by Kerstan Szczepanski
The Phoenix Civic Plaza opened on September 28, 1972, in the heart of downtown Phoenix, the fifth largest city in the United States. The first show hosted at 100 N Third Street was the Greenband Enterprise Boat Show. In the 1990s, the facility’s name was changed to the Phoenix Convention Center as it underwent extensive multiple renovations and expansions to give it 1,000,000 square feet of exhibit and meeting space. The main exhibit hall is 312,000 square feet, and the largest ballroom (largest in Arizona too!) is more than 45,000 square feet. With the 2,312-seat Phoenix Symphony Hall also part of the site, the facility is one of the top 10 convention centers in the country.
While the largest convention hosted was the National Rifle Association with 63,000 in 2009, the convention center has a high profile tradition of hosting Super Bowl media headquarters and fan experiences going back to the big game’s first Phoenix appearance (Super Bowl XXX) at Sun Devil stadium in 1996, and three subsequent appearances for Super Bowls XLII, XLIX and LVII at the Arizona Cardinals’ home State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Other prior sporting events include the NBA All-Star Jam Session in 2009, Major League Baseball’s All-Star Fan Fest in 2011 and even the WWE Royal Rumble Fan Axxess in 2019.
Four miles from Sky Harbor Airport and within walking distance of 3,000 hotel rooms, ease of access does not get much better for conventioneers. The Phoenix Convention Center is a department of the city of Phoenix.
Photo by Delsasso/Visusltd.com
