Business Notes CONVENTIONS

The Texas oil patch may still be in a horrible slump, but the mood in Houston last weekend was anything but downbeat. As fireworks exploded overhead, city officials opened the $175 million George R. Brown Convention Center, an ultramodern red, white and blue facility with enough floor space to cover 20 football fields. The hall, the eighth largest U.S. convention center, can accommodate up to 35,000 conventioneers. It is expected to help revitalize Houston's economy by pumping $300 million into local businesses every year and creating up to 10,000 jobs in the area. Already, 18 conventions, including the National Association of Television Program Executives, have reserved space for 1988.

The city was determined to meet an Oct. 1 deadline after losing the 1988 Democratic National Convention to Atlanta last February amid doubts that Houston's center could be finished in time. By opening it early, Houston became the first American city in more than a decade to complete such a facility on time and under budget.