The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center Receives Centers of Excellence Award

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Awards, Venues & Destinations
The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center Receives Centers of Excellence Award

10/28/2024
NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (NOENMCC) has earned a 2025 Centers of Excellence designation from EXHIBITOR magazine, securing a place on the prestigious list of the nation’s best convention centers for trade shows and events. This year, NOENMCC has been recognized as one of the top 25 convention centers in North America by the publication.

This recognition follows a thorough assessment across five key categories: facility and functionality, location and accommodations, service and execution, expansions and upgrades, and sustainability. Conducted by a panel of corporate exhibit managers, the evaluation process includes a survey of event planners, show organizers and exhibit managers who have recently hosted or exhibited at events within each facility, as well as a review of entrants’ event spaces, selling points and innovations.

“We are honored to be named one of Exhibitor Magazine’s Centers of Excellence,” said Michael J. Sawaya, Convention Center President and CEO. “I see it as a reflection of our team’s unwavering dedication and success in creating exceptional events and memorable experiences for our clients and visitors. This recognition also highlights what inspires us and distinguishes us as an organization: our commitment to sustainability, our support for small businesses and our role as an economic engine for our region.”

Since opening in 1985, the NOENMCC has become a vital asset to the tourism industry in New Orleans. It has generated over $5.7 billion in tax revenue, contributing more than $90.1 billion in total economic impact and supporting over 24,000 permanent jobs in the region.

Committed to continued growth as a premier events venue, the Convention Center has completed significant facility upgrades during its ongoing $557 million Capital Improvement Plan. In addition to earning a gold-level Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification highlighting its dedication to sustainable practices, the Convention Center also works year-round to create opportunities for small and emerging businesses (SEB). The Convention Center’s governing body, the Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Exhibition Hall Authority’s (“the Authority”) SEB program encourages the hiring of local vendors to provide goods and services at the NOENMCC, and its SEBConnect app is making it easier for small businesses to access new opportunities and contracts. In Q1 and Q2 of 2024, the Convention Center awarded over $10.3 million in contracts to SEB vendors.

The Convention Center is also looking ahead to two exciting new projects taking shape adjacent to its facility. The Authority has partnered with Omni Hotels & Resorts to develop a proposed 1,000-room headquarters hotel, and it has entered into a separate partnership with River District Neighborhood Investors to transform 39 acres of undeveloped urban land into The River District. This new neighborhood will be a riverfront hub featuring restaurants, shopping, entertainment, offices, greenspaces and a range of residential options, including affordable housing and workforce housing.

About the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (NOENMCC)
New Orleans is Built to Host! With 1.1 million square feet of prime exhibit space on one level, all under one roof, NOENMCC is the sixth largest Convention Center in the United States and provides the largest single exhibit space in the country. NOENMCC is a 2023 IAVM Venue Excellence recipient and is consistently named a regional top workplace by The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate. Our recent LEED Gold certification makes NOENMCC the largest LEED-certified project in Louisiana and the largest convention center project in the U.S. certified under LEED v4.1 Operations and Maintenance, as well as the first convention center in the world to be awarded initial certification under LEED Gold v4.1 O+M. A leading contributor to the city’s robust tourism economy, NOENMCC event activity has produced $90.1 billion in economic impact since its 1985 opening. www.mccno.com

Contact:
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