Perth Convention Exhibition Centre
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The Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre is a convention
Convention
Convention may refer to:* Treaty, an agreement in international law* Convention , a large gathering of people who share a common interest** Political convention, a formal gathering of people for political purposes...

 centre located in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

. It was opened in August 2004.

History

The Centre was built by Multiplex
Multiplex (company)
Brookfield Multiplex is a global contracting and development company that designs, builds and maintains property and infrastructure assets.- History :Brookfield Multiplex was founded as Multiplex in 1962 in Perth, Western Australia by John Roberts...

 and it opened on the 24th August 2004.
A plaque situated at the lower West entrance reads:
The occasion of the opening of Perth Convention Exhibition Centre. This plaque was unveiled on 26 August 2004 by the Honourable Dr Geoff Gallop
Geoff Gallop
Geoffrey Ian Gallop, AC is an Australian academic and former politician. He was the Premier of Western Australia from 2001 to 2006. He currently resides in Sydney.-Early life and education:...

, MLA, Premier of Western Australia
Premier of Western Australia
The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...



The construction of the centre created controversy due to its overblown budget and appearance, being described as a "Soviet-era mausoleum" and a "giant grey cockroach", as well as a white elephant
White elephant
A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable but burdensome possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth...

.

Location

The centre is located in the suburb of Perth between Mounts Bay Road and the Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway
Mitchell Freeway is a long freeway in Perth, Western Australia, linking Perth's central business district with its outer northern suburbs. It is allocated Route 2 for its entire length and is named after former state Premier and Governor Sir James Mitchell....

 off-ramp
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...

, near the banks of the Swan River
Swan River (Western Australia)
The Swan River estuary flows through the city of Perth, in the south west of Western Australia. Its lower reaches are relatively wide and deep, with few constrictions, while the upper reaches are usually quite narrow and shallow....

.

Operations

The Centre is located on the Swan River
Swan River (Western Australia)
The Swan River estuary flows through the city of Perth, in the south west of Western Australia. Its lower reaches are relatively wide and deep, with few constrictions, while the upper reaches are usually quite narrow and shallow....

 river foreshore, only a short walk from the Perth CBD. The site is entirely above the former north east corner of the Perth Water
Perth Water
Perth Water is the section of the Swan River between the Causeway to the east, and Narrows Bridge to the west - a large wide but shallow section of river on the southern edge of the City of Perth, Western Australia, and the northern edge of the suburb South Perth. Retrieved 29 December 2006...

, the old shore line of the Swan River being further north of the structure.

The Centre is WA's only purpose built convention, exhibition and meeting centre. It can cater for functions of up to 5000 delegates. The Centre was constructed in the expectation of attracting increased convention bookings for Perth and subsequently tourism for the State.

The current General Manager of Perth Convention Exhibition Centre is Dean Lee.

A nearby 138 room hotel, called the Medina Grand, provides accommodation support for the site.

The Channel Seven Perth Telethon
Channel Seven Perth Telethon
The Channel Seven Perth Telethon, known simply as Telethon, is an annual telethon produced by TVW, a Seven Network owned television station in Perth, Western Australia for two main beneficiaries; Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, and the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, plus...

is hosted at the centre each year.

The Convention Centre has generated controversy as Perth locals have questioned its design qualities. Its faces away from the Swan River.

The centre has two public lifts, one travelling from the underground car park, through level one, concluding at level two; the other from level two to level three.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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