OVG360 and OVG Hospitality were selected after a competitive RFP process
CHICAGO — McCormick Place, the largest convention center in North
America has awarded Oak View Group two major contracts for private
management.
In a unanimous vote, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority
(MPEA) Board awarded the contracts for private management and food
services on the McCormick Place campus to OVG360 and OVG Hospitality,
respectively.
The contracts, scheduled to begin on October 1, 2023 and run through
September 2028, were unanimously awarded following an extensive public
procurement process. The change will affect the McCormick Place
Convention Center, the 10,00-seat Wintrust Arena, and Arie Crown
Theater.
“I am thrilled to welcome OVG360 and OVG Hospitality to our campus,
“said Larita Clark, CEO of MPEA. “We are always seeking ways to
evolve and innovate to provide the best destination in the country for
our event planners and their attendees. This new partnership gives us
the opportunity to continue to enhance the McCormick Place experience,
from the planning phase to the event execution phase, through the
completion of each event.”
OVG360 and OVG Hospitality are divisions of global sports and live
entertainment company Oak View Group, and currently manage a combination
of services in more than 400 venues worldwide, including arenas,
stadiums, convention centers, performing arts centers, and more.
“We’re incredibly proud that McCormick Place has entrusted OVG360
and OVG Hospitality as the new keepers of this world-renowned complex.
While McCormick Place has set the industry standard for decades, we are
honored to help shape its future,” Chris Granger, president of OVG360,
said. “We see an incredible opportunity to elevate the guest
experience, support the surrounding community, drive sustainability, and
grow and inspire a diverse workforce. We look forward to bringing our
depth of experience from around the globe to Chicago and to building
upon McCormick Place’s incredible track record.”
OVG Hospitality is among the fastest-growing food and beverage providers
worldwide, embracing technology, sustainability, local investment, and
diversity, equity, and inclusion to create tailored experiences at every
location.
“From onsite hydroponic gardens to high-tech market experiences to
diverse local suppliers, OVG Hospitality has all the resources to
elevate McCormick Place’s dining experience to the next level,” Ken
Gaber, president of OVG Hospitality, said. “We are excited to begin
serving guests from around the world at McCormick Place.”
Across Illinois, OVG currently oversees a combination of venue
management and food services at Navy Pier in Chicago, SeatGeek Stadium
in Bridgeview, NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, and State Farm Arena and
Memorial Stadium at the University of Illinois in Champaign. OVG also
manages more than 60 convention centers across North America, including
Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Miami Beach Convention
Center, Atlantic City Convention Center, Duke Energy Convention Center
in Cincinnati, and I-X Center in Cleveland.
“We’re thrilled to welcome McCormick Place as our newest convention
center partner,” Greg O’Dell, president of OVG360 Venue Management,
said. “With our best-in-class service offerings and relentless pursuit
of operational excellence, we look forward to helping McCormick Place
maintain its stature as one of the preeminent meeting and conventions
venues in the world.”
Planning will begin immediately to ensure a seamless transition for
McCormick Place clients, guests, and employees. MPEA is in communication
with upcoming events to keep them aware of the latest developments, and
OVG360 and OVG Hospitality have committed to honoring existing
collective bargaining agreements on campus to maximize employee
retention. Additionally, ASM Global and SAVOR…Chicago, the campus’
current private management and food service providers will work closely
with MPEA, OVG360, and OVG Hospitality throughout the transition.
As a municipal corporation governed by Illinois state statutes, MPEA is
authorized to employ private venue and private food service management
companies for McCormick Place and conduct a new competitive procurement
processes for these contracts periodically.
“MPEA is grateful to ASM Global and SAVOR…Chicago for setting the
standards as McCormick Place’s private management and food service
provider for more than a decade, and we thank them for their assistance
during this transition,” Clark said.
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About McCormick Place
McCormick Place is the premier convention facility in North America.
Located just minutes from downtown Chicago, approximately 3 million
visitors each year attend events at McCormick Place. Home to some of the
largest and most attended conventions, meetings, and tradeshows in the
world, McCormick Place was designed as one of the first purpose-built
convention centers in the United States and is the largest and most
flexible convention center in North America. The McCormick Place campus
is a convention center campus comprised of the North Building, South
Building, West Building, Lakeside Center, and the 10,000-seat Wintrust
Arena. For more information, please visit: McCormickPlace.com
About Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA)
The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority owns McCormick Place, the
largest exhibition and meeting facility in North America, the Wintrust
Arena as well as the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place and the Marriot
Marquis Chicago Hotels. Together, the North, South, and West Buildings
and Lakeside Center offers 2.6 million square feet of exhibition space.
Located along Chicago’s lakefront, McCormick Place features 173 meeting
rooms, the 4,249-seat Arie Crown Theater, and one of the largest
ballrooms in the world.
About Oak View Group (OVG)
Oak View Group (OVG) is a global sports and entertainment company
founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff in 2015. OVG is focused on being
a positive disruption to business as usual in the sports, live
entertainment, and hospitality industries and currently has eight
divisions across five global offices (Los Angeles, New York, London,
Philadelphia, and Toronto). OVG oversees the operations of Climate
Pledge Arena at Seattle Center; UBS Arena in Belmont Park, NY; Moody
Center in Austin, TX; Acrisure Arena in Greater Palm Springs, CA; and
the newly opened CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, MD; as well as arena
development projects for Co-op Live in Manchester, UK; Anhembi Arena in
São Paulo, Brazil; FirstOntario Centre Arena in Hamilton, ON; a New
Arena and entertainment district in Las Vegas, NV; in Cardiff, Wales;
and Vienna, Austria. More information at OakViewGroup.com [1], and
follow OVG on Facebook [2], Instagram [3], Twitter [4],
and LinkedIn [5].
