The World’s Largest Convention Centre

There is dispute as to exactly who owns the title to the world’s largest convention centre due to the nature of the claim. It could be based on square footage, cubic area, or capacity. It could refer to the size of the building itself which brings into the equation many of the smaller convention rooms and halls some of the buildings host.

The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is Victoria’s largest convention centre. The first component of the complex (the “Exhibition Centre”) was built in 1995 and is colloquially known as Jeff’s Shed, so named on account of its unappealing exterior and the controversial Premier who abandoned plans for a museum in favour of a conference venue.

During last week’s funding announcement in front of a fawning group of convention centre boosters and self-interested lobbyists, the premier emphasized the development’s big-league-making proportions-”one of the largest building projects to take place in our city’s history”-and, of course, the centre’s “potential” to generate “far-reaching… spin offs” along with its “potential to create tremendous economic opportunities for the entire province.”

Somewhat boldly, vivid orange has been used to colour the walls on one side of the foyer. Complimenting that is a timber-clad ‘edifice’ which forms the basis of the mezzanine above. Aside from the orange walls on one side, the only other colour comes from the steps which are also orange, making them very easy to locate. Muted tones are used across the rest of the space, and a large floor-to-ceiling window provides ample natural light as well as a view to the Yarra River.

The orange of the foyer hints at what lies upstairs. Making one’s way to the mezzanine above, the walls, floors and ceiling are coloured in the same vivid orange. So whilst it sounds absolutely hideous, it works exceptionally well. I think the boldness of the colours work where a more restrained application of colour would have seemed almost tokenistic.

Potential benefits? Jobs? Twelve thousand, says Estabrooks; 27,000 over 10 years boasts Trade Centre Ltd. B.S., counters anyone who can count. Even the consultants the Trade Centre hired to come up with positive numbers don’t claim that.

There is also the question of whether this is really just another suspect public-private partnership in which taxpayers get fleeced while developers count profits? Remember P-3 schools? The $50-plus million the auditor general says we’re currently spending unnecessarily on them? Infrastructure Minister Bill Estabrooks insists this isn’t a dreaded P-3 project. But taxpayers are putting up the cash to build it. And the developer will own it. Sounds like P-3 to me.

When determining the world’s largest Convention Centre it is important to consider the extra space provided by the internal Meeting Rooms