The San Diego Convention Center is a downtown landmark. (Google Images/Visit San Diego)
San Diego, Business

Did You Know…

By Frank Sabatini Jr

…that the sprawling San Diego Convention Center perched along downtown’s waterfront recently turned 35 years old?

The iconic landmark has welcomed more than 25 million attendees while bringing in nearly $27 billion to our region. Among the facility’s major annual conventions are Comic-Con and the San Diego International Auto Show. (Coming up soon is the well-attended San Diego Home Show, Jan. 11 and 12, featuring more than 100 home-improvement vendors.)

“I’m proud to honor the hard work of everyone who makes the Convention Center a success and look forward to its continued contributions to San Diego,” said Mayor Todd Gloria at a reception honoring its anniversary. “Here’s to many more years of growth and impact.”

The convention center spans nearly 616,000 square feet and has a capacity of 125,000 people, which becomes evident when Comic-Con sells out in most years. The building’s distinctive features reflect San Diego’s long maritime history. They include curvy green-tinted glass panels along the sides of the building, and pointy white sails gracing the roof of the Sails Pavilion that are attractively illuminated at night.