(Pictured) Milwaukee continues to expand its meetings venues and hotel inventory
WHERE TO…
MEET - Harley-Davidson Museum
The Harley-Davidson Museum, set on 20 acres in downtown Milwaukee and surrounded on three sides by the Menomonee River, offers a glimpse of American history and culture through the eyes of an iconic American company. The museum and its surrounding riverfront campus provide a perfect backdrop for gatherings of 20 to 15,000 attendees.
DINE - Geneva ChopHouse
Grand Geneva Resort & Spa's steakhouse features hand-selected, custom-seasoned, and perfectly prepared steaks grilled in an open hearth, as well as fresh seafood. Wines cultivated in the area -- a premier winemaking region -- round out the experience, not to mention family-style sides and delectable desserts.
PLAY - Milwaukee Public Market
This venue is bursting with artisan products and freshly made foods, and showcases independent merchants of all types of wares. It offers private cooking classes and teambuilding events in which the market's culinary pros customize the fun according to the needs of the client.
From outdoor adventure and waterfront activities to fine dining and relaxing spas, Wisconsin has all a group could ask for. Although this state may be known for football, beer, and cheese, there are plenty of other reasons to hold a meeting or event here. From bustling cities to quiet retreats in the lush Northwoods, there is a multitude of properties and event spaces to choose from. Plus, affordability reigns supreme.
Much of what the state has to offer is on display every year during Milwaukee-based financial security company Northwestern Mutual's annual meeting. This year's gathering, its 137th, was held in Milwaukee July 22--26, 2017, attracting 10,000 Northwestern Mutual field representatives and their families.
"We have taken pride in calling southeastern Wisconsin our home for 160 years and our annual meeting allows us to celebrate our successes, as well as identify ways to continue to grow and innovate as a company to better serve our clients and our community," says John E. Schlifske, Northwestern Mutual chairman and CEO.
Northwestern Mutual held events and seminars at the Wisconsin Center, the BMO Harris Bradley Center, and at metro hotels including the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee, the InterContinental Hotel & Resort, and the Pfister Hotel. In addition, the company took advantage of event spaces such as Discovery World, Henry Maier Festival Park, Milwaukee Art Museum, Betty Brinn Children's Museum, the Milwaukee Public Museum, and Daniel M. Soref National Geographic Dome Theater.
Milwaukee is a city in the midst of a transformation. The new $524 million Wisconsin Entertainment & Sports Complex (new naming rights pending), future home of the Milwaukee Bucks, is ahead of schedule and is expected to be complete as early as July 2018. The complex, including an entertainment block, is on track to spur additional private development just a few blocks from the Wisconsin Center convention complex and major convention hotels.
"It's all systems go for 2018 with the new arena/entertainment complex a major catalyst for further downtown hotel and infrastructure development," says Paul Upchurch, president and CEO of Visit Milwaukee.
Besides the recent June opening of the new Westin Milwaukee, with its 220 rooms, 9,000 square feet of meeting facilities, and 5,000-square-foot ballroom, nearly 800 guest rooms are in various phases of construction or development in Milwaukee. The 90-room Homewood Suites is set to open in November 2017 and the 150-room Hyatt Place at the Pabst Brewery Complex is on target to open early summer 2018. The second tower at Potawatomi Hotel & Casino is scheduled to open in March 2019, adding another 119 rooms for a total count of 500, and the 200-room Drury Plaza Hotel is on target to open in 2019.
Talk about accessibility. Wisconsin is conveniently situated between two international airports, Minneapolis--St. Paul International Airport and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. Travelers can also fly right into Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport, Green Bay's Austin Straubel International Airport, Madison's Dane County Regional Airport or La Crosse's La Crosse Regional Airport, which all offer flights daily.
Milwaukee's built-from-the-ground-up streetcar system is on schedule, with the first route set to begin operating in late 2018. Rides will be just $1.00.
ESSENTIAL Tool Box
CONVENTION CENTERS & FACILITIES
Alliant Energy Center, Madison (100,000 sf of exhibition space); Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee (189,000 sf); Wisconsin Exposition Center (200,000 sf); KI Convention Center, Green Bay (80,000 sf of event space after expansion)
ROOM TAX
Varies by city
Lake Geneva and Madison
Just 45 minutes from Milwaukee, Lake Geneva is a year-round resort destination with exciting activities like zip-lining, rock climbing, fishing, and skiing.
Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, a AAA Four-Diamond resort set on 1,300 acres, owned and managed by Marcus Hotels & Resorts, recently opened 29 all-season villas, which will increase the total combined units on the property to more than 600.
The resort originally opened in 1968 as the Lake Geneva Playboy Club Hotel. The Marcus Corporation purchased and reopened it under its current name in 1994. Throughout the years, the company has enhanced the quality of the property by adding restaurants, renovating the award-winning golf courses, adding Timber Ridge Lodge & Water Park, expanding the meeting spaces, and renovating all of the guest rooms and suites. Features include a WELL Spa + Salon; two championship 18-hole golf courses; 62,000 square feet of indoor meeting space; a 12,000-square-foot conference center; and more than 15,000 square feet of outdoor space.
Further west, the city of Madison offers a wealth of venues for groups large and small. For the former, there's the 164-acre campus of the Alliant Energy Center or the Frank Lloyd Wright--designed Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center, with a 14,000-square-foot ballroom and 68,000-square-foot rooftop garden. The city boasts more than 9,000 hotel rooms in properties of all sizes as well, such as the 200-room Edgewater urban resort, which completed a two-year renovation in 2014 and offers 45,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space. Another good group option is Madison Concourse Hotel and Governor's Club, offering 373 rooms and 27,000 square feet of event space.
Questions or comments? Email [email protected]
This article appears in the October 2017 issue of Successful Meetings.