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NBC travel editor Peter Greenberg, George
R. Brown Convention Center director Dawn Ullrich,
Continental Airlines CEO Gordon Bethune and
Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau
president Jordy Tollett were among the dignitaries
attending the Fastest 50 conference, the first
event held in the expanded George R. Brown
Convention Center.
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Adam Schaeffer, publisher
of Tradeshow Week, addresses meeting industry
professionals at the Fastest 50 conference
at the George R. Brown Convention Center
on November 8.
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HOUSTON, Texas (November 10, 2003)
– The post-expansion era at the George R. Brown
Convention Center has begun after a successful “soft”
opening of some new areas in the building was held over
the weekend with the hosting of an important tradeshow
industry event.
Substantial completion of the entire $165 million project
is anticipated for later this month. Official opening
ceremonies are scheduled for December 3, when exhibition,
meeting and registration space nearly doubles to 1,102,000
square feet, including seven exhibit halls and 105 meeting
rooms.
“We have opened our new exhibit hall on the south
end of the building and 64 new meeting rooms,”
GRBCC general manager Luther Villagomez said. “By
the end of the month we will open two more exhibit halls
at the north end of the building to complete the project.
“Expansion has been part of our master plan for
many years and it is gratifying to hear such positive
feedback from our clients about the new additions to
the building.
About 200 executives representing the tradeshow industry
were the first guests in the new building November 8
when the 50 fastest-growing shows in North America were
honored by an industry publication. A number of the
industry professionals, upon seeing the facility firsthand,
were heard to extol the virtues of the convention center.
“We heard a number of comments from people who
loved the flow of our building and the opportunities
our new size allows them to do,” Villagomez said.
“One show manager told us, ‘It’s as
if this building was made for my show.’”
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