Following more than a year of construction and rerouting meetings and events to nearby venues, Cincinnati has unveiled its long-awaited, sparkling new convention center, cornerstone of a growing downtown convention district.
The former Duke Energy Convention Center has officially reopened as the Cincinnati Convention Center after a $264 million rebuild/renovation and expansion, just in time for the first event of the year with Redsfest. Note: 3CDC (the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation) has yet to finalize who will get the naming rights, so stay tuned to Prevue for a possible renaming.
Local leaders, tourism officials and community members gathered Jan. 7 to celebrate the opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring local and state officials, many of whom spoke movingly about the project and the city.
“There is a momentum here in our urban core that the leaders surrounding me will continue to invest in at every turn,” Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval said.
“It’s a dream come true,” declared Julie Calvert, the outgoing President of Visit Cincy. “I’ve been associated with this convention center, since 2001, and I’ve walked this building thousands of times in 25 years. And I when I walk in here, I have a hard time imagining what it used to look like because it’s so different.”
Opening to groups last fall, the new 2-acre Elm Street Plaza—directly connected to the center—is designed to activate the district and bring attendees together, creating a built-in gathering space ideal for outdoor receptions, networking events, brand activations, live entertainment and experiential programming.
What’s Next for CCC District
While construction on the convention center is complete, there is still more to be done; the full convention district is slated to be an $828 million endeavor, according to 3CDC.
That includes finishing the renovation of the convention center garage and the addition of a new Marriott convention headquarters hotel. Connected by skybridge to the CCC, the hotel is slated to open its doors in 2028.
The convention center’s renovation is expected to boost tourism, economic development and regional events, generating an estimated $32 million in direct sales to conventiongoers and drawing 43,000 people to Cincinnati in 2026 alone, according to Visit Cincy.
However, one person who spoke at the ribbon cutting took a bigger-picture approach. “This building’s real impact cannot be captured on a spreadsheet… I see one heck of a first impression to the world,” said Lydia Mihalik, Director of the Ohio Department of Development, which contributed $46 million to the project.
“I see a front door that says, ‘Cincinnati is open for business,'” Milalik said. “When attendees enter this building, they’re experiencing Cincinnati—the sights, the sounds, the culture. All the things that give this community its identity. From the first keynote to that flight home, people will start imagining what it would be like to live here.”
CCC Facts & Figures
- Gross Square Feet: 750,000, including setup and support space
- Exhibition Space: 200,000 contiguous sf
- Grand Ballroom: 40,000 sf, one of the largest in the Midwest
- Additional Ballroom: 17,400 sf to comfortably host smaller groups
- Brand-New Rooftop Terrace with panoramic views of Cincinnati’s downtown skyline
- Meeting Space: 30 deluxe breakout rooms with flexibility to accommodate 24 to 4,100
- Loading Dock: 17 berths and three semi-truck portals that lead directly to exhibition space
- Full-Service Banquet Kitchen: capable of serving 5,000 in a single seating
- Levels: 3, with a multi-level concourse providing easy access to exhibit space, meeting rooms, and ballroom levels
- Skywalk Access: to the forthcoming 700-room Marriott headquarters hotel
- Extended Outdoor Space: seamless flow to the new Elm Street Plaza, a 2.5-acre outdoor gathering space directly connected to the convention center for receptions, activations, and event programming
- Branding Opportunities: LED signage outside meeting rooms and a massive 76’ LED wall
- Parking: a new $28 million garage across the street with 780 spaces
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