Minneapolis Mulls Convention Center Hotel

Minneapolis’ convention and visitors bureau, Meet Minneapolis, has released the results of a feasibility study examining the need for a 1,000-room hotel near the Minneapolis Convention Center, it reported this week.

Conducted by Convention, Sports & Leisure International (CSL), with supporting analysis from Hospitality Valuation Services Consulting & Valuation, the study made the following conclusions, Meet Minneapolis said:

• Relatively high occupancy rates and average daily room rates (ADR) in Minneapolis suggest that hotel development in downtown is likely over the next several years, with or without the addition of a convention hotel.

• Minneapolis would benefit from the construction of a 1,000-room hotel that would allow it to attract additional convention and trade show business.

• The development of a 1,000-room hotel would negatively impact nearby downtown hotels in the short term, but positively in the long term as additional convention and trade show business is attracted to the community. Strong economic growth or development of new demand could reduce the recovery period.

• A hotel of this scale would cost an estimated $304.5 million, take 24-30 months to construct and would require public participation in order to make the project economically viable.

The feasibility study is part of a larger effort at increasing Minneapolis’ profile as a destination for meetings and conventions. Concurrently, Meet Minneapolis has formed a task force that will examine the city’s hotel market and make recommendations for attracting more groups to the Twin Cities.

“This is an important next step for us,” Meet Minneapolis Board Chair Peter Mihajlov said in a statement. “We know that we aren’t currently competitive in terms of attracting the largest events, the ones that require 3,000 or more hotel rooms at peak. We’ve asked the task force to ‘fill in the blanks’ by first determining where our best opportunities are for growth. Is it in the 700-peak room segment we’re currently competing in? Or is it in the 2,000-peak room range or even the 3,000-peak room range? Then, once we’ve determined where our best opportunities lie, we want the task force to catalog what we need as a destination to gain and maintain a competitive edge in whatever segment we’re targeting. This is critical work that will help Meet Minneapolis, the city and other interested groups know how to best use our limited resources while minimizing the impact on the current market.”

Reported by:  Successful Meetings