The Walter E. Washington Convention Center is a
convention center
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
located in
Washington, D.C., owned and operated by the city's convention arm,
Events DC. Designed in a joint venture by the
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
-based architecture firm
Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates
TVS is an architecture, planning, and interior design firm in Atlanta.
History
Founded in 1968 by Bill Thompson, Tom Ventulett, and Ray Stainback, tvsdesign has designed several notable buildings in greater Atlanta and beyond throughout the yea ...
,
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morg ...
- based architects Devrouax & Purnell Architects Planners PC and Mariani and Associates, the convention center is located in a
superblock bounded by
Mount Vernon Square
Mount Vernon Square is a city square and neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. The square is located where the following streets would otherwise intersect: Massachusetts Avenue NW, New York Avenue NW, K Street NW, and 8th ...
and
7th, 9th and N streets,
N.W. It is served by the
Mount Vernon Square
Mount Vernon Square is a city square and neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. The square is located where the following streets would otherwise intersect: Massachusetts Avenue NW, New York Avenue NW, K Street NW, and 8th ...
station on the
Yellow
Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In th ...
and
Green
Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a combin ...
lines of the
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro (or simply Metro), formally the Metrorail,[Google Books search/preview ...](_blank)
. It was completed in 2003. The center is noted for its extensive permanent collection of contemporary art, the largest of any convention center in the United States and one of the largest public art collections in Washington outside of a museum, including works by
Sam Gilliam,
Sol LeWitt
Solomon "Sol" LeWitt (September 9, 1928 – April 8, 2007) was an American artist linked to various movements, including conceptual art and minimalism.
LeWitt came to fame in the late 1960s with his wall drawings and "structures" (a term he pref ...
,
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (born 1940) is a Native Americans in the United States, Native American visual artist and curator. She is an enrolled member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and is also of Métis and Shoshone descent. She is ...
,
Sarah Sze, and
Carrie Mae Weems.
Major events
Six of the nine official inaugural balls for the 2005
second inauguration of George W. Bush were held at the convention center.
In 2006, the
Council of the District of Columbia
The Council of the District of Columbia is the legislative branch of the local government of the District of Columbia, the capital of the United States. As permitted in the United States Constitution, the district is not part of any U.S. state ...
approved legislation naming the then-Washington Convention Center in honor of the city's first
home rule
Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wi ...
mayor, the late
Walter E. Washington
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...
. In 2008, the WCSA Board of Directors agreed to expand the newly built convention center by .
Six of the 10 official balls of the
2009 Presidential Inauguration
The first inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States took place on Tuesday, January 20, 2009, at the West Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. The 56th inauguration, which set a record attendance ...
of
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
took place there, including the first-ever Neighborhood Ball.
The center was the principal site of the
2010 Nuclear Security Summit hosted by President Barack Obama.
On November 10, 2011, ground was broken on the 14-story
Washington Marriott Marquis, a $520 million, four-star, 1,175-room "convention center headquarters hotel" with more than of meeting room space. Also in 2011, the convention center hosted a major fight card with a welterweight championship match between Lamont Peterson and Amir Khan at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
In 2013, it was announced that the Walter E. Washington Convention Center would be the 5 year host of
Otakon
Otakon ( ) is an annual three-day anime convention held during July/August. It stands for Otaku Convention. From 1999 to 2016, it took place at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland's Inner Harbor district; in 2017, it moved ...
, the Japanese and East Asian culture convention that was held since 1999 in the
Baltimore Convention Center
The Baltimore Convention Center is a convention and exhibition hall located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. The center is a municipal building owned and operated by the City of Baltimore.
The facility was constructed in two separate phases: th ...
in
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...
, starting with Otakon 2017 and going at least until Otakon 2021 which was considered to be a "great win" for Washington, D.C.'s convention business with an estimated $25 million annual revenue for D.C. and over 30,000 visitors expected during the time Otakon is in D.C.
The pop culture convention
Awesome Con debuted at the center in 2013. After a successful debut (and some growing pains), the annual event has grown to become one of the largest fan conventions on the East Coast of the United States. The 2013 event drew about 7,000 attendees. The 2017 event hosted 70,000 attendees. Celebrity guests have included
David Tennant
David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show ''Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...
,
John Boyega,
Stan Lee
Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...
,
Alex Kingston,
William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship ''Enterpris ...
,
George Takei and many others.
Since 2014 the
National Book Festival has been held at the center.
In 2016, Otakon revealed at their Road to D.C. panel part of Otakon 2016 that the Walter E. Washington Convention Center will actually be the 8 year host of Otakon, starting with Otakon 2017 and going through at least until Otakon 2024.
The Frederick Classic on the Hill women's gymnastics tournament is held at the convention center.
In December 2022, President Biden hosted delegations from 49 African nations at the Convention Center for the
United States–Africa Leaders Summit 2022.
The old Washington Convention Center
The previous Washington Convention Center was located one block southwest at 909 H Street NW, occupying the city block bounded by
New York Avenue, 9th Street, H Street and 11th Street.
[Old Washington Convention Center Site](_blank)
WashingtonPost.com City Guide, Retrieved May 9, 2007 Construction on the center began in 1980, and it opened on December 10, 1982.
[Pianin, Eric. "Gala Debut Is Set For Long-Awaited Convention Center". ''Washington Post''. December 10, 1982.] At , it was the fourth largest facility in the United States at the time. However, during the 1980s and 1990s, numerous larger and more modern facilities were constructed around the country, and by 1997 the Washington Convention Center was only the 30th largest facility.
[A History of the Washington Convention Center](_blank)
Washington Convention Center website, Retrieved April 13, 2010
After being replaced by the new Walter E. Washington Convention Center, the old convention center was
imploded at approximately 7:30 a.m. on December 18, 2004.
[Old Convention Center Imploded](_blank)
NBC4.com, Retrieved May 9, 2007
See also
*
''Lingua'' (sculpture)
*
List of convention centers in the United States
References
External links
*
WikiMapia site: transient/schedule/venue comments
{{Coord, 38.9051, -77.023, display=title, type:landmark_region:US-DC
Convention centers in Washington, D.C.
Boxing venues in Washington, D.C.
Gymnastics venues in Washington, D.C.
Landmarks in Washington, D.C.
Multi-purpose stadiums in the United States
Commercial buildings completed in 2003
Event venues established in 2003
2003 establishments in Washington, D.C.
Shaw (Washington, D.C.)