San Diego’s award-winning bayside Convention Center has transformed our city into a world-class convention and meeting destination, sparking wave upon wave of vibrant Downtown redevelopment and generating millions in tax revenues to support essential city services.

San Diego taxpayers made a wise investment in approving a new Downtown Convention Center and then voting to expand the building when it became apparent a larger facility was crucial for future business growth. Over the past 17 years, Convention Center attendees have generated $12.8 billion in regional economic impact and more than $270 million in tax revenues, including $252.2 million in hotel room taxes. The city has in turn used those tax revenues to fund essential services for San Diegans such as public safety and street, park and beach maintenance.

In January, the San Diego Convention Center Corp., the entity responsible for marketing, managing and operating the Convention Center, released its annual forecast projecting an exceptionally strong 2007 with record gains in several key business measures. Among the forecast’s estimates was a record-breaking $1.56 billion in regional economic impact, up 16.3 percent from the previous year, and total tax revenue of $25.1 million, up from $24.9 million in 2006.

Forecasts, by definition, are estimates in advance, based on the best industry and economic data available. They are not carved in stone. Still, much like our region’s near-perfect climate, the San Diego Convention Center has a proven track record of meeting and exceeding expectations.

For example, in its January 2006 forecast, the corporation estimated regional economic impact of $1.16 billion for the calendar year ending December 2006. But by year end, that number had soared to $1.34 billion, fueled by record-breaking attendance at several events. Among them was the Healthcare Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) annual meeting in February 2006, which reported a 34 percent attendance increase over its previous record-breaker in San Diego in 2003. Longtime client and perennial favorite Comic Con International drew its highest audience ever with 123,000 attendees flocking to the Convention Center in late July.

Our ongoing success is bringing new challenges. Many of our most valued clients that generate the largest economic impact and tax revenues are outgrowing our facility. In 2006, HIMSS was our largest event in economic terms as it generated nearly $82 million in economic impact and $1.75 million in taxes and attendees used 63,000 hotel room nights. But HIMSS has outgrown our current size. Comic Con International is another example. What started as a small show in a hotel ballroom now uses the entire Convention Center. Without more space, Comic Con will outgrow our current facility resulting in a significant loss to the cultural fabric of San Diego, as well as an economic loss to local hotels, restaurants, shops and attractions.

Other cities, witnessing our stunning success in transforming San Diego into a top-tier destination, are moving aggressively to lure away top clients, offering free or deeply discounted convention space. Increasingly, hotel rates have reached a point that many shows can no longer afford to come to San Diego.

Despite these challenges, the Convention Center continues to be in strong demand with the 2007 forecast calling for an occupancy rate of 74.1 percent, up 2.2 percent from 2006. This is an outstanding accomplishment, considering the national average for similar size facilities is 44.4 percent. (No meeting facility ever achieves 100 percent due to brief closures for maintenance, holidays and the difficulty of booking back-to-back events due to move-in and move-out schedules). In effect, the Convention Center is bursting at the seams with business. Our sales team turns away an additional year’s worth of business due to lack of space or available dates.

The Convention Center continues to excel in its ability to attract lucrative medical conventions with 18 shows in 2007, including the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons annual meeting that attracted 30,000 attendees to San Diego in mid February and the Society of Neuroscience, which is preparing for 32,000 attendees in late October. The combined 18 events will generate nearly one-half of the Convention Center’s total economic impact in 2007 and over $11 million in tax revenues for city coffers.

In fact, the return on the taxpayer’s investment in the Convention Center is impressive. In fiscal year 2006, the city invested $9.5 million for a taxpayer-approved expansion bond payment and a $4.3 million investment to market the building, used primarily to underwrite rental write-downs to lucrative shows that generate significant tax revenues back to the city. After receiving $23.1 million in total tax revenues from direct Convention Center generated business, the city’s net return on this $13.5 million investment was $9.6 million, or 71 percent.

All in all, the Convention Center continues to be one of the city’s best and wisest investments. Yet we cannot simply rest on our past success as new competitive challenges emerge. As board chair of the Convention Center Corp., I can assure you that our board, staff and hospitality partners at the San Diego Convention Center will continue to ensure San Diego remains a leader in the convention and meetings industry and a world-class destination.

Cheryl Kendrick is chair of the San Diego Convention Center Corp.