Anchorage’s Dena’ina Center Celebrates 15 Years
The Dena’ina Civic & Convention Center in downtown Anchorage is the largest convention center in Alaska.
Frank Flavin
On October 18, 2008, the community gathered at the new Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center to cut the ribbon. With the building officially open, Anchorage’s convention center space increased more than 300%. The ceremony on that bright October day 15 years ago was the first of many events that would take place in the centers. Dena’ina Center has hosted international meetings and Alaskan weddings, welcomed presidents, the Foo Fighters, and Snoop Dogg.
By the Numbers
The 15th anniversary of the Dena’ina Center is an opportunity to look back at what the Anchorage Convention Centers – the Egan Center included – have done for Anchorage and Alaska. Building the Dena’ina Center was a way to invest in the city and attract business and revenue for a new generation.
In the last 15 years, it’s estimated that the centers have hosted more than 7,400 conventions, meetings, and other events, with a total attendance well above 3.5 million convention center guests.
The Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining conference met in Anchorage, Alaska Aug. 4-8, 2019 with 3,200 attendees, which is almost double the numbers event planners initially anticipated.
Kathleen Bonnar | Visit Anchorage
Combined, the Anchorage Convention Centers have generated an estimated total of more than $340.6 million in spending in the community from meetings and convention delegates since 2008.
A Community Asset
Dena’ina gave Anchorage a place to host up to 3,000 people comfortably under one roof for multiday conferences. That added capacity has been a boon to attracting national and international meetings, which typically book years in advance. In 2023 alone, the estimated economic impact of meetings and conventions – direct spending by attendees in the community – is $122 million, based on a model developed by Destinations International.
Alaska Federation of Natives Quyana Night at the Dena’ina Center. AFN is the state’s largest convention.
Lexi Trainer
But in addition to hosting outside groups, the Dena’ina Center hosts local functions: weddings, bar mitzvahs, civic meetings like Rotary and Chamber of Commerce events, as well as concerts, craft fairs, company holiday parties, charitable fundraisers, and educational seminars. In October, Dena’ina Center again hosted First Alaskans Institute Elders and Youth, and the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Convention, two Alaska events central to the state and the community, as well as the Resource Development Council breakfast and a tradeshow for local tourism companies simultaneously.
In 2023 the convention centers hosted a total of 527 events in just 365 days.
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Upkeep, Improvements, and Maintenance
The Dena’ina Center has seen constant improvements. With hundreds of thousands of people using the centers every year, there’s constant work to maintain the facilities, and a multiyear roadmap to continually improve user experience.
Recent improvements include upgraded lighting controls, A/V equipment, improved efficiency, replacement of the moveable dance floors – they see a tremendous amount of use from weddings and corporate events. Improvements also addressed general wear and tear imposed by welcoming hundreds of thousands of people every year.
Attendees fill the third floor foyer of the Dena’ina Center before an event.
Lilly Kelly
New carpets and better projectors may not get a close look by attendees, but these improvements can mean the world to outside meeting and event planners, who plan their work down to the cent per gallon of coffee and expect meeting spaces that provide easy use and look modern and inviting.
Back-of-house updates to HVAC or kitchen spaces don’t get noticed, but one of the projects on tap will be an eye-catching addition: expanded art and interpretive information highlighting the heritage and culture of the Dena’ina Athabascan people.
Egan Center’s Second Act
The Dena’ina Center’s opening gave Anchorage another neat trick.
“Using Egan Center and Dena’ina together, we can host larger meetings than either facility could hold alone,” said Visit Anchorage President and CEO Julie Saupe. “It also gives us the option to welcome two separate groups simultaneously and gives our regular civic bookings a backup option when a larger outside meeting overlaps their dates.”
While the Egan first opened in 1984, it’s seen a similar investment to keep it up to date: new escalators, new snack bar, replacement of air walls, carpets, and lighting. It’s also home to one of the community’s largest rooftop solar arrays, generating 80 megawatts of power.
Solar panels are installed on the Egan Center rooftop.
Bruce LaLonde
The Egan Center’s rooms were designed to be reconfigured in as many as 15 separate spaces. That flexibility makes it a good choice for events with many concurrent breakout sessions. The Egan Center has also developed another purpose, serving as a hospitality center for cruise ship passengers. Most ships in Southcentral Alaska call on Seward or Whittier, so travelers continuing on to Anchorage often have the Anchorage Convention Centers as their first stop in the community as the Alaska vacation continues.
The Next 15 Years
Visit Anchorage believes the best is yet to come for our city with future meetings already being booked for the centers worth millions in direct economic impact. Paired with the construction of new hotels and millions being invested in renovations to existing properties, Anchorage is poised to thrive for years to come.
Contact Visit Anchorage for more information about meeting in Anchorage. We can help provide RFP distribution, complimentary meeting materials, registration assistance, and information on traditional and alternative meeting spaces for groups of all sizes. To get started, email meetings@anchorage.net or visit Anchorage.net/meetings.
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