Mayor Lee P. Brown announced Thursday that the city will break ground next month on the expansion of the George R. Brown Convention Center and on the Hilton Americas -- the city's new 1,200-room convention hotel.  The free, public celebration will also serve as a salute to Houston's spirit and the volunteers who have aided in the city's recovery from Tropical Storm Allison.

Brown said both the $285 million hotel and the $165 million expansion of the convention center will be complete in the fall of 2003.

"The combination of more exhibit space and more hotel rooms will enable Houston to attract the larger and more lucrative conventions that have been bypassing our city in recent years," Brown said.

"For more than a decade, the city of Houston has been working to make the convention hotel a reality," Brown said.  "This groundbreaking is about showing meeting planners that these facilities are actually being built, the money's in the bank and that Houston is ready for their business.  The economic impact on Houston will be tremendous."

Brown said that in the aftermath of severe flooding in the Houston area, he decided he also wanted the groundbreaking to be something more.

"We want this festival to be a way for us to say thank you to the thousands of volunteers who lent their hearts and their hands to the victims of Allison," Brown said.

The free Countdown to Downtown Music Festival is scheduled for July 28, 2001 starting at 6 p.m. in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center.  The festival will feature live music, fireworks and a headlining performance by Wynonna. 

The Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau will fly in more than two dozen meeting planners from across the country to participate in the event, to tour the city and to book future meetings and conventions in Houston.

GHCVB president and CEO Gerard J. "Jordy" Tollett said meeting planners are now more interested in booking Houston for their conventions.  A dozen of the invited organizations have already promised to sign contracts worth more than $83 million in economic impact while in Houston, he said.

"Houston has so much to offer meeting planners," Tollett said.  "We have great facilities, two great airports, a central location, reasonable costs and tons of terrific attractions.  What we have lacked are enough hotel rooms near the convention center.

"This new hotel will help us in our efforts," he said.

The groundbreaking festivities will begin with food and music in a festival atmosphere.  The evening will continue with music by Latin musical group La Mafia and a headlining performance by Wynonna, both courtesy of El Paso Corporation, and will culminate with the actual groundbreaking and fireworks display for both the new Hilton Americas and the expansion of the George R. Brown Convention Center.  The entire event is being produced by Ward & Ames Special Events.

Brown said the decision to celebrate the groundbreaking with a free music festival was both reflective of the projects' importance and a way to show meeting planners what the city can offer them.  Houston officials have said for years that Houston needs more downtown hotel rooms to keep it competitive as a convention destination.

In August 1999, the Mayor's Convention Center Hotel Advisory Group, a voluntary group comprised of private sector business people, recommended that the city develop the 1,200-room hotel instead of a private developer.

The group concluded that high interest rates and insurance requirements made a privately owned and financed hotel unfeasible.  Previous plans had called for the private sector to build the facility.  Within six months, Houston City Council had voted to approve the creation of the non-profit Houston Convention Center Hotel Corporation, chaired by former Mayor Bob Lanier.

Lanier and seven other board members were charged with overseeing the development and management of the proposed hotel.  By taking advantage of lower borrowing costs (4.98 percent), higher investment earnings, reduced bond insurance premiums and lower reserve requirements the city was able to significantly reduce the amount of bonds issued.

"We were able to enhance both projects by coming up with an interest savings of $2 million per year," Lanier said.

Lanier made it clear that no new taxes were being used for the project.  Bonds will be repaid through revenues from the city's hotel occupancy tax, Convention & Entertainment Facilities Department parking revenues and tax rebates.  The hotel and adjacent garage remain mortgage free.

"We are using the same revenue streams that were used to support development of the George R. Brown in 1984," Lanier said.  "We have not created any new taxes, direct city obligations or fees for this project and we'll own the hotel and garage free and clear."

Both Brown and Lanier praised the strength of the partners in the unique public-private project -- Hilton, the operator for the hotel; Gerald Hines, the developer; Gensler, the architecture firm and Gilbane, one of the largest construction firms in the nation.

"The city's ability to finance the project at lower rates and still use the expertise of a private developer and operator has been key to the success of this project," Brown said.