Civic Progress was also a key driving force behind the development of St.
Louis’s first convention center. When the $36 million, 240,000 square feet
Cervantes Convention Center opened in March 1977, it was viewed as both an
essential tax-generating project that could prop up a sagging local treasury and
as a vehicle for downtown revitalization. With its tax base shrinking due to
rapid population decentralization and loss of manufacturing jobs in automobiles
and steel, civic leaders saw options for revitalizing their downtown. Editorials
of the day featured tag lines like “Thanks to Convention Center Color
Tourism Picture Green” and “Our Community’s Hopes are Rising with the
Convention Center.” The Cervantes Convention Center was St. Louis’ first
entry into the emerging meetings and exhibition sweepstakes and was reported
to be the ninth largest in the United States (Jones, 1977).