The Savannah International Trade & Convention Center is on pace to top FY 2013’s record-setting performance in terms of room nights, convention attendance and economic impact, the board that governs the trade center was told Wednesday.
Stephen Hall, director of finance for the trade center, reported the numbers at the December meeting of the Georgia International & Maritime Trade Center Authority board.
“It’s looking good through the first five months of FY 2014, which began July 1,” Hall said. “We’re on track for another record year.”
In the 13 years since the trade center was built, it has hosted nearly 2,000 events for 1.7 million people, bringing in event revenues of $24.5 million and accounting for 811,000 room nights and more than $210 million in economic impact.
FY 2013, which ended June 30, was the first to top FY 2004, the year the trade center played host in Savannah to the G8 Summit featuring then-President George W. Bush and seven other world leaders. That year, the trade center accounted for more than 82,000 room nights and an economic impact of $20.6 million.
Fiscal 2013 brought nearly 85,000 room nights and $24.6 million in economic impact. The first five months of fiscal 2014 are already ahead of those numbers, Hall said.
In other authority business, board chairman Mark Smith said a decision on the trade center management contract would most likely come in the first quarter of next year.
The board has proposals from SMG, which currently manages the trade center, as well as the Georgia World Congress Center. The group also has the option of taking on the management responsibilities themselves, either alone or in concert with one of the other two, Smith said.
“The executive committee has met several times for discussions on the issue,” he said. “We hope to have it on the agenda in February to see if we can build consensus. We don’t want this to be a contentious issue.”
SMG, the nation’s largest venue management, marketing and development company, has been under contract to the trade center since since before the facility was built in 2001, Smith said, adding that SMG helped get the project off the ground.
“We felt that, after all this time, looking at alternatives was the prudent thing to do,” Smith said.
Smith said he hoped the board would have a decision sometime in the first quarter.
BY THE NUMBERS
Since its opening in 2001, the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center has hosted:
• 5,027 event days
• 1,999 events
• 1.68 million attendees
Accounting for:
• $24.5 million in event revenue
• 811,272 room nights
• $210.5 million in economic impact