Construction is envisaged to start early in 2008 on a 10 000 sq m extension of Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on an adjoining site on the Foreshore.

Further to the announcement in July that a major extension of the centre would take place, this week Andrew Boraine, chairperson of Convenco, said it had been established that the Customs House site, across the freeway, would be available to make the proposal a reality by 2010.

Boraine said that the Department of Public Works have confirmed their interest in becoming a strategic partner of Convenco. “The present shareholders are discussing options for the Department’s involvement in the extension. We are delighted by their interest as this demonstrates that the Department wants to go further than just a conventional sale or lease of the land.”

In the interim, Convenco has made substantial progress on what the extension will entail. A mixed development is being planned which will be accessible from the existing centre via a direct link under the highway.

In a near-mirror image of the existing centre it will comprise both exhibition and some office space with parking and a major new hotel.

Preliminary sketches proposed by Foreshore Architects, the architects that designed the existing centre for Convenco, show that the state-of-the-art extension will entail 9 400 sq m of exhibition space divided into four different halls.

Comparable to the layout of the existing centre, the extension will have access to a hotel of approximately 350 rooms with a direct link to the exhibition space.

Boraine said the exhibition hall connected to the hotel would be a very versatile space. “The new configuration means that a conference with a smaller exhibition component will be able to benefit from a comprehensive meeting package that provides meeting, hotel and exhibition spaces close to each other.”

Another enhancement of the new design would be the inclusion of a new banqueting space on the first floor with views over Table Bay.

During the course of the financial year 2006/07 the new exhibition space that forms part of the Convention Tower development at the eastern end of the existing centre was added to CTICC’s inventory.

While the additional 1 200 sq m of Hall 4B was used during the World Diabetes Congress, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival and other large events, it is not adequate to accommodate a substantial increase in new events.

Average hall occupancy at CTICC rose to 47.5% during the year, up from 43.5% in the previous year. However during certain months of the year overall occupancy of the exhibition halls has soared to 70% or higher.

It is expected that the new expansion on the Customs House site could open for events early in 2010.

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