Portland convention center
| Oregon Convention Center | |
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 Location in Portland
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| General information | |
| Location | Portland, Oregon |
| Address | 777 NE Martin Luther King Boulevard |
| Coordinates | 45°31′42″N 122°39′47″W / 45.5283°N 122.6631°WCoordinates: 45°31′42″N 122°39′47″W / 45.5283°N 122.6631°W |
| Construction started | 1987-88 |
| Completed | 1990 |
| Renovated | 2003 |
| Owner | Metro |
| Height | 63 metres (207 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 4 |
| Floor area | approx. 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architecture firm | Zimmer Gunsul Frasca |
The Oregon Convention Center is a convention center in Portland, Oregon. Completed in 1989 and opened in 1990, it located on the east side of the Willamette River in the Lloyd District neighborhood. It is best known for the twin spire towers which provide light into the building's interior and for housing the world's largestFoucault Pendulum. The center is owned by Metro, the Portland area's regional government, and operated by the Metropolitan Exposition and Recreation Commission.
The building was designed by the architectural firm of Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects (ZGF). It is the largest convention center in Oregon at nearly 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2). The complex includes 255,000 square feet (23,700 m2) of exhibit space. It features the largest ballroom in the City of Portland at 35,000 square feet (3,300 m2). The original building was built in the late 1980s, opened in 1990 and was expanded in 2003. ZGF was also involved in designing the expansion. More recently, the building has become known for upward illuminating the twin spires yearly on September 11 in memorial of the events of 9/11. In 2008 the OCC replaced its traditional Wi-Fi Hotspots with Wi-Fi Arrays to provide wireless internet services which are sold to exhibitors and attendees.
The building and grounds also have an extensive set of public art, with works from over two dozen mainly Pacific Northwest artists. The collection includes paintings, plaques, glass and ceramic tiles, sconces, mosaics, bells, and parts of a large Douglas fir. Each of the towers has a focal point artwork, with a colorful 40-foot long Chinese dragon boat suspended in the east tower, and Principia by Jones/Ginzel, a dramatic Foucault pendulum hanging over a gilded halo of rays and an inlaid fantasy solar system in the floor of the north tower.
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