LA Convention Center Overhaul Moves Forward for $2.2 Billion

A plan to revamp the Los Angeles Convention Center has moved forward — at a cost of $2.2 billion, more than four times its price tag three years ago.

The Los Angeles City Council voted to spend $27.7 million on design and engineering work for the expansion of the convention center to 1 million square feet at 1201 South Figueroa Street, in South Park, Urbanize Los Angeles reported.

A final vote to approve construction is slated this summer, after city officials wrap up negotiations with locally based AEG and Australia-based Plenary Group.

If given a green light, the developers could break ground in September, then pause at the end of May 2028 to allow the convention center to be used as a venue for the 2028 Olympic games. Construction would resume, expecting to complete the makeover by March 2029.

The cost and scope of the renovation project has ballooned.

In March 2022, the Los Angeles City Planning Commission approved a plan to expand the Los Angeles Convention Center and the J.W. Marriott Hotel next door for a combined $1 billion.

Renovating the convention center was estimated to cost $500 million, and would have added 700,000 square feet and a new span connecting the south and west halls, increasing its size by 45 percent, Urbanize then reported. A more recent cost estimate for the project was $1.4 billion, which the city had sought no matter what build option was pursued.

The latest proposal, estimated to cost $2.2 billion for the convention center alone, would increase its footprint to more than 1 million square feet, allowing it to compete for large events against cities like New York and Chicago.

Plans call for 190,000 square feet of new exhibit halls, 55,000 square feet of meeting rooms, and 95,000 square feet of multi-purpose rooms. The Gilbert Lindsay Plaza on Figueroa Street would be renovated, while a stretch of Pico Boulevard which cuts through the convention center would be upgraded.

City officials estimate the expansion could double the amount of revenue generated by the L.A. Convention Center, in part by hiking rental rates frozen for more than a decade, and by new signs that could presumably charge for advertising.

Separate from the convention center expansion, AEG is also planning to add a 37-story, 861-room hotel tower to the neighboring J.W. Marriott Hotel. However, work on that project has paused until economic conditions improve, according to Urbanize.

— Dana Bartholomew