Last August TSMR noted that there were a number of folks up in Cleveland who were against development of a new convention center. Cleveland's 80 year old center is the oldest in the rust belt, and looks especially hideous when compared to arch-rival Pittsburgh's gleaming new green riverfront wonder.
This story is as good as any to resuscitate TSMR after a six-month hiatus. So let's catch up.
Last summer Cleveland voters convinced Mayor Jane Campbell to pull the plug on a referendum so that it wouldn't even come up on Election Day. Community leaders now suggest that a new building is "years away".
The knock against development was that trade shows are "so last century", "a spurious use of taxpayer money with little upside" and a "toy for rich people". It was also heavily suggested that the new building would be a "payback for the unions."
One of the oddest comments was from a Plain Dealer reader who noted that, "Cleveland can't compete against Orlando and Vegas for this business." Which only suggests that the politicos did a terrible job of selling the economic impact of a new building in such a way that voters could understand the benefits to them. Cleveland is selling against Columbus, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Indianapolis, not Orlando or Vegas. Or even Chicago.
I had always thought Pittsburgh was more in love with its sports franchises than Cleveland, but 'Burghers never carped about their convention center the way Clevelanders did. Taxpayers in the 'Burgh actually carped more about Heinz Field and are now allied against developing a new arena for the Penguins and major concert events to replace Mellon Arena.
But 'Burghers love their new convention center. Tens of thousands of decidedly 'not rich' residents have come downtown to enjoy dozens of shows. Yes, parking is expensive, but it beats travelling out to the ancient Monroeville Expo Center for most of us. Just last week, Pittsburgh nabbed the huge 2005 Bassmasters event, which would never consider Cleveland's relic of a building.
As it turns out, Cleveland is losing business to Pittsburgh. The biennial Rubber Expo, which brings in an estimated $7.9 million of revenue to the City is going to Pittsburgh twice before the end of this decade, returning to Cleveland only once.
Cleveland had planned to tear down the existing I-X center in 2009 to expand Hopkins International Airport. It would seem that plan is also in jeapordy. Some opinion leaders remain cautiously optimistic, primarily because they believe a case has been made for the potential damage to the city's hospitality industry. But, a tax increase earmarked for a convention center may be next to impossible to pass given the need for tax increases for schools and neighborhood development.
Which means that Pittsburgh, which is now looking to add to its convention center sales force, should have a field day - actually, a field decade - picking apart what's left of Cleveland's convention business.
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