Provo convention center grows to three stories as plans mature

PROVO (Deseret News) — A planned downtown convention center will be three stories tall, with an outdoor plaza on top and a street-level plaza on the corner of Center Street and 200 West.

Those are some of the plans being solidified as Utah County acquires property to build the convention center, Commissioner Steve White said Tuesday during a work session with the Provo City Council.

The county is combining the properties it has acquired with land owned by the Provo Redevelopment Agency. Officials are eyeing other properties on the block along 300 West and 100 South for expansion in the second phase. So far, the county has spent $3 million acquiring land for the convention center, White said, in addition to the properties designated by the city for redevelopment.

Among them is the Atchafalhya, a restaurant, bar and dance club that 10 years ago was known as LeMar's Nightclub, a topless bar. After a lengthy court case with the city, LeMar's dropped the battle and the dancers.

That space may become a small, street-level plaza.

Of the seven initial plans, one called the Mason Dixon because of its north-south orientation on Center Street has seemingly bubbled to the top. The plan includes an exhibit hall on the main floor and an 18,000-square-foot ballroom on the second floor, with a 30-foot-high ceiling, White said. Third-floor plans contain a rooftop terrace.

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