Palm Springs Convention Center hosting its first convention since March 2020

The Palm Springs Convention Center is set to welcome back its first convention since closing during the start of the pandemic.

 The convention center was heavily impacted by the closure. As we reported in February 2021, 52 events were cancelled during the closure, equating to $7 million in lost revenue for the facility alone.

The center is typically the host of graduations, city events, the International Film Festival Red Carpet Gala, and much but due to the pandemic, it remained mostly empty until February 2021, when the city teamed up with Riverside County to turn the center into a COVID-19 vaccination site.

However, now a year-and-a-half later, the convention center has been reopened and is ready for business once again.

"This particular convention is going to have nearly 1000 people that are going to enjoy our restaurants, our retail, and of course, our wonderful hotels," said the convention center's general manager Rob Hampton.

The center will not require masks or social distancing for vaccinated guests, but organizers for any convention can enforce their own safety protocols.

Kaiser Grille in Palm Springs has already been seeing more foot traffic since the convention center opened its doors.

"We got a couple people come in already our way from the convention. So we're looking to be very, very proud of that," said Kaiser Grille's manager Moises Garcia.

It helps that the convention center is a short walk or drive away from downtown Palm Springs.

"Every guest for us is like part of the family," said Garcia. "We're thrilled excited to welcome any group events."

Hampton said he's most excited to welcome back the center's employees.

"So nearly 300 people are back to work just because of this one particular event," said Hampton.

But it's not just the center's employees who are back. The vendor and catering partners have returned as well.

"It's a great way to start, you know, and it is only the beginning for us," said Hampton. "The future looks so bright for Palm Springs and the Palm Springs Convention Center."

The center will continue to stay busy and bring more people to the valley. Hampton said it's pretty much fully booked until the end of the year.