DAYTON, Ohio (December 18, 2018) – The Dayton Convention Center Task Force has completed its recommendations for the future of the convention center, and will present its findings to the Dayton City Commission during its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, December 19 at 6pm on the second floor of City Hall, 101 West Third Street.
The task force, which was formed by Dayton city leaders in September 2017, is co-chaired by Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce president & CEO, Phil Parker, and Dayton City Commissioner Chris Shaw. Mr. Parker and Mr. Shaw were appointed by Dayton city leaders and charged with the task of studying the options for transforming the area of downtown Dayton that now houses the Dayton Convention Center, which has operated with a budgetary loss since 2012.
In late 2017, the co-chairs selected a diverse cross section of 24 additional community leaders to serve on the task force, including representation from labor unions, Montgomery County, the City of Dayton, the Urban League, the Downtown Dayton Partnership, the Dayton Convention & Visitor’s Bureau, the region’s faith-based community, non-profit and business leaders, and the hospitality industry.
The resulting task force met from January to July 2018, considering several possible futures for the facility, including demolition, redeveloping, re-investing and more. During this time, the task force consulted with experts and professionals from across the Midwest in the hospitality and convention industries, and gathered input from current employees at the Dayton Convention Center.
The task force also considered the findings of a 2015 study commissioned by the Dayton Convention and Visitors Bureau, the city of Dayton, and Montgomery County. That study, completed by Crossroads Consulting Services, made recommendations for upgrades that would make the facility more marketable to conventions and event planners, and would cost up to $28 million.
The recommendations to be presented December 19 are not to be viewed as a final, ‘master plan’. They are instead, high-level recommendations concluded by the task force to be the approach that would most benefit the Dayton region and surrounding businesses. These findings cover four areas of emphasis and several supporting observations.
The task force’s report was unanimously agreed upon by its members and have been endorsed by the Downtown Dayton Partnership and the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce.
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