CONVENTION CENTER Contiguous exhibition space: 566,000 square feet divisible into 11 halls
Meeting rooms: 71
Ballrooms: 3
Loading docks: 48
Hotel rooms connect- ed via climate- controlled skywalk: 4,700
Hotel rooms within walking distance: 7,100
Indiana Convention Center, Lucas Oil Stadium, &Nearby Hotels
Super Bowl Host City Plays toWin
ONFEB. 5, 2012, INDIANAPOLIS HOST- ed “America’s Holiday”—aka the Super Bowl—joining the elite short list of destinations to host this major sport- ing event. Beyond rooting for one of the country’s favorite pastimes, more than 150,000 visitors in town for Super Bowl XLVI experienced the destination’s $3 billion in new infrastructure develop- ments, from the newly expanded Indi- ana Convention Center to the 1,005- roomJWMarriott Indianapolis Downtown and Indianapolis Interna- tional Airport. With its proven track record of host-
ing more than 400 national and interna- tional sporting events over the last 30 years, the city has cultivated credibility with meeting professionals. Beyond its accessibility—Sports Illustrated’s Peter King spotlighted the compact and connect- ed city as “the most walkable downtown in America”— downtown Indianapolis is designed to ensure a particularly festive experience for convention attendees, with more than 200 restaurants and 50 attractions within walking distance of Lucas Oil Stadium and the Indiana Convention Center. Having doubled in size after a $275-million expansion
82 pcma convene February 2012
completed in January 2011, the Indiana Convention Center now offers a total of 566,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space, divisible into 11 halls. In February, the flexible space hosted Super BowlXLVI’sNFLExperience, an interactive theme park for football fans with football clinics, seminars, and a memorabilia show. The playing surface of Lucas Oil Stadium also offers 183,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space, and when combined with the center’s exhibit space next door, this adds up to more than 749,000 square feet of exhibit space. Georgia Street, a new three-block
outdoor space adjacent to the conven- tion center, offers plenty of flexibility for
unique special events, like Super BowlXLVI’sVillage, which included live concerts, food trucks, and a zipline. The destina- tion also offers more convention-center-connected hotel rooms than any other U.S. city: 4,700 rooms spread out
WALK THISWAY: The iconic 284-foot Soldiers and Sailors Monu- ment marks the heart of Indianapolis’ walkable downtown. The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians andWestern Art, Victory Field, a four-story mall, 200-plus restaurants, and 50 attractions are all within walking distance of the convention-center complex.