| | | |

Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center Fun Facts

• Two Egan Centers (in square footage) would fit inside the new Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center

• Idlughet (ee-DLOW-ghut) Exhibit Hall is 50,000 sq. ft. – equivalent to a football field minus the end zones

• 1,200 cubic yards of concrete was used to build the Dena’ina Center – the equivalent of a five-foot wide sidewalk from Anchorage to Wasilla (approximately 43 miles)

• 2,600 tons of structural steel is included in the Dena’ina Center – the equivalent of 1,200 pick-up trucks

• Construction materials used in building the Dena’ina Center include 675 tons of steel rebar, 40,000-square-feet of concrete panels, 20 acres of drywall, 135 miles of wire feeder and branch wire, 80 toilet partitions and 1.25 acres of insulated metal panels

• The large-scale size of “Constellation,” the main lobby artwork, required additional sprinkler heads be installed

• The Dena’ina Center décor includes $160,000 in plants, most of which are live

• $2.7 million in furnishings outfit the Dena’ina Center, including 4,500 banquet chairs

• One of the two service elevators is large enough to hold an African elephant; the two public elevators travel at 350-feet per minute

• Shimmer Screen Beads cover the upper walls in the ballroom, gently swaying as the air circulates; center executives joked they were installing a “glorified key chain”

• The state-of-the-art kitchen includes a flight-type dishwasher that can clean and sanitize up to 15,700 plates per hour; an additional conveyor dishwasher can accommodate up to 8,000 glasses per hour

• Two “on demand” kitchen coffee machines are capable of brewing up to 9,576 cups per hour and two “steam-jacket” kettles have a total capacity of 100 gallons of soup or sauce

• Refrigeration capacity at the Dena’ina Center will allow for up to 10,000 boxed lunches to be prepared and stored for next day delivery

• The kitchen is equipped with two, double-sided, conveyor belt type “dish up” stations. Heated plates move along an assembly line as hot foods are placed on them. A photo-optic activated shut-off system keeps plates from flying off the line.

• The outdoor terrace, on the ballroom level, can accommodate 900 guests and has a heated floor for year-round use

• Heated sidewalks surround three sides of the Dena’ina Center and along F Street providing comfortable connectivity between the Anchorage Convention Centers

• The Dena’ina name Tikahtnu (tee-KAHT-new) means “Big Water River” or “saltwater.” There are less than 50 Dena’ina speakers left. Naming this building the Dena’ina Center honors Anchorage’s first inhabitants. It is hoped that the building’s name will inspire more people to learn the language.

• The Dena’ina people, the original inhabitants of the Cook Inlet area, settled in the upper Cook Inlet basin at the end of the last Ice Age (500 – 1000 AD). They believe in leaving minimal imprint on the land.

  The Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau’s (ACVB) mission is to attract and serve visitors to the Municipality of Anchorage as a Destination Marketing Organization (DMO). ACVB’s marketing functions are funded by one-third of the bed tax collected by lodging associations. One-third goes to the Municipality’s general fund, a contribution established in 1978, and one-third goes to the construction and annual maintenance costs of the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center and the William A. Egan Civic & Convention Center. ACVB receives no state or federal funds. Explore www.Anchorage.net for more information.

  [ Back to 'Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center Opening Celebration' ]