Comparing two proposed sites for JC conference center

Property that includes the former site of the Missouri state health lab is one of two locations proposed for a convention center in Jefferson City.
Property that includes the former site of the Missouri state health lab is one of two locations proposed for a convention center in Jefferson City.

Last week, the Jefferson City Council heard proposals for two possible sites for a proposed conference center.

Mayor Eric Struemph has directed his staff to begin the request for proposals process on both sites, which would provide marketing and design plans for each site to enable the council to make an informed decision.

Conceptual drawings outline potential designs for each site, both with equal amounts of space to allow for a fair comparison. Both incorporate a 20,000-square-foot ballroom, 20,000 square feet of exhibition space, 10,000 square feet of meeting space, 20,000 square feet for a hotel lobby and administration, 20,000 square feet of hotel space throughout seven floors and 14,000 square feet for the back of the house.

Both sites also include roughly 500 parking spaces in adjacent lots; an existing lot on MSP and, for the McCarty site, half underneath the center as covered parking, with the other half across Broadway Street at the site of the old state Health Lab.