The recently-appointed head of both the Maine Restaurant Association and Maine Innkeepers Association went public in early November with his aspirations to bring a convention center to Portland.
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In September, Steve Hewins was appointed president and CEO of the Maine Restaurant Association and Maine Innkeepers Association. The industries are major economic engines for the state. Restaurants and lodging establishments employ 83,000 people and generate nearly $3.65 billion in revenues. Hewins is also leading the charge to build a new convention center in Portland.
The proposed venue would have the capacity to host up to 5,000 people for conventions, more than any other meeting space in Maine. It would span 150,000 to 200,000 square feet and cost more than $100 million to build. He hopes to have a feasibility study underway by early 2017. The city recently approved a $10,000 matching grant for the Maine Convention Center Collaborative, the nonprofit Hewins founded, to help pay for the study.
Hewins, the former executive director of Portland Downtown, recently spoke to Mainebiz about the efforts.
Mainebiz: There have been convention center proposals in the past. Why is there a need now?
Steve Hewins: In Portland, we have to turn away meetings because the biggest room in town only holds 600 people. And we have this seasonality. You can't get a hotel room downtown in the summer and yet we have empty rooms on weekdays in the spring, fall and winter, when conventions meet. We need to import younger people, create jobs for graduating students and build out sectors. The convention center could be the catalyst for all those things. The idea would be to solicit meetings in the sectors that Maine has identified to advance — agriculture, aquaculture, biopharmaceuticals and knowledge workers. They would come here, interface with locals and develop business opportunities. And that would make it easier to recruit them. That's what other cities are successfully doing with convention centers.
MB: When it comes to wooing conventions, what competitive edge would Portland have over other cities?
SH: We have all the infrastructure in place — and not just hotels. Our jetport is ranked No. 1 in the country for an airport of its size. Portland has this reputation for walkability. Successful convention cities lure attendees with a combination of relevant agendas, an attractive destination, a cutting-edge facility and an opportunity for interactions between convention attendees and local business and cultural interests. Using those attributes, Portland will win against nearly any competitor within our market segment.
MB: Where would the convention center be located?
SH: We have looked at more than six sites. All are in downtown between Franklin and High streets and within a block or two of Congress Street. The only place it can be successful is downtown Portland where it could be walking distance of 150 restaurants and 2,000 hotel rooms. It wouldn't work at Thompson's Point or a suburban office park. The waterfront is out because there's no room and because of the congestion it would create.
MB: How would the facility be funded?
SH: We would look to public and private sources. All of the potential Portland Convention Center sites we looked at are in a federal targeted employment area, as designated by the Maine Department of Labor, and eligible for funding to help construct the convention center. Downtown Portland is also eligible for Economic Development Agency grants from the U.S. Department of Commerce. This requires matching funds and we are partnering with the Greater Portland Council of Governments to provide that. In both cases the depressed economic status of Portland allows for these applications. There may be more federal government sources that the feasibility study will uncover.
MB: Will it be a challenge to convince meeting planners to book in Maine mid-winter?
SH: There is that issue. But there are plenty of cities in similar climates that still do business in the winter. Our average annual temperature is just two degrees colder than Boston. And in spring and fall there's all sorts of availability during the week, when conventions meet.
