City will seek Proposals for Shipyards + Met Park Combined Development

[Steve]

The Georgia World Congress Center, although more of a traditional convention space, is managed by the Georgia World Congress Center Authority... which also manages the Georgia Dome and Centennial Olympic Park (all right next door to each other). I'm sure that's all changing with the new stadium up there, but it's worked well for Atlanta for about 25 years. It's not that far outside the box.

That's not the same thing. SMG manages both the Prime Osborne and EverBank Field today. Managing two facilities is one thing; using them for two different things is another. There are definitely times where convention-type events happen in the Georgia Dome (though I'm guessing not a ton since the GWCC is quite large (albeit an annoying layout compared to McCormick in Chicago and some of the other big ones).

Another difference is Atlanta has a TON of hotels right at GWCC (or within an easy walk). I think that's the key here. The Hyatt is the poster child for the big box convention hotel. You're not going to build another 1,000 room hotel downtown, and typically convention center hotels aren't at the top of the hotel pyramid like a Four Seasons (Chicago's is a Hyatt, Orlando's is a Hilton and something else, San Diego has a Hilton and a Marriott and a bunch right across the street).

Since you can't move the Hyatt, I think you have to do the convention center next to the Hyatt.

[remc86007]

Since you can't move the Hyatt, I think you have to do the convention center next to the Hyatt.

Agreed. I imagine Jacksonville could compete pretty well for conventions if there was a shuttle between the airport and the Hyatt and a new convention center was built right next to it.

[Kerry]

Is this practice facility going to have electrical outlets at the 50 yard line?  If not, where are exhibitors going to plug in during convention season?  Load capacity for the average cc floor is 350 lbs/sq ft.  Anyone know if the practice facility is being built to that level without damaging the playing surface.

You're right. Electricity on a football field seems like an impossible problem to solve. It's not like it's been fairly standard practice in home construction to put outlets on the floor, where they will hide under rugs, since at least the 1960s. Now they even recess them so the cord won't stick out! We live in the future.

You're right, we live in the future and I don't think you understand the complexities of running a modern convention center.  You can't just run a bunch of extension cords under some plywood sheets.  Modern convention space has outlets for electricity, fiber optics, compressed air, natural gas,  telephone, water, and a whole host of other items imbeded in the floor.

[Jim]

Is this practice facility going to have electrical outlets at the 50 yard line?  If not, where are exhibitors going to plug in during convention season?  Load capacity for the average cc floor is 350 lbs/sq ft.  Anyone know if the practice facility is being built to that level without damaging the playing surface.

You're right. Electricity on a football field seems like an impossible problem to solve. It's not like it's been fairly standard practice in home construction to put outlets on the floor, where they will hide under rugs, since at least the 1960s. Now they even recess them so the cord won't stick out! We live in the future.

You're right, we live in the future and I don't think you understand the complexities of running a modern convention center.  You can't just run a bunch of extension cords under some plywood sheets.  Modern convention space has outlets for electricity, fiber optics, compressed air, natural gas,  telephone, water, and a whole host of other items imbeded in the floor.

All of this.  For the Flex Field to be a valid convention center space, it should have had to be designed with that in mind from the beginning.   You cannot easily retro fit that space with the infrastructure necessary for convention center use without compromising somewhere.   

A flexible outdoor space should not be shoehorned into a role that is inadequate to meet the needs and demands of that role.  Practice facility?  Yes.  Pre-game entertainment? Yes. Open air events? Yes. Convention center? No.

[JBTripper]

Is this practice facility going to have electrical outlets at the 50 yard line?  If not, where are exhibitors going to plug in during convention season?  Load capacity for the average cc floor is 350 lbs/sq ft.  Anyone know if the practice facility is being built to that level without damaging the playing surface.

You're right. Electricity on a football field seems like an impossible problem to solve. It's not like it's been fairly standard practice in home construction to put outlets on the floor, where they will hide under rugs, since at least the 1960s. Now they even recess them so the cord won't stick out! We live in the future.

You're right, we live in the future and I don't think you understand the complexities of running a modern convention center.  You can't just run a bunch of extension cords under some plywood sheets.  Modern convention space has outlets for electricity, fiber optics, compressed air, natural gas,  telephone, water, and a whole host of other items imbeded in the floor.

Are we just assuming that the flex field will not have any of that? I assumed it will have some of that, otherwise it's not all that flexible.

[JBTripper]

Is this practice facility going to have electrical outlets at the 50 yard line?  If not, where are exhibitors going to plug in during convention season?  Load capacity for the average cc floor is 350 lbs/sq ft.  Anyone know if the practice facility is being built to that level without damaging the playing surface.

You're right. Electricity on a football field seems like an impossible problem to solve. It's not like it's been fairly standard practice in home construction to put outlets on the floor, where they will hide under rugs, since at least the 1960s. Now they even recess them so the cord won't stick out! We live in the future.

You're right, we live in the future and I don't think you understand the complexities of running a modern convention center.  You can't just run a bunch of extension cords under some plywood sheets.  Modern convention space has outlets for electricity, fiber optics, compressed air, natural gas,  telephone, water, and a whole host of other items imbeded in the floor.

All of this.  For the Flex Field to be a valid convention center space, it should have had to be designed with that in mind from the beginning.   You cannot easily retro fit that space with the infrastructure necessary for convention center use without compromising somewhere.   

A flexible outdoor space should not be shoehorned into a role that is inadequate to meet the needs and demands of that role.  Practice facility?  Yes.  Pre-game entertainment? Yes. Open air events? Yes. Convention center? No.

Was it not? It's not actually built yet, so you don't have to retrofit anything. Has anyone on this forum seen the design of this facility, detailed down to what's under the artificial turf on the flex field? The artists don't usually include that stuff in their renderings. I could be wrong, of course, but my understanding of the "flex" field was that it would be "flexible" enough for multiple uses... Which probably means it's got more to it than fake grass. If it doesn't, then it needs a new name.

[Steve]

Convention Centers are more than just carpeted warehouses. There are some surprisingly complex systems in place to handle different show's needs.

I'd be shocked if the Flex Field had these needs.

[KenFSU]

^I can't speak to the schematics, but the Jaguars and Bold are certainly speaking as if the flex field will be event-ready and that events will be a big part of their strategy.

The just held a trade show at the stadium last week.

From the T-U:

http://jacksonville.com/metro/business/2017-03-20/nfl-teams-companies-wheel-and-deal-during-trade-show-monday-everbank-field

NFL teams, companies wheel and deal during trade show Monday at EverBank Field

Doug Strohm was relieved to be in Jacksonville on Monday morning to promote his electrified magnetic football game as part of the NFL Consumer Product Summit.

The summit has been held for 16 years, but this is the first time it has come to Jacksonville.

Strohm, president of Tudor Games Inc., flew in from Sammamish, Wash., outside of Seattle, to attend the event hoping to snag retail deals with some of the 32 representatives of every NFL team. His game boards are technologically updated versions of the old favorite that makes miniature player figurines customized for NFL teams move across a metal scale football field.

"We normally will go wherever it [the summit] is. But it's specifically appealing to me to be able to come Jacksonville when we've had three days of sunny weather since November in Seattle. So personally, I'm all for it," Strohm said with a laugh.

And that's exactly the tack the Jacksonville Jaguars organization took to pitch the NFL in hopes of landing the event.

Jaguars President Mark Lamping said Visit Jacksonville, the city's tourism bureau, helped coax the NFL to hold the event at EverBank Field.

Jacksonville beat out the cities of Chicago, Indianapolis and Minneapolis for this year's summit. Last year, it was in Charlotte, N.C.

"We have members of the immediate and extended NFL family coming from all over the country and visiting Jacksonville," Lamping said in his office at EverBank Field. " It's always a great thing to be able to show off a city that we love so much.

"But in addition to that, one of the great things that will come out of this is that we will have a great example of the types of large events that the reconfigured EverBank Field can successfully hold," Lamping said.

The summit is designed to get product companies and manufacturers with official NFL licenses to reach deals with retailers such as Fanatics, which is based in Jacksonville, or Wal-Mart, or other stores and online sites.

It's also an opportunity for athletic gear companies such as Under Armour and Nike, among others, to meet with equipment managers from every team to pitch their products. Deals being negotiated include uniforms, practice equipment, protective gear and staff apparel.

About 150 NFL-licensed companies had booths and displays inside the interior hallways of the stadium for the event that continues through Tuesday. It is not open to the general public.

Brian Lowe is the sales manager for For Bare Feet Original, which produces socksfor every NFL franchise. At his booth on the second floor of the stadium, he said the NFL Product Summit is invaluable to businesses like his.

"It gives us a chance to see all the teams in one location," said Lowe who is attending his seventh summit. "This gives us an opportunity to get everyone in one building and it is cohesive."

Chris Halpin, senior vice president of licensing and consumer products, said most NFL fans are completely oblivious to the product summit. But for the "inside football" business crowd, it's a huge off-season event and holding it in Jacksonville was appealing.

"The summit is the moment when all of our consumer products both on field and for fans come together," Halpin said. "We move it to a different team each year."

Halpin credited Jaguars owner Shad Khan and Lamping for heightening awareness of the ability of the Jaguars franchise to host the product summit. But he also said Jacksonville itself was alluring.

"It's a vibrant, dynamic city. It's good to have it in the South and connect to our fans down here. And it's a place a lot of our licensees and partners wanted to come. They enjoy it," Halpin said while sitting in the owner's luxury suite atop EverBank Field.

"It's a neat way to plug into the league," Halpin said. "It's about 1,000 attendees from all elements of the NFL community. It's also a great moment for the [host] team to tell its story, its brand positioning [and] where it's going."

Ultimately, Lamping said the sister company of the Jaguars called Bold Events will begin trying to bring more events to the stadium similar to the NFL Consumer Product Summit. But many of those events likely won't have anything to do with the NFL and will also include the Daily's Place amphitheater and the Flex Field indoor training facility that are both currently under construction.

"Our goal is to have a very busy building," Lamping said. "It's important for two reasons: The indirect reason ... is when you have people traveling to Jacksonville, staying in downtown Jacksonville hotels, eating out at restaurants, it creates an economic impact that's good for the community ... .

"But directly, Bold Events was created as one of our strategies to generate local revenue to help meet our goal of having a stable, sustainable NFL franchise here in Jacksonville."

He added that the product summit did bring in revenue for the Jaguars operation, though he declined to disclose how much the league paid the franchise for hosting the event.

Many of the trade show attendees stayed at downtown hotels that were pitched as part of a package deal. The Jaguars also arranged entertainment and dining events at Intuition Ale Works near the stadium and at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

"I think we have clearly added to the exhibition space capacity of downtown Jacksonville. And to a degree, we can utilize that space along with the other space that's already in downtown Jacksonville to attract more people to come and visit," Lamping said.

[thelakelander]

I think everyone is still talking about two different animals. Sure, you can have some trade shows and occasional events at the flex field.  That happens in similar facilities around the country as well.  However, it isn't a substitute for an every day convention center facility.

[Jim]

Can you hold the Concours D'Elegance there? Yes.  Can you hold CES there? No.

So again. Practice facility? Yes. Pre-game entertainment? Yes. Open air events? Yes. Convention center? No.

[CG7]

I just looked at Bold Events website, and here are the spaces available under one roof. 2 - 62,000 square foot US Assure clubs, Fields Terrace club - 42,000 square foot, a 5,500 seat amphitheater plus a 94,000 square foot climate controlled flex space. that is a total of 260,000 square feet plus an amphitheater. All of it is easily accessible in a unique setting. Just saying, maybe not the craziest idea after all.

[Jim]

I just looked at Bold Events website, and here are the spaces available under one roof. 2 - 62,000 square foot US Assure clubs, Fields Terrace club - 42,000 square foot, a 5,500 seat amphitheater plus a 94,000 square foot climate controlled flex space. that is a total of 260,000 square feet plus an amphitheater. All of it is easily accessible in a unique setting. Just saying, maybe not the craziest idea after all.

All of that is great for a very specific type of events.   In terms of exhibition hall space, it's limited to open air capable events.   Prime Osborne actually has a total of 265,000 square feet itself but only 80,000 for open floor exhibitions with the infrastructure you expect a convention center to have (which the Flex Field does not).

Can those spaces be used for something interesting?  Of course.  But there is no way in hell it can function as a modern convention center without seriously sacrificing on the infrastructure needs.

[FlaBoy]

I think everyone is still talking about two different animals. Sure, you can have some trade shows and occasional events at the flex field.  That happens in similar facilities around the country as well.  However, it isn't a substitute for an every day convention center facility.

It is becoming more clear though that they want a hotel that does have significant convention space, if not a convention center, by the stadium in order to bolster the year long events/revenue. They believe they can sell and market it all to attract additional events and conventions. It is also true that, during our prime convention times from January to May, the Flex Field is available as additional close space to a possible convention center. We will see how this unfolds.

[Steve]

I just looked at Bold Events website, and here are the spaces available under one roof. 2 - 62,000 square foot US Assure clubs, Fields Terrace club - 42,000 square foot, a 5,500 seat amphitheater plus a 94,000 square foot climate controlled flex space. that is a total of 260,000 square feet plus an amphitheater. All of it is easily accessible in a unique setting. Just saying, maybe not the craziest idea after all.

This is hugely misleading, and forgive me for judging, but I'm guessing you're not a frequent attendee of events in the stadium.
- The Field Terrace Club is the Terrace Suite of the stadium. It's a restaurant that on one side overlooks the stadium, on the other overlooks the Amphitheater.
- The US Assure Clubs are the East and West Clubs of the stadium. Check out jaguars.com for renderings. It's lounge space adjacent to the prime Stadium Seats - not accessible from the rest of the complex without walking down the concourse of the stadium.
- An Amphitheater isn't exactly convention floor space. That's like saying the Moran Theater at the TU Center is a small convention center.
- That leaves the 94k SqFt of the field itself.

[Steve]

BTW, I'm spending the next two days at the David Lawrence Center in Pittsburgh - it's 1.5M SqFt, and has a Westin attached. While a lot larger, from what I see online this should be a model for Jacksonville. I'll let you know my thoughts.

http://www.pittsburghcc.com