One of five cities that has been short-listed to host the next Democratic National Convention (DNC), Phoenix is vying for the 2016 convention.
The DNC is expected to bring about 50,000 visitors including 6,000 convention delegates and 18,000 media members to the chosen destination in summer 2016.
Party organizers visited Phoenix Sept. 9-11 to tour the city’s meeting and event venues, and evaluate logistics. Scheduled to host the Super Bowl for the third time in February 2015, Phoenix boasted its reputation for attracting and accommodating mega events. A revitalized downtown landscape welcomed organizers to the potential site at US Airways Center.
“In terms of logistics for an event like the DNC, Phoenix is second to none,” said Steve Moore, president and CEO, Visit Phoenix. “Our downtown has a compact footprint that makes it easy to walk between event venues and hotels, our airport is only five minutes from downtown, and our 62,000-room hotel portfolio includes an impressive collection of resorts with tons of meeting and caucus space.”
DNC organizers toured Phoenix meeting and event venues such as the Phoenix Convention Center, Chase Field, Orpheum Theatre, Heard Museum, Hotel Palomar, Phoenician, Royal Palms, JW Marriott Desert Ridge and the Arizona Biltmore Resort.
City of Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton championed downtown Phoenix’s logistical advantages and mega-event experience during the organizers’ visit, and he also called attention to his city’s diversity and inclusiveness. Stanton pointed out that Phoenix’s population is more than 40 percent Hispanic, and that Phoenix recently received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index, which measures the fairness of a city’s laws, benefits and services.
“Both political parties, if they’re smart, will be adopting public policies that are supportive of the wonderfully diverse population that we have here in Phoenix,” Stanton said. “Politically and demographically, Phoenix is where our country is going.”
