Convention centers may impose costs as well as benefits to a city. New
space for meetings and exhibitions has far outpaced market demand (Perry,
2003). Only a handful of centers in prime destinations operate at a profit,
which leaves calculations of benefit to doubtful multipliers (Shure, 1994). Industry
analysts are likely to look at such considerations differently than cities
do. For meeting planners and the groups they work for, more space for meetings
and conventions is an unalloyed benefit; it expands their options and
strengthens their bargaining power with convention center administrators.
Those who advise cities to build and expand their facilities do not share in the
costs or the risks assumed by local taxpayers.