VENUE

Firms Chosen to Design Indiana CC Expansion
19/06/2006
The Indiana Stadium and Convention Building Authority has selected a team of four Indianapolis-based architectural firms to plan and design the expansion of the Indiana Convention Center located in that city.
The expansion project intends to add three additional exhibit halls to the convention center by fall 2010. It is part of Indianapolis’ redevelopment plan slated over the next four years that includes the new Lucas Oil Stadium, due in spring 2008, and a new convention headquarters hotel. The new stadium and expanded center will have a total of 733,700 square feet of event space.
Indianapolis began the expansion process last September with the groundbreaking of the new 70,000-seat, retractable-roof stadium. When Lucas Oil Stadium is completed, the current stadium, RCA Dome, will be razed to make room for the convention center expansion.
Design work on the center expansion is expected to take one year, starting in January 2007. The cost for the new stadium and center expansion is estimated at $900 million.
Details for the headquarters hotel with 800 to 1,000 rooms have yet to be finalized, with discussions ongoing. While it has begun accepting bids from developers, the city hopes that the property will be located near or adjacent to the expansion site.
The city estimates that the new stadium and expanded convention center will draw an additional 18 to 23 major conventions and trade shows, plus four to five consumer shows, annually.
Ratio Architects will design the exterior of the expansion, while BSA LifeStructures will design the interior, said the ISCBA. Blackburn Architects and Domain Architecture are the other firms in the planning and design team.