| Cleveland Convention Center | |
|---|---|
 Cleveland Convention Center below Mall B in 2005; the reception pavilion is at right | |
 | |
| Address | 500 Lakeside Avenue |
| Location | Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 41°30′11″N 81°41′46″W / 41.503082°N 81.696004°W |
| Owner | Cuyahoga County, Ohio |
| Operator | Cleveland Convention Center and Visitors' Bureau |
| Built | 1960 to 1964 |
| Inaugurated | August 1964 |
| Opened | May 1964 |
| Renovated | 1987 |
| Expanded | 1987 |
| Demolished | 2011 |
Construction cost | US$15 million |
Meeting-room seating | 120 (1964 average) 100-1,000 (1987) |
| Banquet/ballroom | 0 (1964) 4,000 (1987) |
| Enclosed space | |
| • Total space | 424,230 square feet (39,412 m2) (1964) 375,000 sq ft (34,800 m2) (1987) |
| • Exhibit hall floor | 208,000 square feet (19,300 m2) (1964) 205,000 sq ft (19,000 m2) |
| • Breakout/meeting | 18 (1964) 37 (1987) |
| • Ballroom | 0 (1964) 32,000 sq ft (3,000 m2) (1987) |
| Parking | 500 (1964 500 (1987) |
The Cleveland Convention Center was located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Built by the city of Cleveland beneath the Cleveland Mall adjacent to Public Auditorium, it was completed in 1964. Plans for the convention center were first made in 1956, but voters twice rejected initiatives to fund construction before approving a bond levy in November 1963. A local private foundation donated several million dollars to beautify the mall atop the convention center with a reflecting pool and fountains.
Construction was plagued by issues with ground water, protests, strikes, and cost overruns. A major dispute broke out between civil rights activists and labor unions in the summer of 1963. Nevertheless, the convention center informally opened on May 11, 1964, almost three months ahead of schedule. A formal dedication on August 28, 1964, was followed an 11-day festival.
The Cleveland Convention Center underwent a major $28 million renovation from 1983 to 1987. Substantially reconfigured, although not larger, it reopened on October 5, 1987. The convention center was demolished in 2011, and the larger Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland built in the same underground location. It opened on June 7, 2013.