The Great Canadian Convention Centre Thread! - Page 5

The_Architect · #81 Posted **Oct 16, 2014, 12:12 AM**

Sure, all the modern downtown convention centres are nice, but none of you have ever experienced the fantastic Toronto Congress Centre:

Source.

Cyro · #82 Posted **Feb 22, 2015, 10:01 PM**

Feb.20.2015

http://www.wcc.mb.ca/construction-cam/february-2015/

J.OT13 · #83 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 3:32 PM**

Wow, 7 years since the last post.

How's your convention centre expansion going Calgary? And how will the expanded BMO affect Telus?

The CAQ is promising a whopping $50 million for a new centre in Gatineau. To put this in perspective, Ottawa's 2012 convention centre was built for $170 million at the time.

O-tacular · #84 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 4:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Wow, 7 years since the last post.

How's your convention centre expansion going Calgary? And how will the expanded BMO affect Telus?

The BMO expansion is surprisingly far along. I could see it from across the river at the Zoo yesterday. Here's an outdated construction pic form June 21:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calga...date-1.6496052

Some juicy renders of the front entrance (Not so sure about the back end):

Not sure about Telus Convention Centre's fate DT once this opens. Prognosis isn't great. Ironically that horrid proposal along Stephen Ave across Centre St. is pitching convention space as part of the hotel portion. Seems completely redundant and unnecessary considering Telus across the street. Weird that it's the same group that built the Telus Convention Centre originally too.

Innsertnamehere · #85 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 4:22 PM**

There are rumours that the Ontario PC government is working behind the scenes to facilitate an expansion of the Toronto convention centre, which is generally vastly undersized for a major city. Probably going to be very expensive and disruptive, so we’ll see if / what happens..

JustForTheHalibut · #86 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 4:53 PM**

That Calgary Convention Centre looks kind of like Rogers Place in Edmonton just with wood exterior finishings and sharper corners.

O-tacular · #87 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 4:56 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by JustForTheHalibut

That Calgary Convention Centre looks kind of like Rogers Place in Edmonton just with wood exterior finishings and sharper corners.

The arch is definitely reminiscent of it. The exterior I think is zinc or bronze panels though, not wood.

J.OT13 · #88 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 8:05 PM**

That BMO Convention Centre expansion is impressive. Over 1,000,000 square feet.

• Video Link

The Ottawa Convention Centre built in 2012 is only 192,000 square feet, which was a bit smaller even by the standards of the time. Even Quebec City's centre is 300,000 square feet.

WhipperSnapper · #89 Posted **Sep 6, 2022, 8:43 PM**

Didn't conventions peak many years ago? I also wonder if Covid will have any lasting effects.

The Toronto Convention Centre is tiny but, there's other facilities that make up the difference. (and not just at the airport.) Comparison lists usually don't take that into account.

The Toronto Convention Centre is part of a massive subterranean complex that includes power plants and water treatment plants. How the hell do you expand that? I do see this convention centre vision being part of an Ontario Line District (Stadium Districts are so passe) considering it's being spearheaded by the Ontario PCs

Looking back. I can't believe how much "merch" I picked up at conventions that just ended up in the trash. However, it pales in comparisons to the giveaways I see at Jays games.