San Diego Convention Center facts for kids
Quick facts for kids San Diego Convention Center |
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View of the center from the San Diego Bay
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| Address | 111 West Harbor Drive |
| Location | San Diego, California |
| Coordinates | 32°42′23″N 117°09′40″W / 32.7063°N 117.1612°W |
| Built | March 1987 - November 1989 |
| Opened | November 1989 |
| Expanded | September 2001 |
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Construction cost
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$164 million ($387 million in 2022 dollars ) |
| Enclosed space | |
| • Total space | 2,600,000 sq ft (240,000 m2) |
| • Exhibit hall floor | 615,700 sq ft (57,200 m2) |
| • Breakout/meeting | 123,400 sq ft (11,460 m2) |
| • Ballroom | 80,700 sq ft (7,500 m2) |
| Parking | 1950 spaces |
| Public transit access | Convention Center (San Diego Trolley station) |
The San Diego Convention Center is the main convention center in San Diego, California. It is in the Marina district of downtown San Diego. The center is managed by the San Diego Convention Center Corporation.
The convention center has 615,700 sq ft (57,200 m2) of exhibit area. As of 2009 it was the 24th largest convention center in North America. It was designed by Canadian architect Arthur Erickson. The building can hold 125,000 people.
The center's best known feature is the Sails Pavilion. It is a 90,000 sq ft (8,400 m2) exhibit and special event area. The Sails Pavilion's roof includes Teflon-coated fiberglass "sails". They are intended to show San Diego's maritime history. The Pavilion was first built as an open-air facility under the roof. This made it hard to get people to use it. Because of this, the Pavilion area was enclosed in glass. This made it much more usable.
History
San Diego approved the construction of a new convention center in 1983. It was built on land owned by the Port of San Diego. Construction of the building began in March 1987 and was finished in November 1989. The center was made larger in September 2001 by doubling its square footage.
Notable events hosted at the convention center include the Comic Con International convention. It hosted the 1996 Republican National Convention, which nominated Bob Dole and Jack Kemp for President and Vice President of the United States.
See also
In Spanish: Centro de convenciones de San Diego para niños
