The 323-room Renaissance Cincinnati Downtown Hotel (pictured) opened last summer
For a sense of the growth happening in the Midwest, look no further than Cincinnati. The Queen City flexed its event-hosting muscles this summer as host of the 2015 All-Star Game, bringing a record-breaking 130,000 visitors to its Great American Ball Park and 123,000 visitors to the FanFest at Duke Energy Convention Center. Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred was quoted as saying that "Cincinnati's done the best job that we've seen so far."
But that's hardly the only event happening in Cincy. Next year it is to play host to the NAACP Annual Conference, and last year it was the destination of choice for the National Urban League Conference and International Association of Fire Fighters.
This attraction makes sense, considering the burst of new and renovated properties available to groups, particularly in the bustling downtown area. The 323-room Renaissance Cincinnati Downtown Hotel opened last summer, after Columbia Sussex Corporation completed a $32.2 million renovation of the historic 1901 Union Trust Building.
While it offers 40 suites, 14,000 square feet of event space, and high-speed Wi-Fi, what is perhaps most striking about the property is how it pays tribute to its past. From the gilded patterns on the elevator doors to the chocolate coin handed out at check-in, the hotel's designers and management help to remind visitors of the building's former life as a bank building -- and how it continues to offer riches of another kind to visiting travelers today.
Downtown also saw the recent completion of the Hyatt Regency's $23 million renovation, upgrading its lobby and 491 guest rooms; as well as $10 million in improvements to the 561-room Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza, adding new Wi-Fi, furniture, window treatments, and more. The 21c Museum Hotel, opened in November 2012, offers visual splendor of a different kind, with 160 rooms and 8,000 square feet of space for contemporary art exhibition and meetings.
Speaking of art, Cincinnati continues to carve out a niche as a one of the Midwest's top destination for the arts. This ranges from an ambitious public-arts program that has seen dozens of murals sprouting up throughout the city, to a planned renovation of the city's famed Music Hall, to the wealth of group-friendly venues such as the Contemporary Arts Center and Aronoff Center for the Arts. Visiting groups will want to be sure to tap into the city's creative energy.
In addition to art, Cincinnati's brewing heritage makes for an ideal theme to incorporate into an event here. The city has seen an explosion of microbreweries and brewpubs, most with top-notch spaces for groups. Leading this resurgence is Christian Moerlein Brewing Co., whose owner, Greg Hardman, made it a mission several years ago to bring back Cincinnati's pre-prohibition beer brands to the city. Not only did he succeeded in reclaiming the Christian Moerlein name, but he also opened the 40,000-square-foot Moerlein Lager House on the waterfront with views of the city's sports arenas and famed John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, as well as a Tap House, and Brewery (all offering great spaces for groups).
Hardman's success has opened the doors for other microbrewers. Notable among these is Rhinegeist, which in just two years has grown into a local institution, and will be completing an expansion of its brewery this fall, opening an additional event space and vast rooftop bar, in addition to its already substantial facility in the once-abandoned Christian Moerlein bottling factory. Another beer-centric stop is Taft's Ale House. Named after the 27th U.S. president (a Cincinnati native), this brewpub was opened in April of this year in the restored 1850 St. Paul's German Evangelical Protestant Church. The stunning, three-story, 13,000-square-foot space offers a rotating menu of beers brewed on site, and arguably the best tri-tip sirloin in town.
WHERE TO: CHICAGO
PLAY - Navy Pier
This beloved Chicago landmark celebrates its centennial next year, making it an ideal time for groups to pay this historic playground a visit. The 3,300-square-foot attraction offers something for everyone: live concerts, outdoor movies, rides, shopping, and art.
STAY - Virgin Hotel Chicago
This, the first Virgin Hotel in the world, opened earlier this year, in the historic art-deco Dearborn Bank Building. Offering 250 rooms and four restaurants (including a rooftop bar and hybrid bar/lounge), the property also offers three distinctive meeting spaces for groups of 12 to 120.
MEET - Art Institute of Chicago
Known for its vast collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist, Old Masters, and Asian art, this expansive venue -- located in Grant Park -- makes for a one-of-a-kind meeting destination.
Columbus Calling
Less than an hour and a half northwest of Cincinnati, the city of Columbus, OH, is booming with meeting offerings.
"There's never been a better time to visit Columbus. In recent years, there has been a tremendous amount of development that has spurred the creation of new, easily accessible experiences for visitors," says Brian Ross, Experience Columbus' president and CEO. "For anyone who has never been to Columbus or has not been here recently, we encourage you come for a visit to sip on our local craft spirits, beers, and coffee; taste our numerous dining options; cheer on our professional, minor league and college athletic teams; shop your way through our local boutiques; or stroll through one of our many art galleries."
Ross points out that this is not only spurred by the rise in visitor attractions, but the city's investment in its meetings offerings, including a $125 million expansion of the Greater Columbus Convention Center, creating an essentially brand-new 1.8-million-square-foot center.
Like Cincinnati, Columbus is setting itself apart as an ideal spot to create F&B-related events. The Columbus Ale Trail gives visitors a chance to drop in on 25 breweries in the area (more than half opened in the last five years), while the Columbus Coffee Trial showcases the explosion of high-quality shops and roasteries in the area.
Getting to the city will also soon be easier than ever, as the Port Columbus International Airport is undergoing an $80 million, three-year renovation. It will modernize the terminals and help support the new flights recently added from Southwest Airlines (connecting directly to Dallas, San Francisco, and more).
WHERE TO: WICHITA, KS
PLAY - Old Town
More than 100 restaurants, shops, and attractions stretch throughout this historic district, built in the brick warehouses of this area, and dating back to the mid-1800s. Whether looking for a leisurely day of shopping, or an electric nightlife, this area has attendees covered.
SEE - The Keeper of the Plains
Perhaps no other landmark is associated as closely with Wichita as this 44-foot-high steel sculpture by Kowa-Comanche artist Blackbear Bosin. Set at the intersection of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers, this towering statue remains as stunning as ever -- particularly at night when fire pits at its base illuminate the work.
MEET - Botanica Wichita
With 17 acres of diverse gardens, this attraction offers a wide range of draws for lovers of flora. But it is also an ideal destination for memorable meetings, with a large banquet hall and an adjacent outdoor patio (with wrought-iron tables and chairs), as well as a prep kitchen and extensive catering services.
Michigan Magic
When it comes to cities that are quickly adding to their meetings offerings, groups need look no further than Detroit, where the massive Cobo Center just wrapped up a $279 million renovation. The Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center also just underwent a $30 million renovation, and a new Aloft hotel opened downtown at the end of last year.
"Our hotel package continues to grow with additional hotels opening in the coming years," says Bill Bohde, senior vice president of sales and marketing for the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau. "Other major new developments like dozens of new restaurants, the new Red Wings hockey arena and entertainment district and the M-1 Rail streetcar that are under construction really make Detroit the complete package."
Once completed, Detroit's M-1 Rail
streetcar will run 3.3 miles through
the city's main business district
and attractionsThe M-1 Rail streetcar, once completed in 2017, will allow visitors to travel the 3.3 miles between the north and south sides of the city, through Detroit's largest job centers and top destinations.
Other attractions are popping up or getting facelifts. The Detroit Zoo is in the midst of constructing a new Penguin Conservation Center planned for opening in early 2016, and earlier this summer the city saw the opening of the DNR Outdoor Adventure Center -- bringing activities like snowmobiling, fishing, and archery into the center of the city.
On the west side of the state, in Grand Rapids, MI, the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel just opened the doors to The Kitchen and The Kitchen Counter by Wolfgang Puck, offering terrific views of the Grand River, along with a menu meant to appeal to both hotel guests and locals.
Further Afield
Milwaukee, WI, is also seeing an expansion of its hotel inventory. A new 158-room Kimpton boutique hotel (with more than 7,000 square feet of meeting space) is slated to open next year. It will include a chic restaurant on the ground floor, as well as a rooftop bar.
The Kimpton will join the city's already robust group-friendly hotel offerings, including the historic Pfister Hotel -- originally built in 1893 and renovated in 2008 -- which offers the WELL Spa and Salon, Mason Street Grill, and the martini bar Blu (with some of the best views of Lake Michigan in the city). Last fall saw the opening of Potawatomi Hotel & Casino's $150 million, 381-room (and recently LEED Gold certified) hotel. The 19-story property offers 13,000 square feet of meeting space in addition to the casino's 48,000 square feet of space.
A smaller city positioning itself to compete with the larger urban centers in the region is Rochester, MN, which has seen the expansion and addition of a number of new properties. These include a 270-room Hilton, being built in downtown, two blocks from the new Mayo Civic Center (which is undergoing an $85 million expansion of its own, and is expected to double the size of the current facility when it opens in 2017).
Other recent property additions include the 77-room Comfort Inn & Suites, now open on the city's north side, and a 109-room Staybridge Suites, which opened in August.
Questions or comments? Email [email protected]
This article appears in the September 2015 issue of Successful Meetings.