Construction will commence at the end of June on Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) on Grey Street - five new levels of boutique meetings and event space - following the appointment of Laing O’Rourke as the builder of the $130 million project.
Opening 2011, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre on Grey Street, represents a 50 per cent increase in the Centre’s convention facilities and will establish the Centre as Australia’s most flexible meetings and events venue.
The newly expanded Centre will be the only convention centre in Australia with three stand alone tiered plenary halls able to accommodate from 400 to 8,000 with a total of 42 separate meetings and event spaces.
The expansion will deliver an additional 250 events each year to Brisbane and create in excess of 4,000 full time equivalent jobs in the first 15 years of operation.
The 24,000 square metre development will have direct access to South Bank’s Grey Street, the vibrant retail and restaurant hub of the unique South Bank Precinct and home to Brisbane’s thriving cultural and arts community.
With its iconic contemporary design, the new Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre on Grey Street will enrich the architectural landscape of South Bank, adding to its vibrancy and enhancing its reputation as a world-class lifestyle precinct.
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre General Manager, Robert O’Keeffe said the expansion is specifically designed to meet an increasing demand for conferences of 400 and 600 delegates and will provide greater flexibility in accommodating concurrent events of different sizes.
“The new development will strengthen the Centre’s position in a fiercely competitive global market and will reinforce Brisbane’s growing international profile and appeal as a leading destination for business events,” he said.
The expansion comes at a time when the Centre is holding 277 future bookings for conventions, including 90 for international conventions, the highest level of convention bookings held since the Centre opened in 1995.
“Brisbane’s growing appeal and positioning as Australia’s new world city together with the additional and advanced facilities of Australia’s newest and most flexible meetings and events venue is a powerful proposition on which we intend to capitalise to the fullest”, Mr O’Keeffe said.
Image: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Related Article:
