There’s an old Washington, DC, Convention Center and there’s a new Washington, DC, Convention Center. They’re both located in two different places. The old was used from 1983 to 2004. Now there’s a new one in use. The old one opened in 1983 at 800,000 gross square feet. Although it was the largest facility in the United States at the time, since then other larger and more modern facilities have been constructed around the country. The old site is now a parking lot used for special events such as the famous Cirque du Soleil.

The new Washington, DC, Convention Center is 2.3 million square feet. Designed by Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates, an Atlanta-based architecture company, is served by the Yellow and Green Lines of the Washington Metro. So what is this convention center used for? In 2005, this center served as the location of one of the inaugural balls for George W. Bush. Many other events are held at the Washington, DC, Convention Center, mostly gubernatorial meetings and more.