Like I said, we're a wee bit shorthanded at the moment, and I couldn't find anyone willing to spend a damp afternoon at the Omni construction site with Mayor Tom Leppert and U.S. Treasurer Rosie Rios. Which doesn't mean we can't share this group photo provided by Chris Heinbaugh; Merten's already made it his computer-screen wallpaper. And, after the jump, some "fun facts" (says so!) about the construction of Your Convention Center Hotel, provided by City Hall. Such as: "The project will include 60,000 cubic yards of concrete, totaling 243 million pounds. This is enough concrete to build a 4-foot wide sidewalk over 230 miles long (the approximate distance from Dallas to Houston)." Useful!
Rios was here, as we noted yesterday, to tout the Obama administration's Build America Bonds program -- $388 million of which were issued to help finance the hotel. According to the city, $37 million has been spent on the project so far.