additional public hearings and votes by the Portland City Council and the Metro Council.

Why build an Oregon Convention Center Headquarters Hotel?

Tourism, convention and hospitality industry experts conclude that the key ingredient to attracting visitors who bring significant revenue to local businesses - those attending large national conventions is to operate an appropriately‐sized headquarters hotel adjacent to the convention center (source: Strategic Advisory Group Report to Portland Oregon Visitor Association, July, 2007).

A headquarters hotel was included in the very first plan when the Oregon Convention Center Urban Renewal Area (OCC URA) was formed. Goal 1 of the OCC URA Plan is "to maximize the regional job potential of the Oregon Convention Center" by recruiting "at least one headquarters hotel in the immediate vicinity of the OCC.

Without a headquarters hotel adjacent to the Oregon Convention Center, visitors and meeting planners, exhibitors and sponsors are restricted in their ability to travel easily between meetings and their lodging accommodations, so much so that analysis by Travel Portland (formerly Portland Oregon Visitor Association or POVA), the city's destination marketing agency responsible for attracting national convention business, concludes it is the most significant "deal breaker" for meeting planners who choose other cities over Portland (source: Strategic Advisory Group Report to Portland Oregon Visitor Association, 2007).

In 2008, 69 associations and organizations selected Portland among the finalists to hold a convention but chose other cities instead and cited the lack of an adjacent headquarters hotel or adequate hotel package as the primary reasons (source: Strategic Advisory Group Report to Travel Portland, 2008).

Need assistance?

Reed Wagner
503-797-1584
reed.wagner@oregonmetro.gov

related documents

Files that are downloadable from this page

• Convention Center Headquarters Hotel frequently asked questions and answers 236K Adobe Acrobat PDF | Published May 21, 2009