March 9, 20232 yr 45 minutes ago, Lazarus said: Renovating the building in its current layout only makes sense if it's going to be a future secondary, lower-priced wing, but even then, prime downtown space will be wasted on a building with a design that limits it to volleyball tournaments, gymnastics meets, Beer Fest, animatronic dinosaur shows, etc. Scrapping the existing building and building new using the strategy of Philadelphia and Nashville would change everything, where the main halls are built above parking and the meeting spaces. This allows connectivity of the original surface streets to remain, and it enables parking within the center's footprint rather than the wasting of adjacent blocks for parking as we see currently in Cincinnati. In our case, the exhibit hall could be extended across Elm St. to the former Millennium property and north across Sixth to the current site of the convention center garages. Louisville did similar downtown, the exhibit hall is one story off street level. Makes a nice continuous floor plate across a couple of city blocks, of course you will get those that will bitch that the streets that go under the convention center will be ugly like Louisville or Philly, but they would complain if the street grid was cut off too, so you cant win.
March 9, 20232 yr 52 minutes ago, Lazarus said: Renovating the building in its current layout only makes sense if it's going to be a future secondary, lower-priced wing, but even then, prime downtown space will be wasted on a building with a design that limits it to volleyball tournaments, gymnastics meets, Beer Fest, animatronic dinosaur shows, etc. Scrapping the existing building and building new using the strategy of Philadelphia and Nashville would change everything, where the main halls are built above parking and the meeting spaces. This allows connectivity of the original surface streets to remain, and it enables parking within the center's footprint rather than the wasting of adjacent blocks for parking as we see currently in Cincinnati. In our case, the exhibit hall could be extended across Elm St. to the former Millennium property and north across Sixth to the current site of the convention center garages. I understand what your saying but Im saying expansion nor huge structural layout changes are not apart of this project. You do understand these things cost money. I’m sure in the 2030s when expansion would likely take place a lot of what you’re saying will be in the discussion. 3CDC told Hamilton County Commissioners this week expansion at this time would be exorbitant. A renovation and expansion/big re configuration would be 500+ Million plus the hotel would be a Billion Dollar project, this is not happening. What’s planned right now is a great combo that can actually get done. Edited March 9, 20232 yr by 646empire
March 9, 20232 yr 12 minutes ago, 646empire said: I understand what your saying but Im saying expansion nor huge structural layout changes are not apart of this project. You do understand these things cost money. I’m sure in the 2030s when expansion would likely take place a lot of what you’re saying will be in the discussion. 3CDC told Hamilton County Commissioners this week expansion at this time would be exorbitant. A renovation and expansion/big re configuration would be 500+ Million plus the hotel would be a Billion Dollar project, this is not happening. What’s planned right now is a great combo that can actually get done. I mean the current plan is almost a billion dollars and doesn't seem to fix a lot of the underlying issues lol. Just because we can get it done doesn't mean we should, especially since it'll increase the hotel tax and use up a lot of reserves that could be put to other purposes. I think something needs to be done with the convention center, but I'm not convinced this is a good use of funds. Genuinely curious, could somebody point me to cities that have gone this route, a boutique/high class convention center? Interested to see what kind of events they're getting.
March 9, 20232 yr With Portman being selected as developer, this makes me believe the new hotel brand will be Intercontinental. Portman Holdings has been building out a lot of IHG branded properties in the past five years. The other brands they have built already exist in the city (Hyatt, Westin, Marriott, Hilton). Was hoping for Hilton Signia, but my money now is on Intercontinental.
March 9, 20232 yr 12 minutes ago, dnymck said: Genuinely curious, could somebody point me to cities that have gone this route, a boutique/high class convention center? Interested to see what kind of events they're getting. Nashville abandoned its 1980s convention center on Broadway and built an all-new, and much larger center about five blocks away. The new building opened in 2013. They tore down the Greyhound Station, the strip club where Kid Rock punched the DJ, and several lesser-known businesses to create the building site. The new convention center is getting top-level trade shows. The kids gymnastics, clogging, and craft shows have been relegated to the Opryland convention center. The two obvious spaces where a much larger convention center in Cincinnati could have been easily built were Broadway Commons (now the casino) and the IRS site in Covington. The NKY Convention Center appears to have been built with the provision for expanding onto the IRS site, but that does not appear to be happening.
March 9, 20232 yr 20 minutes ago, dnymck said: I mean the current plan is almost a billion dollars and doesn't seem to fix a lot of the underlying issues lol. If they're planning to build an all-new hall above I-75, that could work, but it's unclear where the money would come from to do so after spending huge money to renovate the existing building.
March 9, 20232 yr 1 hour ago, dnymck said: I mean the current plan is almost a billion dollars and doesn't seem to fix a lot of the underlying issues lol. Just because we can get it done doesn't mean we should, especially since it'll increase the hotel tax and use up a lot of reserves that could be put to other purposes. I think something needs to be done with the convention center, but I'm not convinced this is a good use of funds. Genuinely curious, could somebody point me to cities that have gone this route, a boutique/high class convention center? Interested to see what kind of events they're getting. ummm the current hotel-renovation plan is in the 600 million dollar range, adding another 400+ million/ half billion is a massive difference lol. Also it WILL fix alot of the underlying issues just not completely reconfiguring which the center doesn’t actually need to be competitive. Also leaving the convention center to rot until you can pay a billion dollars on a new one or gutted-expanded one is down right silly. Also this renovation is sorely needed just to bring it up to industry standard. Doing some renovations now will bring down the cost of a renovation-expansion later (a brand new center is not happening in the 2030s). I’m sure the plans they are developing for this phase 1 renovation will have future expansion in mind as well. Edited March 9, 20232 yr by 646empire
March 15, 20232 yr https://www.cincinnati.com/story/opinion/contributors/2023/03/15/opinion-abuse-of-citys-tax-increment-financing-is-out-of-control/70009620007/
March 15, 20232 yr 13 minutes ago, Lazarus said: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/opinion/contributors/2023/03/15/opinion-abuse-of-citys-tax-increment-financing-is-out-of-control/70009620007/ LOL.
March 15, 20232 yr Ohio Supreme Court will hear Millennium Hotel case By Chris Wetterich – Staff reporter and columnist, Cincinnati Business Courier Mar 15, 2023 The Ohio Supreme Court will hear a case stemming from a dispute over the sale of the since-demolished Millennium Hotel. MORE
March 20, 20232 yr This past weekend, as I drove on Fifth St. past the Duke Energy Center, I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the flagless Fountain Square flag pole off in the distance, where the fountain once stood. Visitors to the convention center have absolutely nothing drawing them toward Fountain Square, or even know it exists, since the fountain is no longer visible along Fifth St., and once you do get to the square, is hidden behind an array of clutter. My dad sez Fountain Square looks like a refuge camp.
March 20, 20232 yr 8 hours ago, Lazarus said: Visitors to the convention center have absolutely nothing drawing them toward Fountain Square, or even know it exists, since the fountain is no longer visible along Fifth St., and once you do get to the square, is hidden behind an array of clutter. your right, without the crap on the square it does look a bit cluttered. But that is ok if they can bring people and create some form of excitement there. Times Square is cluttered too.
March 26, 20232 yr On 3/20/2023 at 8:39 AM, Brutus_buckeye said: your right, without the crap on the square it does look a bit cluttered. But that is ok if they can bring people and create some form of excitement there. Times Square is cluttered too. The only New York Residents in Times Square are there begrudgingly because they want to see a play. Fountain Square should be for residents first and tourists second.
April 14, 20232 yr Regarding my comments earlier in this thread regarding "they don't know what they're doing"...I submit this ridiculous report on the Port completely bumbling its "let's keep those nasty NYC landlords out of Cincinnati!" effort: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2023/04/10/port-cares-update.html?cx_testId=40&cx_testVariant=cx_6&cx_artPos=9 The Port doesn't know what it's doing. The City doesn't know what it's doing. What, exactly, are they attempting to accomplish with their vague convention center plans?
April 19, 20232 yr Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority signs deal with 3CDC on convention center district The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority signed off on an agreement Wednesday to partner with the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. as it works to redevelop the area around the Duke Energy Convention Center, including a new headquarters hotel. The memorandum of understanding allows the two entities to work together on the project and contemplates the Port eventually transferring properties to 3CDC or a private developer, particularly the vacant parking lot south of the convention center, where the new headquarters hotel is likely to be. 3CDC is leading the process of building a new hotel, as well as updating the convention center itself. The city and county will have to agree to the eventual financing package it negotiates. The Port also plans to use its financing tools to help convention center district projects, particularly the overhaul of the convention center itself and the construction of a new headquarters hotel. Under state law, projects the Port has the title to do not pay sales taxes on construction materials. The Port also is expected to reduce some of its fees for such transactions. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2023/04/19/port-3cdc-convention-center-district.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 19, 20232 yr This was expected but is good news that progress is being made. Do they have an anticipated completion date for the hotel? 2025? 2026?
April 27, 20232 yr Hamilton County wants to add hotel tax to Airbnb rentals: https://www.wvxu.org/politics/2023-04-26/tax-short-term-rentals-airbnb-vrbo-considered-hamilton-county
April 27, 20232 yr ^That seems fair. Short-term rentals are benefitting similar to hotels from bed tax-funded efforts to bring tourists to the area.
April 27, 20232 yr 2 minutes ago, ink said: ^That seems fair. Short-term rentals are benefitting similar to hotels from bed tax-funded efforts to bring tourists to the area. I agree seems like a good idea
April 28, 20232 yr Off topic-ish, but Covington has been cracking down on 'short term rentals' like airbnb and vrbo by making everyone have a license with the city and they even outlawed all of them for a while. For people who are doing this full time with a management or cleaning company they've been able to navigate it well, however I've seen a lot of people who used to have a spare bedroom and were making money on the side get priced out of it by these fees. There should be an exception for 'owner occupied' because the bigger landlords doing this all over have the funds and are now getting a monopoly on the airbnbs in the city and squeezing the little guys out because they can't afford to do it the legal/right way.
April 28, 20232 yr 3 minutes ago, ucgrady said: Off topic-ish, but Covington has been cracking down on 'short term rentals' like airbnb and vrbo by making everyone have a license with the city and they even outlawed all of them for a while. For people who are doing this full time with a management or cleaning company they've been able to navigate it well, however I've seen a lot of people who used to have a spare bedroom and were making money on the side get priced out of it by these fees. There should be an exception for 'owner occupied' because the bigger landlords doing this all over have the funds and are now getting a monopoly on the airbnbs in the city and squeezing the little guys out because they can't afford to do it the legal/right way. It is not as easy to do as you would think. Ultimately, it is on the sites (AirBNB, etc) to set their platform to comply with this and to force the landlord to comply. The small guys were likely never complying from the beginning (or at least the majority of them) and I remember reading at one time that Covington had a hard time with enforcement of such an ordinance because there were so many "small" owners and too limited of an enforcement staff. So if they place the burden on the apps like AirBNB, they do not want to fuss with it so they essentially make it a requirement to list and do not want to worry about specific carve outs, etc.
April 28, 20232 yr Enforcement ahs been a joke, which is why they temporarily just shut it all down. Out of 400+ listings online the city only had 43 licenses. Maybe doing it as flat tax like Cincinnati is proposing works better? All I know is it has screwed over a lot of people in Covington and their method is not working for the locals who actually live here and is only helping out of town investors (in this case out of town can mean a person who lives in Ft. Mitchell or Ft. Thomas)
April 28, 20232 yr I think the fundamental issue that is driving this is the lack of hotel capacity, especially with traditional bed & breakfasts as well as boutique hotels. I assume that if there were more of those in urban cores, then the institutional investment would wither. It would still exist, but it would not be dominating the market like it is now.
April 28, 20232 yr Looks like Portman will presenting at next week's staff meeting Love the base design. But we need to go slimmer and taller after the podium. Downtown needs a marquee skyscraper on its west side, not something to block off a block.
May 2, 20232 yr The current building is looking something like 26-30 stories so around 300 - 340 feet maybe? That's like the Kroger building height no? Would be nice to get a 400' for sure!
May 2, 20232 yr Louisville's downtown convention center is almost the exact same size as ours and was closed for renovations 2016-18. Look at this video: They also pepper their conventions with local gimmicks - the horn player from Churchill Downs, a hat maker makes custom derby hats for the ladies, and they walk a race horse through the convention hall, no matter the topic of the convention.
May 2, 20232 yr 32 minutes ago, Lazarus said: Louisville's downtown convention center is almost the exact same size as ours and was closed for renovations 2016-18. Look at this video: They also pepper their conventions with local gimmicks - the horn player from Churchill Downs, a hat maker makes custom derby hats for the ladies, and they walk a race horse through the convention hall, no matter the topic of the convention. Louisville made the right decision years ago with the downtown convention center. The main floor is technically on the second level so that it could span over city streets without interrupting the street grid. Honestly wish we could do it here, span over Elm, and reintroduce Plum street back cutting under the main floor of the convention hall.
May 2, 20232 yr 2 hours ago, IAGuy39 said: The current building is looking something like 26-30 stories so around 300 - 340 feet maybe? That's like the Kroger building height no? Would be nice to get a 400' for sure! The news today referenced 26 stories. It will be about the height of the Hilton, maybe a bit taller
May 2, 20232 yr 9 minutes ago, savadams13 said: Louisville made the right decision years ago with the downtown convention center. The main floor is technically on the second level so that it could span over city streets without interrupting the street grid. Honestly wish we could do it here, span over Elm, and reintroduce Plum street back cutting under the main floor of the convention hall. I'd be surprised if that is technically possible in Cincinnati without starting completely over. I really think that starting completely over on the current footprint ought to be the plan unless they are planning an all-new hall on land freed by the bridge reconstruction. Continuing to double-down on the current setup doesn't get us anywhere. The 2006 renovation and expansion didn't accomplish much - the center still fell into relative decline. Starting over with a main hall that bridges Plum St. would also mean Elm St. and Central Ave. can be bridged. Some parking can be placed under the new elevated hall, meaning the existing convention center garages north of Sixth St. can be demolished and redeveloped. The ballroom can be rebuilt as part of the new hotel, south of Fifth St., and level with the main convention hall. Here is a link to the entrance to the Nashville Convention Center parking garage - a huge improvement over our garages: https://www.google.com/maps/@36.1572043,-86.7781211,3a,75y,238.48h,89.19t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sea3QHNwX4HXOUpsq9ceQQw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 Getting rid of the garages would also allow Sixth St. to be shifted northward by about 100 feet, freeing up space for a larger main hall: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cincinnati,+OH/@39.1021174,-84.5166787,127m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x884051b1de3821f9:0x69fb7e8be4c09317!8m2!3d39.1031182!4d-84.5120196!16zL20vMDFzbm0
May 2, 20232 yr https://www.wvxu.org/politics/2023-05-02/public-money-cincinnati-convention-hotel From the second photo I’m guessing a height between the Hyatt and Hilton. My guess ft hued would be max of 340ft. Was hoping we’d get the tallest convention hotel in Ohio but it doesn’t look like it. Just hope they build something with some height at the soon to be demolished convention place.
May 3, 20232 yr I’m curious what the plan is for convention place. I guess I thought it was part of this hotel plan along with the weird park space but not according to this site plan. Edited May 3, 20232 yr by ucgrady
May 3, 20232 yr Headquarters hotel developer Portman unveils new images of $470 million project, announces team The developer of the new, $470 million convention center hotel plans an 800-room facility with a rooftop pool, interior traffic circle to take related traffic off the street and ballrooms filled with natural light, unlike the window-less ones of old. Skanska USA, whose parent company is based in Sweden, will be the lead general contractor, with Bayer Becker as the civil engineering partner and Piper Sandler as the capital markets partner. The images released on May 2 for the site in the southeast corner of Fifth and Plum streets are not the final design, said Ambrish Baisiwala, chairman and CEO of Atlanta-based Portman Holdings. “In our architecture treatment, we’ve tried to pick up influences from what’s around. So there’s actually a brick façade. There’s a lot of focus on incorporating the indoor and the outdoor,” he said. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2023/05/02/headquarters-hotel-portman-images-team.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
May 3, 20232 yr It looks about 300 feet, about 50 feet shorter than the demolished Millennium Hotel. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
May 3, 20232 yr 23 minutes ago, ColDayMan said: It looks about 300 feet, about 50 feet shorter than the demolished Millennium Hotel. The proposed ballroom size looks like it's bigger than the existing 2006 Grand Ballroom, and possibly as big as it + the Junior Ballrooms (which I believe were carved out of the old pre-2006 ballroom). This makes me suspicious that they're looking to have this ballroom up and functioning before giving The Duke Energy Center shock therapy.
May 3, 20232 yr 2 hours ago, ucgrady said: I’m curious what the plan is for convention place. I guess I thought it was part of this hotel plan along with the weird park space but not according to this site plan. Maybe they will extend the decks of the existing parking garage north to Fifth St. About 10 years ago they did this to the garage above the Arby's on 4th St. at Main St.
May 3, 20232 yr 11 hours ago, ColDayMan said: Headquarters hotel developer Portman unveils new images of $470 million project, announces team The developer of the new, $470 million convention center hotel plans an 800-room facility with a rooftop pool, interior traffic circle to take related traffic off the street and ballrooms filled with natural light, unlike the window-less ones of old. Skanska USA, whose parent company is based in Sweden, will be the lead general contractor, with Bayer Becker as the civil engineering partner and Piper Sandler as the capital markets partner. The images released on May 2 for the site in the southeast corner of Fifth and Plum streets are not the final design, said Ambrish Baisiwala, chairman and CEO of Atlanta-based Portman Holdings. “In our architecture treatment, we’ve tried to pick up influences from what’s around. So there’s actually a brick façade. There’s a lot of focus on incorporating the indoor and the outdoor,” he said. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2023/05/02/headquarters-hotel-portman-images-team.html Couple of odd design decisions I am noticing right off the bat. First, the pool deck being on the east side of the building. So basically after about noon - 1pm it will be completely shadowed by the building and wont have sun on the deck. Two, the elevator cores are on the city facing side. So you lose up to 8-10 rooms per floor having a nicer city view room, instead of rooms with 75-queensgate view rooms. Third, they talked about views from the ballroom and meeting rooms. Well based on the height of the grand ballroom and the Whex garage doesnt seem like if there were windows on the grand ballroom you wouldnt see anything beyond the parking garage wall. Seems odd to me that the orientation wasn't worked out better. The tower should have been built closer to Elm instead of Plum to alleviate all those issues.
May 3, 20232 yr 19 minutes ago, savadams13 said: if there were windows on the grand ballroom The Dr. Albert E. Sabin's ballroom, which I believe is now the Junior Ballroom of the Duke Energy Center, did have a window that ran the length of the ballroom along its west side, which gave a glorious view of Queensgate and Price Hill. The window was in the style of a Rax Roast Beef atrium.
May 3, 20232 yr 9 hours ago, Lazarus said: This makes me suspicious that they're looking to have this ballroom up and functioning before giving The Duke Energy Center shock therapy. The new hotel's ballroom space has ALWAYS been explicitly part of the long-term strategy for creating new, better ballroom spaces throughout the "district". And as far as I can tell, everybody has always said that the first step/phase should be focused on the hotel before any renovations/expansions begin. I don't know why it makes you "suspicious" since that literally has been the stated plan all along.
May 3, 20232 yr 37 minutes ago, Lazarus said: The Dr. Albert E. Sabin's ballroom, which I believe is now the Junior Ballroom of the Duke Energy Center, did have a window that ran the length of the ballroom along its west side, which gave a glorious view of Queensgate and Price Hill. The window was in the style of a Rax Roast Beef atrium. That would be so leaky by now. Most old Wendy's and Raxen that still have those have some kind of permanent tarp over them.
May 3, 20232 yr 15 minutes ago, GCrites80s said: That would be so leaky by now. Most old Wendy's and Raxen that still have those have some kind of permanent tarp over them. Correction: it looks like it was Rax-inspired, as it was similarly tinted but didn't have that distinct acrylic bevel. And look at how the diagonal feature overlapped non-window toward the edges: My suspicions are confirmed - a comparison of the above photo and a current satellite image shows that the old ballroom is now the Junior Ballroom:
May 3, 20232 yr Did the original convention center extend only from Plum to Elm? And then the 1980's expansion/reclad extended it over Plum halfway to Central? And then the 2000's expansion extended it all the way to Central?
May 3, 20232 yr 49 minutes ago, jwulsin said: I don't know why it makes you "suspicious" since that literally has been the stated plan all along. Because I know people who work in the convention business who say Cincinnati's leadership is held back by patronage jobs and others who just plain don't know what they're doing. It's crazy that there is so much incompetence here when our conventions aren't held hostage by the labor unions like Chicago and others. Chicago actually has a decorator's union. You have to pay a union wage to have someone unfold a cloth across your booth's table.
May 3, 20232 yr 2 minutes ago, ink said: Did the original convention center extend only from Plum to Elm? Yeah. The reason why the layout is so weird on that half of the current center is because the former loading dock/drayage area is now part of the exhibit floor. That's why the pillars are so strange. It creates areas of the main floor that are "obstructed view". If you know anything about conventions, you know that those spaces can't be rented for the same rate as the main part of the floor. Look at how cars are hidden behind the pillars at top left: Also, the ceiling height is lower closer to the main entrance, in the old part of the building, as compared to the newer side. It's a total mess and we're doomed to bargain-basement conventions for as long as the main entrance to our convention center opens into this weirdly-configured area. I was just at Louisville's renovated convention center and although it's nicer than ours, that's not saying much because Cincinnati's might be the worst of any peer city.
May 3, 20232 yr 30 minutes ago, Lazarus said: Correction: it looks like it was Rax-inspired, as it was similarly tinted but didn't have that distinct acrylic bevel. And look at how the diagonal feature overlapped non-window toward the edges: I did always like that window. It had a cool view to the west side of downtown. I remember having prom there years ago and thinking what a cool view that offered.
May 3, 20232 yr 1 hour ago, Lazarus said: Because I know people who work in the convention business who say Cincinnati's leadership is held back by patronage jobs and others who just plain don't know what they're doing. It's crazy that there is so much incompetence here when our conventions aren't held hostage by the labor unions like Chicago and others. Chicago actually has a decorator's union. You have to pay a union wage to have someone unfold a cloth across your booth's table. Columbus does too, it's Teamsters. Also the light and sound people are from the electrical union. There was talk of Cincinnati going union in the late 2000s when I left the industry. I was not union. I was considered a temp. All the union workers were considered my boss. I think Columbus went all union, no temps around the same time.
May 3, 20232 yr COVID really wrecked the convention and trade show business. Some decorators went out of business, some sold and tons of people left the industry. One decorator was advertising on the radio for recruiting when things started firing up again since they were so skeleton. My buddy was in the business for 20 years and switched to selling roofing services and is still doing it. Not many people understand the industry so it's almost like starting from scratch.
May 3, 20232 yr 3 hours ago, savadams13 said: Couple of odd design decisions I am noticing right off the bat. First, the pool deck being on the east side of the building. So basically after about noon - 1pm it will be completely shadowed by the building and wont have sun on the deck. Two, the elevator cores are on the city facing side. So you lose up to 8-10 rooms per floor having a nicer city view room, instead of rooms with 75-queensgate view rooms. Third, they talked about views from the ballroom and meeting rooms. Well based on the height of the grand ballroom and the Whex garage doesnt seem like if there were windows on the grand ballroom you wouldnt see anything beyond the parking garage wall. Seems odd to me that the orientation wasn't worked out better. The tower should have been built closer to Elm instead of Plum to alleviate all those issues. Solar noon in Cincinnati in the middle of the summer is closer to 2pm. So the building wouldn't block out the sunshine until more like 3 pm at least. Seems like they designed it so you could have most of the day with sunshine on the pool in the summer. The alternative would be to have it in the shade all morning and the bulk of the afternoon. Edited May 3, 20232 yr by DEPACincy
May 3, 20232 yr 52 minutes ago, GCrites80s said: Columbus does too, it's Teamsters. Also the light and sound people are from the electrical union. There was talk of Cincinnati going union in the late 2000s when I left the industry. I was not union. I was considered a temp. All the union workers were considered my boss. I think Columbus went all union, no temps around the same time. Events at the Duke Energy Center are managed by a company called Fern, which is not union: https://www.fernexpo.com/ There is a lot of drama that goes into setting up conventions. A fair number of crates are lost (meaning booths are missing major components), exhibits are damaged before the show opens, things are stolen, etc. The next time you're at one, take note that a lot of booths have built-in closets - that's because their stuff (monitors, gizmos, etc.) have to be locked up overnight to prevent them from being stolen by other exhibitors, security guards, etc. I heard about one guy who came to the convention center early to finish setting up his booth to find his union guy from the night before sleeping in the booth. The guy had gone out drinking somewhere close, got back in the convention center in the middle of the night, and decided to crash in the booth. He broke or lost his glasses at some point and wasn't able to help him finish setting up the exhibit, but at least he didn't sleep out on the street.
May 3, 20232 yr 55 minutes ago, GCrites80s said: Not many people understand the industry so it's almost like starting from scratch. Correct. There are many, many aspects to it that people on the outside have never considered. For example, many exhibits travel to at least two convention centers, but individual halls have completely different electrical strategies. You might have to run power to your exhibit from the floor, from the wall, or from the ceiling, depending on the venue. These sources could have different amperages. This means the booth must be designed from the beginning in anticipation of these differing hookups - both their position and their amperage. And this means that when you buy a floor space, you are completely committed to it. Why does this matter? Well what if your neighbors pull out or a booth space near the front entrance that you would prefer opens up? If your exhibit already physically exists, it probably can't be modified in time to take advantage of the better floor space because it could require a drastic reworking, which would require many hours of very expensive on-site union labor to accomplish. And if you bought a cheaper floor space toward the rear of the hall but numerous other exhibitors pulled out, you could end up being a weird island of activity over toward the back corner. So you spend $40,000 to appear at a trade show and get very little foot traffic. 15~ years ago I worked as a vendor at these things and our guy was really good at tricking the event organizers into letting us get a better spot. This involved showing up at like 6:15am before anyone else, setting our stuff up without permission in a spot we weren't supposed to be, then hope that the even organizer wouldn't notice.
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