Low tourism dollars halts Orange County Convention Center expansion

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The major expansion project at the Orange County Convention Center will be delayed due to the pandemic and a lack of tourism dollars, officials said Monday.

The $605 million planned expansion for additional exhibit and meeting space was announced in 2018.

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“Another casualty of the pandemic will be the planned expansion of the Orange County Convention Center as we knew it,” Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said. “The expansion project will be delayed at the very least.”

The project was set to be paid for with tourist development tax money. However, numbers released in April showed a 97% decrease from last year, resulting in the lowest tourism dollars brought in since 1980.

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In May, tourist development tax numbers showed a 95% drop from last year.

The 7-million square-foot facility is the largest convention center in the U.S., behind Las Vegas, and houses regional, national and international conventions and trade shows.

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