FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, January 3, 2019
Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, 415-554-6131
*** PRESS RELEASE ***
MAYOR LONDON BREED, CITY DEPARTMENTS, AND COMMUNITY LEADERS CELEBRATE COMPLETION OF MOSCONE EXPANSION PROJECT
$551 million expansion provides increased capacity and public amenities, will help San Francisco’s tourism and hospitality industries meet growing demand
San Francisco, CA— Mayor London N. Breed today joined elected officials, City departments, tourism and hospitality industry leaders, and community representatives to celebrate the completion of the $551 million Moscone Expansion Project.
The project adds more than 305,000 square feet of functional area in addition to a host of new public benefits and amenities. With the completion of the project, the new Moscone Center will better meet growing demand for convention and tourism space and increase tax revenue for the City.
“The new Moscone Center is a world-class facility for a world-class city,” said Mayor London Breed. “With the completion of this expansion, San Francisco is taking a major step to support and expand our tourism industry, while also serving residents in the surrounding area. This state-of-the-art facility exemplifies our commitment to sustainability, creates new flexible-use convention and tourism spaces, and supports the neighborhood with a host of new design and open-space improvements.”
The Moscone Center has hosted some of the most important conventions and product announcements in recent memory, providing the space and amenities for businesses and organizations from the United States and beyond to celebrate their achievements and anticipate the future. Some of these include Salesforce’s annual Dreamforce conference, Oracle’s annual Oracle OpenWorld convention, the Game Developers Conference, and groundbreaking medical conferences.
Convention activities help drive general hotel tax revenues for the City, which were anticipated to provide approximately $375 million of General Fund revenues in Fiscal Year 2018-19 budget. The expansion is also anticipated to create nearly 1,000 permanent jobs in San Francisco.
“The expansion of Moscone Center will have a lasting and positive impact on San Francisco’s economy,” said City Administrator Naomi Kelly. “In addition to the tax revenue and permanent jobs created, the expansion will provide new public spaces and pedestrian enhancements, weaving the Moscone Center into the surrounding neighborhood.”
The project implemented a number of urban design, streetscape and pedestrian safety changes that were designed to improve Moscone Center’s connection to the surrounding Yerba Buena neighborhood. The changes include wider sidewalks, open-air plazas, four additional public art installations, and enhanced landscaping and family-friendly play spaces to create a safer and more inviting neighborhood for residents and visitors. The San Francisco Public Works project team managed the Final Environmental Impact Report, development of design, secured all site permits, worked closely with multiple community groups to collect input on the proposed project design, and provided project management and construction management services.
“This project meets the demands of a 21st-century San Francisco with a design that is both functional and beautiful and adds to the vibrancy of the surrounding neighborhood,” said Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru. “Our partnerships with the hospitality sector and community groups to turn the Moscone expansion from idea to reality exemplifies San Francisco as a can-do city.”
The new Moscone Center is designed to meet LEED Platinum certification, and has the lowest carbon footprint per delegate of any major convention center in North America. It also has the largest rooftop solar panel array in San Francisco, which will provide the center with approximately 20 percent of its power. In addition, 15 million gallons of water will be recovered annually for reuse in landscaping, street cleaning and toilet flushing, and recycling and composting are included throughout the facility.
“San Francisco understands that we must be responsible and forward-thinking when it comes to water use,” said San Francisco Public Utilities Commission General Manager Harlan L. Kelly, Jr. “The expanded Moscone Convention Center, which will save as much as 15 million gallons of water a year through its new water reuse system, is a perfect example of that innovative spirit.”
With funding generated by the capital project, the San Francisco Arts Commission commissioned light artist Leo Villareal for the enclosed pedestrian bridge across Howard Street; Sarah Sze for the Park Bridge, spanning Howard Street; Christine Corday for a large outdoor sculpture on the north side of Howard Street; and Brendan Monroe for a large-scale mural on the Paseo Gallery wall. All artists were selected through a competitive public process and approved by the San Francisco Arts Commission. The Arts Commission also reinstalled works already in the Moscone collection, including the beloved Three Dancing Figures by Keith Haring.
The Moscone Expansion project follows a number of smaller renovations to the facility. In 2008, the City entered into a public-private partnership agreement with San Francisco Travel and the newly established San Francisco Tourism Improvement District (TID) to undertake a $56 million facelift of the existing Moscone interiors, including improving bathrooms, wayfinding, carpeting, movable walls, digital displays and other interior aesthetics. Following the completion of the initial renovations, the City explored future uses of the space. As a result, in 2012 and 2013, the Office of Economic and Workforce Development led negotiations to establish the public-private Moscone Expansion District (MED) partnership to fund the new $551 million renovation and expansion. The expansion project was funded through a combination of MED hotel revenue assessment and the City’s General Fund.
“The collaborative effort of this public private partnership is delivering substantial public benefits to the Yerba Buena neighborhood, creating hundreds of jobs and driving economic activity in a sustainable, responsible way,” said Joaquín Torres, Director of the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. “Expanding the economic potential of this historic facility strengthens San Francisco’s status as a cultural destination now and into the future.”
“It is important that San Francisco stay competitive with expanded and upgraded convention facilities. This project has achieved that,” said Joe D’Alessandro, President and CEO of the San Francisco Travel Association. “Our two main goals have been to create contiguous space and flexibility for the Moscone Center. Now we have a brand-new center with state-of-the-art everything.”
Mayor Breed announced the rededication of the Moscone Center campus in honor of Mayor George Moscone, and the dedication of the South Lobby in honor of the late Mayor Edwin M. Lee, which includes a plaque recognizing the Mayor Edwin M. Lee South Lobby.