The 540,000-square-foot Connecticut Convention Center (CTCC), is the largest, full-service convention facility between New York and Boston. It is the anchor of Adriaen’s Landing, a $775 million economic development project along Hartford’s riverfront. The project also includes the Hartford Marriott Downtown, Front Street-a retail and entertainment district and residential units, additional parking and the Connecticut Science Center. The convention center offers 140,000 square feet of exhibit space; a 40,000 square foot ballroom; 25,000 square feet of meeting space; and 2,339 attached parking spaces. Phase I of Front Street is currently underconstruction and is scheduled to be completed in the summer 2010.
Having completed the fourth year of operation, the CTCC has maintained its mission to attract top quality events to Connecticut. The events that took place in FYE2009 have continued to increase our overall attendance figures year over year. During FYE2009, the CTCC hosted a number of new National and Regional Conventions/Tradeshows, the largest of which was the American Institute for Astronautics and Aeronautics - Joint Propulsion Conference, the American Philatelic Society-STAMPSHOW and the American Association for State Highway Transportation Officials Convention. Overall for FYE2009, the CTCC hosted 154 events and total attendance for the year was approximately 230,000 visitors.
The benchmarks for success continue to be met and have grown to include rebooking successful events due to exceeding client expectations, not only in service and the quality of the facility, but the overall satisfaction of our destination. We continue to host a variety of events that generate revenue for the Convention Center, parking revenue for the attached garage and room nights for the local hotels. These events are comprised of black-tie affairs that showcase our talented food and beverage team, high-energy cheerleading competitions that draw thousands of attendees as well as nationally-televised programs such as public television's network hit, the Antiques Roadshow. Taping of the broadcast drew close to 8,000 participants from throughout the state and immediate region, and produced several shows for board cast in May 2009. Events such as this help to draw positive attention to the capital city on a national level.
As we work towards our future, not only will we remain focused on booking national, regional and statewide events that continue to generate significant economic benefits to the City of Hartford and the State of Connecticut, but also sustain or surpass our employment goals of the residents of the Greater Hartford area. The CTCC is proud to have 30-35 percent of its employees comprised of local residents.
- The Convention Center offers 140,000 square feet of exhibit space; a 40,000 square foot ballroom; 25,000 square feet of meeting space; and 2,339 attached parking spaces.
- The Convention Center is connected to the $91 million, privately-developed Hartford Marriott Downtown, offering 409 guest rooms.
- A pedestrian bridge is under construction to connect the Connecticut Science Center and the Riverfront Walk to the Convention Center. The bridge is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2010.
