Cobo Square to open this spring, cap convention center renovations

Cobo Center is preparing to unveil its revamped outdoor space this spring. Dubbed Cobo Square, the 45,000-square-foot outdoor space is being touted as the capstone of a 5-year, $279-million renovation of Cobo Center. The 723,000-square-foot facility is the 17th largest convention center in the United States. It opened in 1960.

Cobo Square will have more uses than just those reserved for conventions. According to officials, it will serve to better connect Cobo Center to the community while also activating the space in between major conventions and events. Art exhibits, exercise and yoga sessions, and biergartens are just some of the programming planned for the space that is set to open this spring.

Other recent major changes to Cobo include the addition of a state-of-the-art broadcast studio, a 160-foot by 30-foot digital sign on the building's exterior, and the conversion of the building's arena into additional convention space. The arena conversion replaced previously closed off walls with glass panes, taking advantage of the building's location on the riverfront.

"I think the most important part of the reinvention of Cobo Center was the adaptive reuse of the old arena," Thom Connors, regional vice president of Cobo Center management group SMG and general manager of Cobo, says in a statement. "By cutting part of it away and creating a new atrium, it really tied the whole renovation together and gave the view from the main concourse out to the river and across to Canada. It brings people down to the newer, improved south side of the building and the majesty of the river."

Business has improved greatly since renovations began five years ago. Eighty-five major events were hosted at Cobo in 2015, a significant increase from the 35 held there in 2010. Event days have doubled from pre-renovation years, jumping from 200 event days a year to 400.

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