The Savannah International Trade and Convention Center has received a draft copy of the $100,000 feasibility study it commissioned to examine the best way to add more convention hotel rooms on Hutchinson Island, trade center chairman Mark V. Smith told his board Wednesday.
But Smith had a few questions about some of the things that were in the report — and some that were not.
“This is a complicated report with a lot of moving parts. And, in looking through it, we found some technical errors – numbers regarding this building’s past performance that weren’t exactly correct,” Smith said. “Also, there are a couple of mathematical calculations that we wanted to see addressed that aren’t in there.”
Reluctant to disburse a draft that he considered incomplete, Smith said the report would go back to PKF Hospitality Research of Atlanta for the necessary modifications and come back before the board at a meeting March 5.
“The PKF consultant could not be with us today, which is another reason we thought it best to wait until he could be here to walk us through this very detailed study,” he said.
As they look to attract and accommodate larger groups, both the trade center and the Westin Savannah Harbor are studying the best way to add 300 hotel rooms on Hutchinson Island. Possibilities include building a freestanding hotel on property west of the trade center or expanding the Westin.
The trade center, encouraged by its numbers and requests from larger convention groups, commissioned PKF in July to conduct a study
that would look at expansion of the trade center, the addition of 300 hotel rooms and an overall strategic plan for convention business in Savannah.
“One thing we have already determined is that we can’t really address expanding the building until we know where we are going with the hotel rooms,” Smith told the board last year. “Once that’s established, we can begin to move forward with a plan.”
In addition to determining whether a new hotel or an expansion of the Westin would be preferable, the study also examines three expansion possibilities for the trade center.
The most ambitious would double meeting and exhibit space at the trade center and add another ballroom for approximately $150 million.
The second scenario would double exhibit space and add a smaller ballroom for $90 million, and a third proposal would increase exhibit space by 50 percent while adding a second ballroom and eight additional meeting rooms for $50 million.
Deciding on how best to expand the room base on the island will need to be the authority’s highest priority for this year, Smith said, adding that information from the study will provide a platform for discussions with the mayor, city manager, Chatham County officials and other stakeholders.
New battleship model on loan
In other business, the board welcomed the newest addition to the trade center’s growing collection of ship models.
The USS Texas, launched in May 1912, was one of two New York class battleships authorized by Congress in 1910. When war erupted in Europe in 1914, the Texas and its sister ship, the New York, joined the fray as the world’s most modern battleships.
The most powerful battleship of her time, the Texas was part of a squadron that landed a force of 800 Marines and seamen at Vera Cruz that year to protect U.S citizens.
After serving with Britain’s Grand Fleet in the North Sea, the Texas escorted President Woodrow Wilson to France in 1919 for the Paris Peace Conference.
During World War II, the Texas participated in the Battle of the Atlantic. She also participated in the Allied invasion of North Africa, using her powerful 14-inch guns in combat for the first time.
The battleship also participated in the D-Day Invasion, pounding German coastal positions near Pointe Du Hoc from some 12,000 yards offshore.
Transitioning to the Pacific Fleet in 1945, the Texas went on to participate in the invasions of both Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
The 6-foot-long model of the Texas was hand-crafted by Edwin B. Feldman of Atlanta, 90, who recently donated it to the Tybee Island Maritime Academy, which has placed it on loan to the trade center collection.