Los Angeles Convention Center: Record breaking results

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The Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC) reported its most successful financial and operational year to-date.

The Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC) reported its most successful financial and operational year to-date. Fiscal Year (FY) 2015-2016 significantly exceeded revenue expectations and nearly tripled the prior yearโ€™s profits of over $2.8 million to a record-breaking profit of $8.1 million. Beyond financial accomplishments, the LACC also completed a myriad of Capital Improvement (CIP) and Alteration & Improvement (A&I) Projects to further enhance building operations and efficiencies while adhering to its overarching environmental sustainability goals.

Under the management of AEG Facilities, the LACC ended this fiscal year, which concluded on June 30, 2016, with an operating surplus of $8.1 million after reimbursing the City of Los Angeles $1.6 million for the Department of Convention & Tourism Development (CTD) overhead. Since taking over management in December 2013, AEG Facilities has generated a total operating profit of over $11.8 million and reimbursed the City of Los Angeles $4.6 million. Moreover, in keeping with convention center management best practices, AEG Facilities set out to build a financial reserve of $2.1 million within the 5 years of its initial management agreement. This goal has already been surpassed with $6.1 million added to the reserve at the conclusion of FY 2015-2016.

โ€œWe are impressed with AEGโ€™s LACC team and their ability to consistently deliver exceptional financial results, which in turn save millions of dollars for the Cityโ€™s General Fund annually. A strategic business vision, efficient business practices, and entrepreneurial spirit have led the LACC to unprecedented financial achievements; we look forward to our continued partnership and to a bright future ahead,โ€ commented Bud Ovrom, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Department of Convention & Tourism Development (CTD).

The LACC has also furthered its partnership with the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board (LATCB), resulting in a 30% increase in citywide convention bookings in 2016, which will continue to drive revenue for both the facility and the City of Los Angeles.

โ€œForming a cohesive partnership with both the LATCB and CTD has been an underpinning of AEGโ€™s success at the LA Convention Center and the substantial rise in citywide bookings attests to the fantastic work being done by the organizations involved. Citywide conventions stimulate the local economy and help sustain thousands of jobs through attendee direct and indirect spending,โ€ commented Jon F. Vein, President, Board of Los Angeles Convention & Tourism Development Commissioners.

Funds from the operating surplus are also allocated to CIP and A&I projects, which are integral to the improvement of the LACC and not only make the LACC a more efficient and better functioning facility but also serve to directly benefit clients and attendees. In FY 2015-2016, LACC spent $4.4 million on A&I and CIP projects; between 2014-conclusion of calendar year 2016, $28.9 million would have been invested in the Center in the form of CIP and A&I projects funded through the City of Los Angeles and the annual operating surplus achieved through AEG Facilitiesโ€™ management of the LACC.

Notable projects completed in FY 2015-2016 include the addition of high-end lobby furniture in public spaces, carpet replacement in public areas/foyers, critical repairs to the chillers and cooling towers, and improvements to Security and access control. The Security Department experienced positive upgrades and changes with the addition of 28 security cameras for a total of 214 cameras facility-wide (a CIP project) and a total staff of 59 as of June 30, 2016. The LACC also purchased 20 magnetometers to further elevate its safety and security procedures. Moreover, the Guest Services Department, a division of the Security Department, was successfully added in 2015 and has grown to 9 employees. Guest Services Representatives assist guests with way-finding, directions, lost & found, and related requests and enhance the overall attendee experience with their exemplary service and attentiveness.

The LACC also reached new heights in the environmental sustainability arena this past FY. In September 2015, the LACC became the largest convention center in the U.S. to attain LEEDยฉ EB:OM GOLD recertification (first certified GOLD in 2010). Furthermore, US Green Building Council: Los Angeles awarded the LACC with the Sustainable Innovation Award: Materials & Resources for its construction & demolition (C&D) recycling program. In 2015, the LACC diverted 1 million pounds of C&D waste and achieved an overall waste diversion rate of 72%. Besides recycling efforts, the venue also reduced its overall water consumption by 13% compared to 2013. The venue is also committed to sourcing environmentally responsible products and sustainable purchases accounted for over 80% of all on-going consumables purchasing in 2015.

โ€œWhile achieving positive financial results and operating in a fiscally responsible manner is important to us, we are also pleased that the LACC remains a symbol of environmental and social responsibility in the local community. Attaining LEEDยฉ GOLD recertification was a monumental feat for the LACC-AEG team and we are very proud of this great achievement that would not be possible without the contribution of LACC employees โ€“ especially in the Facilities and Operations departments, and support from the Department of Convention & Tourism Development (CTD) and AEG1Earth,โ€ commented Brad Gessner, General Manager of the Los Angeles Convention Center and Senior Vice President at AEG Facilities.

About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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