Modesto eyes Centre Plaza rate increases

It soon could cost a lot more to hold seminars, trade shows and other events at Modesto Centre Plaza, the city’s downtown convention center.

The City Council on Tuesday will consider increasing the center’s daily rental rates. City officials recommend the council approve them, and say they would be the first increases since 2003.

The rate increases would take place Feb. 1 and July 1, 2016, if the council approves them. The proposed increases are hefty. For instance, the cost of renting the 16,000-square-foot Harvest Hall would increase from $1,850 to $2,400 on Feb. 1 and $3,000 on July 1, 2016. Another example: The rate for the 9,600-square-foot Tuolumne Room would increase from $1,110 to $1,600 and then $2,000.

The increases also apply to the discounted rates nonprofits pay. The increases are expected to bring in an additional $330,000 over three years.

A city report says staff compared Centre Plaza’s rental rates with nine comparable venues in similar markets and determined Modesto’s were substantially below the others.

Modesto compared Centre Plaza with the Visalia Convention Center, Monterey Conference Center, Seasons Event Center in Modesto, Ceres Community Center, South San Francisco Conference Center, Fresno Convention Center, Sacramento Convention Center, and Gallo Center for the Arts and Martin G. Petersen Event Center downtown.

Dan Brown with the Stanislaus County Coin Club, which holds an annual expo at Centre Plaza, has questioned the analysis. He researched some of the facilities online and said they appear to be of better quality than Centre Plaza, which opened in 1989 and is in need of a renovation. He added that some of the venues are in vacation destinations and are not valid comparisons with Modesto.

City officials say Modesto’s most apt comparisons are with Fresno, Visalia and Sacramento. They claim even with the increases, Centre Plaza still would be cheaper than the three other facilities. They add that some of the nine facilities also charge for the use of tables and chairs and other items, while Centre Plaza does not.

The proposed rate increases come as Modesto negotiates with the DoubleTree Hotel to have the hotel take over Centre Plaza operations. The city report states officials hope to bring a proposal to the council during the spring budget hearings. Centre Plaza operates with a budget deficit, and city officials are looking for ways to reduce that. The city is expected to set aside $600,000 in its current budget year, which ends June 30, for the deficit.

Centre Plaza held roughly 600 events annually about a decade ago. It held 447 last year, primarily business meetings and seminars. City officials have said that despite increased competition from the Gallo Center and other local venues, they consider the center an integral part of downtown.

This story was originally published January 24, 2015 at 4:42 PM with the headline "Modesto eyes Centre Plaza rate increases."