Monroeville officials lease convention center to tourism agency

After purchasing the Monroeville Convention Center earlier this year, Monroeville council voted this month to enter into a 25-year lease agreement that will keep the center’s operations largely the same.

Council voted to lease the space to Visit Monroeville, which was formed in 1987 and promotes both the center and the municipality. Visit Monroeville is headed by former Monroeville mayor and state senator Sean Logan.

Municipal Manager Alex Graziani said Visit Monroeville officials would operate shows and promote and facilitate events there.

“Once a year, based on a financial report where the gross profit is calculated, 25% will go into a long-term fund and 75% would be the lease payment,” he said.

The municipality officially bought the convention center on Aug. 21 for $4.75 million, according to Allegheny County property records. The full purchase price, including the purchase of equipment and other furnishings, was about $5.3 million, according to Monroeville Mayor Nick Gresock.

Money for the purchase came from Monroeville’s capital reserve fund.

Graziani said based on financial reports he reviewed with the center’s former owner, Pittsburgh-based Oxford Development, 2025 revenue is projected to be about $300,000.

“Money for the purchase came from our capital reserves, so the lease payments should go back into that fund,” he said. “Oxford could’ve done whatever it wanted with it as a private entity. But for us, we’re committed to keeping it in operation and so we want to take that 25% and reinvest it in the center.”

Gresock said the convention center’s operations will essentially remain unchanged.

“Visit Monroeville is still using the same company that provides staffing and runs the shows,” Gresock said. “So it will be a pretty seamless transition. We’re essentially taking the place of Oxford.”

The 100,000 square-foot convention center can accommodate more than 5,000 visitors. The center is booked for three more shows this month, eight shows in November and five in December.

Related:

• Monroeville officials agree to purchase convention center
• Monroeville Convention Center not closing after all, officials say
• Pittsburgh Gaming Expo expands to 3 days in Monroeville

“We’re not changing the way it’s operating,” Gresock said. “But this council decided that this was a facility we needed to save.”

“It’s important to the restaurants and local businesses that benefit from their trade shows,” Graziani said.