Riverside's newly remodeled convention center - Tony

 Riverside's newly remodeled convention center has more than 66,816 square feet. The cost to upgrade the convention center is $43.6 million. The 40 percent larger exhibit hll has hundreds of smart phone charging stations bringing it up to date with 21st century convention needs.
  At the present time there are more than 42 bookings from March to July 2014, these include religious conferences, dance competitions and a home show. The upcoming events include a Microsoft conference,helicopter expo and comic convention.
  The local attractions include Fox theater, downtown pedestrian mall, Mission Inn and the Riverside Museum. The city is hoping with the new convention center it will bring more people to our city which will help drive more business. The restaurants and businesses near the convention center are hoping with all the people attending the conferences at the convention center will generate more business to the community.
   The plans for updating the convention center have been in the making for nearly a decade, the convention center originally opened in 1976 and had its last major touch up in the late 1990's, it was overdue for a major transformation. The convention center has been redesigned with a larger exhibit hall, two balloons, more small meeting rooms, a modern kitchen, a large escalator in a Riverside city building.
   The furnishings in the convention center are cherry wood paneling and an array of carpet patterds in brown, beige and colonial blue which they hope to remind people of the past as a boutique bitel. The center has been set up with wireless Internet hundreds or charging points for smart phones and tablets, and lighting and sound systems that the convention center more attractive to people. With all the upgrades the Riverside Convention Center officials hope to put the new conventing center in a belter position to compete with convention centers in Ontario and Pasadena as well as the Pechanga Resort and Casiono near Temecula. They are hoping to attract bio-medical and pharm a centical conventions, financial service events as well as corporate meetings.
   The convention center will continue to attract wedding receptions, award banquets as well as consumer trade shows but on a larger scale. At the present events are booked through 2018, which include a bridge tournament, a Mary Kay cosmetic convention and several academic competitions. Within the next 4 months more than 23,000 people are expected to Riverside for more than 31 events.
   Right now industry experts are doing everything they can by attracting events with out of town visiters who book hotels. The concern right now is do we have enough hotels and rooms available to serve the center.
    In my opinion the newly remodeled convention center was long overdue. It is important to keep up with the timers and to be able to compete with other big cities, such as Ontario and Pasadena. I believe that with the newly remodeled convention center, we will be able to generate more money into our community. It will help the unemployment situation, by generating more jobs, not only through the convention center itself, but through the hotels, restaurants and small business.