Orange County Convention Center - Live Music Venue in Orlando

The Orange County Convention Center is a convention center located in Orlando, Florida. Opened in 1983 as the Orange County Convention and Civic Center, it is the primary public convention center for the Central Florida region and the second-largest convention center in the United States, after McCormick Place in Chicago.

Venue

Orange County Convention Center

Town

Orlando, US

The Orange County Convention Center is a convention center located in Orlando, Florida. Opened in 1983 as the Orange County Convention and Civic Center, it is the primary public convention center for the Central Florida region and the second-largest convention center in the United States, after McCormick Place in Chicago. The OCCC offers 7,000,000 sq ft (650,000 m2) of space, 2,100,000 sq ft (200,000 m2) of which is exhibit space. The complex is located on the south end of International Drive, a major tourist area in Orlando. The original building (the "West Concourse") housed an 11,300-seat arena from 1983 to 1992. It hosted concerts by popular artists including Madonna, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Run-DMC, The Beastie Boys, Def Leppard, Tesla, Styx, Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe, and Hall and Oates. Its use declined after the Orlando Arena opened in 1989. The arena closed in 1992 and was renovated and converted into the main exhibition hall in 1996. On April 18, 2012, the American Institute of Architects's Florida Chapter placed the building on its list of "Florida Architecture: 100 Years. 100 Places". Solar panels on the roof of the South Concourse provide 1 MW of power. The OCCC says it hosts events attracting about 1.5 million people annually, injecting $2.5 billion into the Central Florida economy. Of the hundreds of events hosted annually, they include IAAPA Expo and MegaCon. The Orange County Convention and Civic Center (OCCCC) was born out of a 1977 law passed by Florida's State Legislature. The law permit counties to collect a "Tourist Development Tax" on top of regular sales tax on hotel room stays, with the approval of the county's voters, for state-approved purposes. In a special election in April 1978, the voters of Orange County approved a 2% Tourist Development Tax (the limit set by the state) to build a convention and civic center. That August, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) approved a location for the OCCCC in Orlando Central Park