The Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association (DANA) has not taken a position on the proposed Convention Center expansion, but we sent this letter to City Council today:
DANA had facilitated a stakeholder forum to discuss pros and cons of the proposed expansion, and we also invited a convention-center expert, Professor Heywood Sanders, to meet with Council members to provide his insights on the potential return on investment and the economics of the industry.
Our letter enumerates concerns that Professor Sanders and some of DANA’s 12,000 downtown residents expressed.
Separately, AURA, a grass-roots urbanist group, went further and has taken a position against the proposed expansion: