Dallas officials have begun taking apart the gargantuan Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.
On Monday, cranes and demolition excavators tore down the exhibition hall closest to the Omni Hotel, dismembering parts of the building that will eventually unlock 20 to 30 acres for redevelopment and a new events facility.
Mayor Pro Tem Jesse Moreno, whose district includes the southern half of downtown Dallas, touted the construction activity as a “critical update” for a building that has secured 71 major conventions for 2029 and beyond.
“Convention planners commit when they believe the city will follow through,” Moreno told reporters in a news conference Monday. “The confidence in Dallas has been earned.”
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Demolition work will continue into April and May. Halls A, B and C, the site of the international broadcasting center during the FIFA World Cup, will be knocked down after the festivities. Convention and Event Services Director Rosa Fleming said workers had already clocked more than 66,000 hours.
Concerns of delays and relocating conventions have followed the project. Officials expressed confidence they’ll be able to meet the 2029 deadline.
Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Gay Donnell Willis said she was glad residents can finally “see dirt fly to show them it’s real.”
Demolition takes place at the Kay Bailey Hutchison convention center March 30, 2026 in downtown Dallas.
Azul Sordo/Staff Photographer
Monday’s news conference came a week after the City Council received updates about the funding and traffic plan related to the project. Transportation routes on the Jefferson viaduct, which connects Oak Cliff with downtown Dallas, and Hotel and Lamar streets could change. Council members raised concerns about how the new design could cut Oak Cliff off from the building and the surrounding entertainment district.
Some continued to be wary about the final cost of the project — pegged at $3.3 billion — in a slowing economy. Construction costs fluctuate and the city is collecting sales tax below its forecasts.
Officials lowered the height of the building by 16 feet and revised the design to reduce an earlier projected ceiling of $3.5 billion.
The convention center project is being funded through debt and grants the city is applying for. The city can take on $2.2 billion in debt, and it will use money collected from a project financing zone centered around the convention center and a 2% increase in the city’s portion of the hotel occupancy tax collections.
Moreno told The Dallas Morning News the city had built in escalation costs in its financial planning. “So I don’t anticipate this going higher than what has already been projected,” he said.