MEETINGSMAGS.COM // WINTER 2020 ICONIC THE EVENTS INDUSTRY GOES WILD FOR ILEA LIVE 2019 PLUS BETTER SAFE PRO TIPS ON PLANNING FOR THE TAKEWORSTATRIPDOWNTOREDWING
With O’Hare Airport just minutes way, Chicago Northwest is an event planner’s dream. Discover unparalleled accessibility, premier venues, exceptional hospitality and rewarding shopping, dining and entertainment experiences. Give yourself an edge at ChicagoNorthwest.com. 100,000 sq. ft. Convention Center | 10,000+ Guest Rooms | Over 60 Hotels 4 hours from anywherein the continental U.S. NOW THAT'S AN EDGE
TO BOOK YOUR NEXT EVENT, CALL US AT 612-659-3870 TODAY TARGET FIELD: A BALLPARK FIT FOR ANY EVENT! Holiday Parties | Employee Gatherings | Retirement CELEBRATEPartiesMORETHANHOMERUNS Delaware North Sportservice is the exclusive caterer of Target Field. THE FOOD IS A HIT TOO! Meetings | Conferences | Tradeshows | Team Building MIX TargetWITHBUSINESSBASEBALLFieldopeneditsgates at the start of 2010. Since then, the ballpark is not only utilized for 81+ Baseball Games, it is also used for hosting 200+ private events annually. Target Field operates year-round, boasting a multitude of indoor and outdoor spaces available for rent. Blissfully intertwining the beautiful game of baseball, while providing the ultimate setting for an unforgettable event experience, Target Field prides itself on its versatility and ability to host a wide variety of events within the ballpark.
2 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 Winter 2020 MINNESOTA MEETINGS + EVENTS MAGAZINE: IN THIS ISSUE PHOTOGRAPHYB.LAURENPHOTO: FEATURES 26 What Could Go Wrong? Emergency management experts, local planners and law professionalsenforcementtalktips, tools and top-of-mind concepts to keep events safe and running smoothly. By Megan Gosch 33 Paint the Town Purple Local event professionals pull out all the stops at ILEA Live 2019. By Megan Gosch & Morgan Halaska DEPARTMENTS 6 EDITOR’S LETTER 16 TREND REPORT Hotels are upping their offerings. By Morgan Halaska, Megan Gosch & Kassidy Tarala 20 DESTINATION Head south to Red Wing. By Kassidy Tarala 48 PEOPLE PROFILE Eureka Davenportco-PresidentsRecyclingKateandLynn Hoffman are helping planners think beyond recycling bins. By Megan Gosch
Union Depot is the perfect setting to make your event memorable. As an iconic St. Paul landmark, the 1920s rail station provides an incredible backdrop for your special occasion. Seven unique spaces mean the perfect venue for meetings, conferences, workshops, galas and more. As a true gathering space with a rich history, Union Depot shines with beautiful views, natural light and gorgeous architecture. The distinctive and unforgettable experience you’ve been looking for starts right here. Visit uniondepot.org/plan-your-event to get started or call 651.202.2708. Get together in the perfect setting. uniondepot.org | 214 4th Street East, St. Paul, MN 55101
4 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 44 2020Winter MEETING NOTES 9 SELF-SERVE Two companies bring the bar to hotel rooms. By Kassidy Tarala 10 F&B Hire a food and beverage supplier on wheels. By Kassidy Tarala 12 RECOMMENDATIONRESTAURANT Holman’s Table boasts private dining space and helicopter rides. By Kassidy Tarala 12 SIGNATURE DRINK Penicillin, courtesy of Holman’s Table 13 NEW VENUE SPOTLIGHT West End Conference Center is a haven for meetings and events. By Megan Ekstrand 13 TOURISM Minneapolis is named an upand-coming city according to CWT Meetings & Events. By Beau Ballin 14 IT’S YOUR BIZ Don’t miss the opportunity to recap an event. By Jennifer Gilhoi INDUSTRY UPDATE 40 INFOGRAPH CWT Meetings & Events’ 2020 Future Trends Report projects growth in the industry. Research courtesy of CWT 42 REGIONAL NEWS What’s happening in the local industry. Compiled by Morgan Halaska & Kassidy Tarala 46 SNAPSHOTS Photos from ILEA Live 2019 ON THE COVER The Purple Xperience performs at First Avenue as part of ILEA Live 2019’s opening party. Photo by Joe Szurszewski Photography LLC 4310 42 LAKE;GULLONMADDEN’SVODKA;BĒTPHOTOS: PHOTOGRAPHYANDERSONRAVIS
THE TWIN CITIES’ PREMIER FULL-SERVICE RESORT DESTINATION OWNED & OPERATED BY THE SHAKOPEE MDEWAKANTON SIOUX COMMUNITY © 2019 SMSC Gaming Enterprise mysticlakecenter.com 1-866-832-6402 | sales@mysticlake.com GAMING • GOLF • DINING • HOTEL • SPA Mystic Lake Center® joins Mystic Lake Casino Hotel® to encompass a true resort experience, with one location for both business and fun. Natural beauty and versatility flow throughout Mystic Lake Center, including a dynamic Grand Entry pre-function space with stunning golf course views and an inviting ambiance. Luxurious accommodations, distinctive dining, a championship golf course and headlining entertainment are just steps away from any event space.
6 MNM+E | WINTER 2020
Back in August, the editorial team had the pleasure of attending ILEA Live 2019. We sat in on the inspiring opening panel on Cultivating Creativity, partied at First Avenue, and wandered through the seven events at the Walker Art Center for the Esprit Awards Gala. The entire event left us in awe of the talent in Minnesota’s event industry. To quote Ryan Hanson, who helped produce the Esprit Awards: Gala “In Minnesota, we don’t give ourselves enough credit. We do some amazing work here and we don’t take enough time to acknowledge it, so this was a time to celebrate and really show what we’re capable of.” To see how creative event professionals can get when they’re planning for their peers, flip to page 33. International events like ILEA Live 2019 show planners what is capable here, helping to boost Minneapolis’ reputation as a desirable place for meetings and events. And Minneapolis continues to catch eyes, with CWT Meetings & Events’ 2020 Future Trends Report naming it one of the up-and-coming cities. Beau Ballin, CWT’s vice president of business development, writes that “Minneapolis outperforms its peers, including Kansas City, Denver, Indianapolis and Charlotte when it comes to tourist attractions and hospitality.” Read more on page 13. We head down to Red Wing for this issue’s Destination (page 20), round up some of the area’s best food and beverage suppliers on wheels in Meeting Notes (starting on page 10), and relay the latest in people, hotel and venue news in Regional News (starting on page 42).
MORGAN.HALASKA@TIGEROAK.COM
I’M A BIG BELIEVER IN MURPHY’S LAW: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. The adage might sound pessimistic, but it’s a useful reminder of the importance of being proactive. You know that, as planners, you must plan for the worst-case scenario. If you don’t then not only will it happen, but you’ll also be completely unprepared. In our Planning for Contingencies feature on page 26, we talk to experts who live by Murphy’s law.
Find, Friend, Follow Find us online at mn.meetingsmags.com, and make sure to “like” us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram to stay in the loop between issues. @MNMEETINGSMAGS /MEETINGSMAGS /MEETINGSEVENTSMAGS
EDITOR'S LETTER
/MNMEETINGSMAGS
Ready for Anything
Morgan Halaska, editor
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 7 EDITOR Morgan Halaska SENIOR EDITOR Megan Gosch ASSOCIATE EDITOR Kassidy Tarala DIGITAL CONTENT EDITOR Julianna Fazio EDITORIAL INTERNS Hannah Cullen, Megan Ekstrand, Dinneen Graff, Sophie Jonsson EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Christie Altendorf, D’Amico Catering • Jessica Elhard, University of St. Thomas Devie Hagen, Élan Speakers Agency • Amy Leyden McNamara Alumni Center Connor Myhre, W2O Group • Rosemarie Ndupuechi, 3E Productions LLC Katie Numedahl, CWT Meetings & Events Lindsey Schneider, Minnesota Medical Association Teresa Sorenson, Minnesota Turkey Growers Association • Melissa Stenberg, Minnesota HomeCare Association DESIGN DIRECTOR Courtney Nielsen ART DIRECTORS Traci OliviaTaylorZellmannKilgoreCurti PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Dianne Talmage PROJECT COORDINATOR Brittni Dye CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Jeremy Wieland ACCOUNTS PAYABLE Leanne Warzeka CREDIT MANAGER April McCauley ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE SPECIALIST Jared Lawson WEB DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Sandy Powell WEB ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Angela Beissel ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER– NATIONAL SALES Kathryn kathryn.olson@tigeroak.com612.548.3184Olson California Meetings + Events • 303.617.0548 Colorado Meetings + Events • 303.617.0548 Michigan Meetings + Events • 586.416.4195 Illinois Meetings + Events • 312.755.1133 Mountain Meetings • 303.617.0548 Northeast Meetings + Events • 586.416.4195 Northwest Meetings + Events • 253.732.7133 Texas Meetings + Events • 469.264.7657 Reprints: For high-quality reprints of 500 or more call 1-800-637-0334 or email reprints@tigeroak.com. For address changes, ordering single copies, cancellations, or general questions about your subscription please contact customer service at 1-800-637-0334 or customerservice@tigeroak.com Minnesota Meetings + Events accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork; they will not be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. TIGER OAK MEDIA FOUNDER & CEO R. Craig Bednar CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Bill Nelson VICE PRESIDENT OF DEVELOPMENT Susan Isay DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & Jim Younger BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 900 South Third St., Minneapolis, MN 55415 Phone: 612.548.3180 Fax: 612.548.3181 Published quarterly Minnesota Meetings + Events, Winter 2020 © 2019 Tiger Oak Media. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. WINTER 2020 mn.meetingsmags.com
Most Awarded Resort IN MINNESOTA2009-2019 Grand View Lodge has taken meetings to the next level with the opening of North, our new boutique hotel and conference center. 60 Spacious Rooms | Business Center 4 Contemporary Meeting Spaces | Lounge Area Coffee and Wine Bar | Reception Patio GRANDVIEWLODGE.COM800-368-1885 Minnesota ’ s Newest HOTEL CONFERENCEANDCENTER
Plum Wine Since opening its first in-room taps in 2018 at the Four Seasons in Silicon Valley, Plum Wine has been bringing wine, beer and spirits to guests’ rooms in 22 hotels across the United States. The Plum amenity houses up to two bottles of wine that can be preserved for up to 90 days using argon gas. “Similar to a Nespresso machine, when a guest wants a glass of wine or spirit in the convenience of their hotel room, they just press a button,” says founder David Koretz. Koretz says meetings and events planners can customize Plum to their attendees’ liking by offering a unique experience to sample many local wines and pair them with the hotel’s menu. “It’s all about exceeding guest expectations. Guests today aren’t just looking for a bed to sleep in; rather, they crave an experience that allows them to indulge and feel catered to. They crave an experience that exceeds what they can get at home,” Koretz says.
PourMyBeer has the capability to install a tap in each individual guest room, Rulkova says it is more cost efficient and lower maintenance for hotels to serve these kegged beverages in a tap located in the lobby for all guests to use. “We want to offer an easy-to-deploy mobile dispense solution to hotels that they can activate for events or just everyday use in the lobby,” Rulkova says. —Kassidy Tarala Get Connected PLUM WINE | plum.wine POURMYBEER | pourmybeer.com
PourMyBeer With self-pour taps in hotel lobbies across the United States and Canada, PourMyBeer offers guests the opportunity the pour their own wine, beer, kombucha or cold brew and bring it back to their rooms. “Guests can use their room key to get a beverage of their choice any time they want and pour it by the ounce. For example, some hotels can have bars only open for a few hours a day, limiting their beverage sales. This is not an issue with self-pour technology, which allows the guest to access the beverages around the clock,” says Tana Rulkova, marketingPourMyBeermanager.allows guests to access only two drinks at a time, but if a guest requests more, hotel staff can give their keycard access to twoThoughmore.
BYO BARTENDER
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 9 Meeting Notes PRODUCTS, PLACES & INSPIRATION F&B 10 SIGNATURE DRINK 12 NEW VENUE SPOTLIGHT 13 IT’S YOUR BIZ 14
The hotel bar is a fun, convenient option to unwind after a long day of meetings, but with companies like Plum Wine and PourMyBeer, hotels are now taking it one step further: They’re bringing the bar to your room. That’s right—throw on that plush robe and slippers because you no longer need to leave the room to get a drink.
POURMYBEERWINE;PLUMPHOTOS:
A Plum canister, which serves more than 1,000 pours, uses cloud and artificial intelligence to identify the label of a bottle of wine, beer or spirit, and it automatically sets the perfect temperature for each bottle.
In-hotel wine, beer and cocktail taps are bringing the bar right to your room.
Bring
YOUR
your
The Tiny Tap Like Hitch & Sip, The Tiny Tap only operates in Minnesota. “We travel anywhere within the state of Minnesota, but our ‘sweet spot’ is within a 20-mile radius of Minneapolis,” says Colin Mihm, co-founder of The Tiny Tap. The Tiny Tap is a prosecco truck, which offers prosecco on tap and mimosa bars, and is popular at corporate offices, business meetings and launch parties. Mihm says they recently did Wine Fest for 1,300 people and can serve groups of any size. Mihm says they have several prosecco trucks, so for larger events, they can bring them all. “It’s a surprise and a delight. No one is really expecting this at an event, so when they show up, it attracts every person who walks in the door,” Mihm says. The Tiny Tap package starts at $1,500 and includes one keg of prosecco (approximately 150 pours), glassware and bartending for a three-hour service.
Prices range from $400 for rental of the Travel Bar or Henry (the vintage farm truck) up to $1,000 for events of 100 guests. Additional bar staff or hours of service, glass ware rental and other add-ons are also avail able for purchase. Equal Parts Cocktail Company With hand-built bars and custom curated cock tail menus, Equal Parts Cocktail Company is as unique as each guest at your event. “We are always creating new signature reci pes based on specific events and our clients’ desires. We love to offer tastings, to make the entire cocktail creation process interactive and to highlight specific flavor profiles that BĒT Vodka Travel Bar
so
BĒT Vodka Travel Bar Since opening in June 2019, the BĒT Vodka Travel Bar has become a staple to events rang ing from baby showers and weddings to pri vate events and business openings. “The BĒT Vodka Travel Bar is an easy turnkey solution for anyone’s event planning; it provides an on-site bartender, barware and serving supplies, and a choice of craft cock tails available in three packages, defined as ‘Simplified,’ ‘Sincere’ and ‘Social,’” says found er Ben ServedBrueshoff.froma 1951 Dodge farm truck named “Henry” after American sugar beet connoisseur Henry Oxnard, drinks range from BĒT Vodka-based cocktails to beer andBrueshoffwine. says they’ve “perfected a number of craft cocktail recipes that complement the smooth, all-around flavor of BĒT Vodka.” But the menu isn’t limited to their recipes. “If there’s a specific cocktail request that is not on the menu, we are happy to discuss!”
The Tiny Tap
SIP;&HITCHELLIMADELINEPHOTOS: VODKABĒTCOMMERFORD;DARRIN
BOOZEY ROLLERS the booze wherever meetings go with these mobile bar companies. KASSIDY TARALA MEETINGS AND EVENTS AREN’T CONFINED TO ONE PLACE, why should your bar be? Take your tap to go with a mobile bar at your next shindig.
BY
10 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 PRODUCTS, PLACES & INSPIRATION F&B»
Hitch & Sip Hitch & Sip first opened its restored 1970s trailer in May 2018 and has been serving corporate happy hours, trade shows, client appreciation events and more ever since. The cash bar can be set up indoors or outdoors and is entirely customizable. “We did an Oktoberfest once where we served nothing but German beer, pretzels and brats,” says Jordan Feist, Hitch & Sip’s director of bar Theoperations.traileroffers specialty drinks, beer, wine and liquor, which can be included in a prepaid, unlimited service for two or five hours. Currently, Hitch & Sip only has a liquor license in Minnesota, though they are hoping to expand to Wisconsin soon. “All of our alcohol is sourced properly through Minnesota liquor laws, and we are fully insured, so planners never have to worry about liability issues,” Feist says.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 11 our clients may want,” says founder Simeon Priest. “A cocktail can tell a story and convey a feeling … no two events are the same when we’reTheinvolved.”prices vary depending on head count, number of signature cocktails, num ber of service hours, and other factors. Packages start at $350, and Priest says they often offer special discounts to nonprofits and charitable organizations. “Our focus stems from the fundamental elements of hospitality, ensuring that our cli ents are cared for every step of the way,” Priest says. “We love cocktails (who doesn’t?), but we especially love well-made cocktails. We believe that the world of private parties and special events deserves the best of the cocktail world. We’re here to bridge that gap.” Get Connected BĒT VODKA TRAVEL BAR betvodka.com/travel-bar EQUAL PARTS COCKTAIL COMPANY equalpartsco.com | 612.345.8116 HITCH & SIP hitchsip.com | 612.339.0222 THE TINY TAP thetinytap.com | 651.505.0331 Hitch & Sip Equal Parts Cocktail Company
PRODUCTS, PLACES & INSPIRATION RESTAURANT
DIRECTIONS Combine all the ingredients in a shaker. Shake and strain over a large ice cube or sphere in a lowball glass. Spritz with peat scotch. Cheers! W hether you’re looking to host the ultimate custom event or impress some one special on a romantic date night, Holman’s Table knows how to deliver. Located at the Downtown St. Paul Airport, Holman’s Table is where gas tronomy and aviation sit down for a one-of-a-kind meal. The restaurant, which opened in January 2018, boasts a main dining room and an additional space, The Earhart Room. The entire Earhart Room can host 80 seated or 100 standing, and it can be broken into smaller rooms: Airfield (seats 50), River (30), and Boardroom (12). The Earhart Room is equipped with music and A/V capabilities. “We have an inviting lobby area in between our restaurant and private dining space that can be used for cocktail receptions to kick off events,” says Nikki Wallace, marketing and communications director. “We’ve even had a large tent put up on the tarmac for an outdoor private dinner for 30.”
Holman’s Table has hosted everything from corporate seminars, rehearsal dinners, anniversary celebrations, foodie tastings and full buyouts for weddings. Regardless of the type of event, Wallace says everyone can take advantage of their airport location. “We’ve curated a truly amazing relationship with Minnesota Helicopters for the ulti mate experience! MN Helicopters offers rides out of Holman Field (where Holman’s Table is located). Private tours can be booked any time, or they are on-site most Friday and Saturday evenings (weather pending),” she says.
PBPICS;–BEARMONPAULPHOTOS: PICTURESTURNERTJHOLM;KATIEE. RECOMMENDATION» A TABLE FOR ONE TO 100 Holman’s Table offers unique dining spaces, custom event planning and even private helicopter rides.
12 MNM+E | WINTER 2020
Wallace says guests typically reserve a helicopter to celebrate a special occasion like a birthday or anniversary, but “events could for sure take part in helicopter rides; there’s just limited space for passengers, but we are at an airfield, so planes are always another option,” she says. “Many guests fly in to have lunch and park their planes right outside ourWhenpatio.”you’re done flying, Holman’s Table’s menu continues to wow guests. Popular dishes include the signature mushroom toast (Wallace suggests coming in for breakfast and ordering the mushroom toast and eggs) and the Hangar Steak, which is made from locally sourced beef. —Kassidy Tarala
INGREDIENTS 1.5 oz. Bank Note Blended Scotch (or your choice aged, blended scotch or 0.75whiskey) oz.Honey Simple Syrup 0.75 oz. Ginger Simple Syrup 0.75 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice
SIGNATURE DRINK»
Penicillin Lighten up your winter with Holman’s Table’s honey, ginger and lemon cocktail. Winter blues getting you down? Fire up the cocktail shaker and try a recipe that will surely lift your spirits. Holman’s Table’s Penicillin is a perfect blend of scotch, honey, ginger and lemon juice— all the ingredients needed to melt away the wintertime sadness.
NEW VENUE SPOTLIGHT»
HUDDLE UP West End Conference Center offers modern spaces for meetings of all sizes. BY MEGAN EKSTRAND JUST MINUTES from the buzz of downtown Minneapolis, The West End Conference Center is a haven for meetings and events. With smart, distraction-free conference spaces, loads of free parking and walkable post-meeting fun, this St Louis Park gem is a win-win for everyone. Since its inception in March of 2019, the property has committed to providing hassle-free planning and faultless experiences for attendees. “We started as an education and training company, but were frustrated with inconsistent service and unpredictable amenities that came with renting hotel ballrooms, so we created our own space,” says Teri Bylander-Pinke, the property’s COO. The product was a state-of-the-art facility with foolproof technology, flexible space configurations and catering options with no service fees. The new facility offers three large rooms and two smaller six-person conference rooms. The ‘Tank’ is the largest of the rooms at 1,323 square feet for up to 66 guests. For more inti mate breakouts, five ‘huddle rooms’ can each accommodate up to three. Free fiber-based internet, projection screens in the large spaces and TVs for the smaller spaces are provided. Designed with businesses in mind, the contemporary, minimalist style provides a productive work environment that doesn’t sacrifice comfort. The interactive aesthetic makes the West End Conference Center ideal for events like board meetings, workshops or training sessions.
Get Connected WEST END CONFERENCE CENTER westendconferencecenter.com | 952.232.6423
TOURISM» ON THE RADAR
BEAU BALLIN, vice president of business development leads CWT’s strategic vision of presale for meetings and events, ensuring that innovative ideas meet client needs now and in the future. Beau is an industry veteran with over 15 years of experience in delivering performance improvement solutions.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 13
Minneapolis is among cities to watch for event planners in 2020. BY BEAU BALLIN As the 13th largest metropolitan econ omy in the U.S., Minneapolis outper forms its peers, including Kansas City, Denver, Indianapolis and Charlotte when it comes to tourist attractions and hospitality. A vibrant food and music scene, world-class museums and theaters, an influx of upcoming hotels and venues— including a Four Seasons in 2022—and the tourist magnet that is the Mall of America, all combine with the great outdoors where scenic lakes abound—providing visitors to the city with many Instagrammable backdrops for any event. It is no surprise that based on the booking trends we are seeing for 2020 and beyond, Minneapolis made it to the short-list of upand-coming cities in CWT Meetings & Events’ 2020 Future Trends Report. Minneapolis is the Goldilocks of locations; it’s not too large, crowd ed or overwhelming, and it’s not too remote, dull and boring. It has everything a modern city can offer, at prices that are more reasonable, and a pace that is much more comfortable. As expected, hosting the Super Bowl in 2018 greatly increased Minneapolis’ visibility—and the city took every advantage to raise its pro file. The Bold North, as we’re now known, takes pride in who we are and what we have to offer. It’s this authenticity that is helping to drive more organizations and people to come experience what the city has to offer—in all kinds of weather. The successful staging of Super Bowl LII and a host of other big sports events over the years, including NCAA Final Four, Stanley Cup Finals, Ryder Cup, World Series, to name a few, have brought not just fans, but potential clients and customers to the city—wheth er they’re having a great experience on the ground or watching the festivities from wher ever they are. With each of these events, the infrastructure improves and the city deepens and grows its talent pool in the event industry. It’s a virtuous cycle that is putting Minneapolis on the map for events. And the cycle contin ues as events contribute to the Twin Cities by accelerating economic growth, attracting and motivating talent, and serving as a platform to igniteBottominnovation.line:Event owners are increasingly looking for experiences—whether in culinary diversity, music and arts, community give back programs, outdoor activities—versus just a place to hold a meeting. Rising destinations like Minneapolis have all these characteristics in common. The Twin Cities are competitive because we have what buyers value in a desti nation that perhaps they haven’t been to—but now have their sights on.
The event host or organization may also be looking at the event as a one-and-done occurrence. It’s not. The connectivity between an event and an organization’s day-to-day activities to build relationships with its audience is a link often missed. Not because people aren’t thinking about it, but because the knowledge between internal employees and outsourced event planners, for example, isn’t intentionally shared.
JENNIFER GILHOI is the owner of Sparktrack, a marketing communications firm that excels in the in-person to digital storytelling arena, covering events via event recaps and moving inspiration into action. For backstory on the recap concept, see her “The Morning After: An Event Recap” blog post. Visit sparktrackevents.com and @Sparktracker to read event recaps and learn more about her service offerings from live social at events to recaps.
An event can be flawless from invite to execution, but if the event host is not focused on the follow-up, important opportunities to own and build on the event experience are missed.
IT’S YOUR BIZ» YOU HOSTED A GREAT EVENT—NOW WHAT?
The Follow-Up Gap Allocating time to consider an event’s connection to long-term initiatives and goals results in better pre-, during and post-event excitement, engage ment and action. As a marketing and communi cations professional that attends conferences and speaking events for my personal education and on behalf of clients, I have become acutely aware of the follow-up gap. In a fully inspired state after an event, I would peruse the event host’s website and social media channels to find deeper connections to the speakers, content or attendees without much success. Sometimes even a month or more later, the pre-event content still remained—a clear indicator that they had moved on and never looked back to nurture the relationships or create a call to action. In 2014, I turned that frustration into my own kind of follow-up: an event recap. I built time into my schedule immediately following an event to process what I’d learned and shape the inspira tion and learning from the event into something actionable. The written piece from a March 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Forum I attended became my first event recap. Since then, I’ve recapped sev eral Bush Foundation OTA conferences, a threeday Fusion 2.0 Conference, a two-day Social Innovation Summit, Ignite Mpls and Minnedemo evening events, Twin Cities StartUp Week events and many more. I noticed how important immediacy was to my process. I set my goal to share any event recap the morning after the event on the Sparktrack blog and my own personal and business social media chan nels. Writing and sharing the post strengthened my connections to the people I met at the event and set risk taking, goal setting and brave outreach in motion. Event hosts, keynote speakers and attend ees shared appreciation in what at the time was a nonpaid, pay-it-forward gesture on my part. In January 2018, upon recommendation from a sounding board of empowering women at my new co-working space, ModernWell, I made event recaps an official paid service of my business. Event ROI In 2019, it still strikes me that more event hosts don’t take the lead to produce this type of con tent at all or with immediacy. Doing so allows a brand to capture authentic, spontaneous moments
14 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 PRODUCTS, PLACES & INSPIRATION
BY JENNIFER GILHOI WITH THE FAST-PACED SPEED OF EVENTS, follow-up is often forgotten, or the ef fort put forth is minimal. ¶ As the event host or planner, devoting more time and resources to the follow-up offers many benefits yet to be tapped by the broader event planning community. Professional event planners are experts in logistics, details and the experience, and often solely focused on executing a flawless event. Their engagement ends when the event ends.
2. Report: Report on some interaction from the event and invite them to connect more deeply to your organization by taking some sort of action, a tactic that can exponen tially increase engagement. This is especially true if your follow-up occurs within 12-48 hours when your event is most top of mind. This content can be pushed out through an email marketing service like Mailchimp or Emma. Small bytes of it can be repurposed on social. And yes, you can also survey or poll guests and send them a link to event photos, which encourages attendees to connect to one another for follow-up conversation.
952.368.3100 oakridgeminneapolis.com TAKE TIME TO ESCAPE THE ORDINARY
3. Return: Measure your return on invest ment from the event. To set new ideas sur rounding follow-up in motion, discuss ideas and confirm a tactical plan weeks, if not months, in advance. Set up your templates and email gathering systems in advance of the event so you can quickly produce and send content. Encourage more effort in the followup and create and grow new ways to effec tively measure event ROI. Your relationshipbuilding and quality lead generation, which is increasingly happening more at events than online, depends on it. Chaska
The Perfect Pace PerfectThePlace One Oak Ridge Drive,
Events are a huge investment of time, money and resources. And if you’re not setting the stage with pre-event content and executing some amazing follow-up after, there’s a lot of untapped potential left on the table. Here are some considerations to improve your follow-up:
1. Recap: Summarize and share thoughts (like in the form of an event recap) as soon as possible after an event. Share the content on your website as a blog post and link to the post from all your various social media channels using channel appropriate language, engaging visual assets and tagging.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 15 and expand on event themes, collaborations, learning and context. It allows them to own their own content and connect it back to their mission. One event host, now a collaborator, said of the general concept of recaps: “If we don’t recap it for archival purposes and to learn and share, it’s like it never happened.”
Emery Formerly Hotel Minneapolis, Emery is fresh from a renovation that fully gutted and trans formed its interior; the hotel’s new lease on life honors its past as Midland Bank while meeting the needs and trends of hospitality today. Emery’s name references the tool that is used to polish marble (one of the only elements to be preserved in the renovation); the hotel embraces its history while also reinventing itself, a common theme in the design philoso phy that drove the rebrand. The design, led by Studio Mai, boasts thoughtful finishes, high-end amenities and creature comforts. Local artworks by Shana Kaplov and Edie Overtuf are featured through out the hotel. Each room features a customized minibar filled with Minneapolis-based good ies, and the fitness facility is equipped with Peloton bikes (with more Peloton products slated for the future). Emery’s lobby is lush and expansive, filled with live greenery, a variety of seating options, and the first downtown location of Spyhouse Coffee, which serves coffee and pastries from Black Walnut Bakery during the day and transforms into a lobby lounge complete with beer and wine in the evening. On the other end of the lobby and taking place of the former Restaurant Max is Giulia. Joshua Hedquist heads the kitchen as execu tive chef, specializing in Italian cuisine and, more specifically, flour and water to perfect his pasta and pizza dough.
Hotels are adapting to trends and accommodating the needs of modern guests.
16 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 EMERY;PHOTOS: CEOGREGLOFTUS;LEIGH(OPPOSITE)
BY MEGAN GOSCH, MORGAN HALASKA & KASSIDY TARALA Emery
TREND REPORT HOTEL AMENITIES
Emery has 4,500 square feet of flexible meet ing space between six meeting rooms, two private dining rooms, and the lobby which can be used as a social/flexible space. With small er spaces, Emery is ideal for a 10-25-person board meeting. Catering is provided by Giulia. hotelemery.com, 612.340.2000 Lora Nestled in the limestone bluffs in quaint Stillwater, Lora is a cozy respite from the Twin Cities. The building’s history as a brew ery helped inform the current design, which still features the original bricks and exposed wooden beams from Joseph Wolf Brewery.
The semiprivate space (which accommodates 40 guests) is connected to a series of caves that FIVE-STAR STAYS
lorahotel.com, 651.571.3500 Hilton Rochester Mayo Clinic Area
AreaLora
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 17 is used to store beer and wine; windows allow guests to peer into the other cavernous side.
Since opening in April 2019, Hilton Rochester Mayo Clinic Area has been bringing a luxury hotel experience to Rochester that was previ ously lacking. While its proximity to the Mayo Clinic and downtown Rochester make the hotel a convenient venue for meetings and events, what really sets Hilton Rochester Mayo Clinic Area apart is in the smallest details. “We’re the only hotel in Rochester that offers a dedicated doorman to provide guests with everything they need—from directions, to umbrellas, to restaurant suggestions,” says Michelle Milde, director of PR and marketing for Avra HiltonHospitality.Rochester Mayo Clinic Area was designed with an artistic lens rather than a traditional one, Milde says. The hotel’s mod ern aesthetic is designed to invoke themes of nature and serenity, specifically for those seek ing treatment at Mayo Clinic. “To bring this theme to life, public spaces throughout the hotel incorporate many differ ent tiles, stones and woods that give the space a natural aesthetic. Metal elements were also incorporated throughout to reflect the similar ity to the exterior of the hotel,” Milde says. “A giant master staircase featuring hand crafted wooden rails and granite stairs are positioned as the center focal point of the hotel lobby.”
The hotel offers complimentary Wi-Fi to all guests as well as in all its event spaces. Additionally, the hotel has two onHilton Rochester Mayo Clinic
The self-described “people first, hoteliers second” Provenance Hotels group operates Lora. Rachel Cool, sales manager, says the staff’s mission is to make the experience work for each group. "There is no ‘no.’ It’s always, ‘how can we make it work for you and how can we connect with you as a person from the meeting planners down to the guests.” One group created a mixology class and worked with The Long Goodbye’s bar manager to make some specialty cocktails. The hotel also hosts a Wine Dinner series in which wines from a chosen region are paired with courses from Feller (the on-site restaurant headed by chef Sam Collins that features a hunt and gather-inspired menu).
There are also plenty of outdoor options for groups to enjoy year-round, whether it’s rent ing bikes from the hotel and riding the new 4.7-mile trail that loops into Wisconsin and back. In the wintertime, dogsledding excur sions, snowshoe treks and lift passes for Afton Alps are available as packages. The hotel has plans for concierge program that reflects the vibe of the hotel and destination, offering guests an “only-in Minnesota” experience. Lora partners with local makers, curators and artisans and the 40 rooms are stocked with locally made foods, beverages and prod ucts. A Faribault Woolen Mill blanket adorns each bed, and the honor bar is packed with craft beers and handmade candies and snacks.
Moxy Minneapolis Downtown
TREND REPORT HOTEL AMENITIES
18 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 site restaurants, Pittsburgh Blue Steakhouse, featuring Midwestern beef and an extensive wine list, and Benedict’s, featuring breakfast and lunch dishes. Guests can also indulge in the hotel’s 24-hour fitness center, heated indoor infinity pool, whirlpool, sauna, steam room, 17th floor Executive Lounge, 19th floor VIP Lounge, and rooftopHiltonterrace.Rochester Mayo Clinic Area’s prox imity to the Zumbro River makes it easy for guests to access scenic running and biking paths along the river. hilton.com
“Radisson Blu Mall of America is a large hotel, but our staff is more like a family, and we extend that treatment to our guests. When we’re curating programs such as the PSL or Fort Blu package, we make a point of adding our own personal touches. We want to continue offering fresh experiences that are exclusive to Radisson Blu Mall of America,” says Gary O’Driscoll, director of sales and marketing.
Moxy Minneapolis Downtown
DOWNTOWN;MINNEAPOLISMOXYBLU;RADISSONPHOTOS: KRUGERJIM(OPPOSITE)
Radisson Blu Mall of America With seasonal offerings like a Pumpkin Spice Latte program and a Shop in Your Slippers package, Radisson Blu Mall of America knows how to make every event seasonally unique. This past fall, the hotel offered its first ever PSL program, which included an over night stay at the hotel, a pumpkin coconut macadamia bar, in-room pumpkin spa ame nities, and a “PSL-Lovers Wake Up Call,” including a housemade PSL and pumpkin chocolate muffin. The Shop in Your Slippers package allows guests to shop at the Mall of America—con nected to the hotel by skyway—in blue luxe slippers. For younger guests, Radisson Blu Mall of America is offering a Fort Blu Kids Camping package, which includes a kid-sized tent to keep, a plush log-shaped pillow, camp ing tools, a projector to illuminate the ceiling with a starry night sky and more.
The hotel also boasts the FireLake Grill House & Cocktail Bar, fitness center, indoor saline pool, Solimar Spa, 26,300 square feet of meeting space and 500 guest rooms. radissonhotels.com, 952.881.5258
The Moxy Minneapolis Downtown opened in July 2019, making it the second Moxy location in Minnesota, the first being in Uptown. The Moxy brand first launched in Milan in 2014, and after expanding throughout Europe and the United States, it continues to stay true to its original stylish design, approachable service and affordable price.
The design is urban cabin chic, and guests are encouraged to meet and socialize in the hotel's public areas and to connect with the city and neighborhood surrounding the hotel. Located near U.S. Bank Stadium, The Guthrie Theatre and the up-and-coming Downtown East neighborhood, boredom is not something guests will be experiencing. Even if you don’t plan on leaving the hotel, you’ll still find plenty to do. In fact, the hotel’s front desk doubles as the lobby bar, so while you check in, you can also order a signature cocktail. The lobby is large and open with several comfortable seating areas for work or social izing, and the hotel has a large parking garage attached for guests, which many downtown hotels don’t have.
Radisson Blu Mall of America
canopy3.hilton.com, 612.332.0696
“The Moxy Minneapolis Downtown is on the forefront of a new style of travel which encourages socializing and connecting with other guests and the surrounding city. It is a fun, fresh experience for guests,” says Director of Sales Michelle Eng. Moxy Minneapolis Downtown offers a non traditional meeting space on the second-floor mezzanine area. Perfect for a lunch forum of up to 100 people or an intimate cocktail event for 40-50 people, the space can be trans formed into whatever your event requires. marriott.com, 612.400.1810
Canopy by MinneapolisHiltonMillDistrict
Housed in the original turn-of-the-centu ry Advance Thresher/Emerson-Newton
Canopy by Hilton Minneapolis Mill District
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 19
Implement Company building, Canopy by Hilton Minneapolis Mill District blends its rich past and plenty of modern elements to create a natural neighborhood gathering destination. As one of 16 Canopy by Hilton properties worldwide, the Minneapolis hotel has devel oped the brand’s Canopy Central community gathering space concept “on steroids,” says Lead Sales Enthusiast Michael Meyer (the hotel’s director of sales). “Canopy’s focused on creating what hotels can and should be— approachable and elegant spaces where guests actually feel at home. We’ve been very inten tional about creating warm, inviting spaces where people can lounge, grab coffee and get some work done or unwind with a glass of wine and as a historic part of the neighbor hood, this is a space where neighbors can stop in for one of our may public events or hang out for an afternoon. It’s really about connecting to and creating a community.” Paying homage to the building’s industrial roots in the heart of the mill district, original wood beams and exposed brick are on full display while wrought iron fixtures, woven accents and custom-designed wallpaper ref erence local makers and the city’s historic manufacturing hallmarks (even the lobby’s “Sift” installation, featuring gold-hued fall ing fragments symbolizing cascading flour, serves as a reference to the iconic Gold Medal Flour company). From Umbra, serving local staples with a French twist, to an abun dance of communal tables, fireplaces, and soft seating, open concept plush lounges flow throughout the hotel’s entire ground floor to create a cozy retreat. Designed to be just as forward-thinking as it is appreciative of its past, the property emphasizes sustainability and energy efficien cy with details like reusable water bottles and refill stations throughout the property and smart fixtures to regulate thermostats and lighting when spaces are not in use. And with a total of seven event spaces offering nearly 6,000 square feet of meeting space, the hotel’s team has also embraced new and innovative ways to welcome locals and build community ties. In partnership with local influencers and event gurus, guests and locals can explore and form memories at the hotel while stopping by for anything from secondhand clothing sales (spread across hotel guest rooms) and fashion shows to panels, networking events, live performances and Vikings game viewings.
DESTINATION RED WING
20 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 BUREAU;CONVENTION&VISITORSWINGREDPHOTOS:
HOTELJAMESST.(OPPOSITE)
IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR a culturally diverse, historic spot for your next meeting or event but want to avoid the bustling city streets of Minneapo lis or St. Paul, Red Wing just might be the perfect location for you. Located just an hour south of the Twin Cities metro, Red Wing is the ideal location for those looking to get away without getting too far away. From its outdoor adventures to the museums and theater, Red Wing offers teambuilding activities for everyone’s speed. “We have a wide range of options for group activities, including boating, wine tasting, per formances at the Sheldon Theatre, biking, hik ing, yoga, culinary, history tours, art walks, scavenger hunts, trivia nights, skiing and more,” says Arloa Bach, executive director of the Red Wing Visitors & Convention Bureau. Stay for a While One of Red Wing’s historical treasures is the St. James Hotel. With a charming red brick exterior and blast-from-the-past interior, the St. James Hotel is great for an old-timey meet ing or corporate retreat. “The St. James Hotel blends tradition with contemporary sophistication. Built in 1875 along the iconic Mississippi River and majes tic bluffs, we are a pillar of a hardwork ing, timeless and charming community. We have a way for making history happen,” says Marilyne Boutellier, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing.
BY KASSIDY TARALA
The St. James Hotel has been locally and
BETWEEN A BAY AND BLUFF Red Wing’s impeccable views, convenient location and quaint downtown make it a great location for Midwest meetings.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 21
WELCH
A
St.
CANNON
TREASURE
NEARBY & NOTABLE
Not only is Red Wing loaded with its own unique venues and meeting spaces, but it’s also nearby some of Minnesota’s largest and most popular ven ues. Treasure Island Resort & Casino is less than a 20-min ute drive from Red Wing and boasts 50,000 square feet of event space. Among its meeting spaces are the 30,000-squarefoot Event Center; Barbados Ballroom, which can accommo date up to 180 guests; Paradise Cove, which can accommo date up to 350 guests; and the Private Charter, a 100-passenger yacht offering cruises down the Mississippi River. Also nearby is the Cannon River Winery, just a half hour from Red Wing. The Cannon River Winery can accommodate groups of 20-250 guests and offers a variety of meeting pack ages including traditional wine tastings, dinners, hors d’oeuvres, instructed painting classes, canoe trips down the river and more. For the adventurous groups, it’s helpful to know that the Welch Village is just a 20-minute drive from Red Wing. Welch Village offers skiing and snow boarding for groups of 15 or more. Groups can hit the slopes for $25 per weekday, $40 on the weekend before 3 p.m., or $30 on the weekend after 3 p.m. Don’t have your own gear? Not a problem. Welch Village also offers group rentals ranging from $5-25. RIVER WINERY 507.263.7400cannonriverwinery.com ISLAND RESORT & CASINO 800.222.7077ticasino.com VILLAGE 651.258.4567welchvillage.com James Hotel guest room at the St. James Hotel
While the hotel is known for its beau ty and historical charm, its abundance of meeting and event spaces is surely a reason for its popularity among groups. The hotel boasts several cleverly named meeting rooms, including the Summit Room, Oak Room, Mainstreeter Room and the Victorian Dining Room. All range in size from 194 square feet (the Private Dining Room) to 4,476 square feet (the Summit Room). When you’re ready to get out of the meeting room, join your group in one of the St. James Hotel’s many team-building activities. From disc golf and biking to a paddleboat cruise and kayaking on the Mississippi River, the pos sibilities are endless for your team to let off a little steam after a long day of meetings. Not only will your group experience some great adventures, but they’ll also save at the St. James Hotel. “We offer special rates for groups of 10 or more people. We also offer specials throughout the year,” Boutellier says, who
22 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 DESTINATION RED WING BY THE NUMBERS: 17,000 SQUARE FEET OF EVENT SPACE AT THE ST. JAMES HOTEL 9,500 PIECES OF STONEWARE, ART AND DINNERWARE IN THE RED WING ART MUSEUM 530+ HOTEL ROOMS IN RED WING 45 MILES FROM ROCHESTER 100+ YEARS THE RED WING GOLF COURSE HAS BEEN OPERATING 90 YEARS THAT THE CLAY INDUSTRY HAD A PRESENCE IN RED WING 67 GUEST ROOMS AT THE ST. JAMES HOTEL 50 MILES FROM THE TWIN CITIES 11 MEETING ROOMS AT THE ST. JAMES HOTEL 4 BED AND BREAKFASTS IN RED WING $0 TO PARK IN DOWNTOWN RED WING The Walsh House CHRISTENSENKIMHOTEL;JAMESST.PHOTOS: also recommends requesting a meeting guide through the website. While the St. James Hotel already has a lot to brag about, it’s not quite done expanding. Yes, you will see lots of changes in the coming years. The hotel added an outdoor patio this past summer an event space, which can hold up to 150 people, this past fall. “The Veranda restaurant will be renovated this winter. It will be closing on Dec. 2, 2019 to reopen on Mother’s Day of 2020. We will be adding a tasting room and bakery to open in 2020. We will be able to make our own pastries, wedding desserts, cakes as well as breads,” Boutellier adds. “We are also plan ning to add 34 rooms to bring the total count to 101. Construction should start in 2020.”
Fore! Whether you’re an avid golfer or prefer stick ing to putt-putt, the Red Wing Golf Course has fun for everyone in the group. “Our course is challenging, unique and beautiful. We are conveniently located moments from downtown Red Wing yet nestled into the bluffs. We have great food options at Nineteen Bar and Grill during the day for golf outings, and our newly renovated family-owned since it opened more than 140 years ago. “We pride ourselves on preserving a forgotten era in a connected world. Each venue offers a unique experience tethered to the past while incorporating premium full-service amenities to celebrate life moments to weekly meetings,” Boutellier says. “The St. James is the place to connect and reconnect.”
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 23 Elevate your next event at Red Wing Golf Course, nestled into the bluffs of the Hiawatha Valley –now with newly renovated event facilities and beautiful on-site lodging. ∙ brittany@TheSkyroomMN.com RedWingGolfCourse.com GOLFMEET STAY • Plan an easy and unforgettable getaway just 50 miles from the Twin Cities. • Experience an abundance of outdoor adventures on land and water. • Relax and unwind at our wineries, brewery & great restaurants. • Discover our unique history at our museums, art galleries and beautiful architecture. • Create lasting memories with a stay at one of our B&Bs or historic St. James ExperienceHotel. the Natural Beauty, History & Charm of Red Wing www.RedWing.org • #RedWingMN
Nineteen Bar + Grill offers a full menu, which features a long list of sandwiches, pizzas and its famous Friday Fish Fry. Events in The Skyroom are catered by River Valley Catering and can have two full bars.
“Until not too long ago, the course was private, but now the course is public, and we have these gorgeous updates to every aspect of the experience here, we really hope to be on people’s radar,” says O’Neil. “One of our Red Wing Golf Course
The Walsh House also has a full kitchen, so guests can bring their own food or store their leftovers while they head out for a game of golf.
24 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 DESTINATION RED WING event space, The Skyroom, can accommo date up to 300 guests,” says Director of Sales Brittany O’Neil. Not only can groups show off their skills on the green, but they can find hik ing, biking and even rock climbing at the Red Wing Golf Course. Plus, there are multi ple options for breakout sessions at Nineteen Bar + Grill or The Skyroom.
“Depending on the size of the group, The Walsh House could accommodate some activities as well, or house guests overnight,” O’Neil adds. The Walsh House is a four-bedroom, four-bathroom home with an expansive yard and front and back porches, perfect for inti mate“Whengatherings.you’re inside, you feel secluded, yet you are really close to the 18th hole and the clubhouse—just a minute’s walk,” O’Neil says. “The Walsh House is also so close to down town Red Wing, with food and entertainment options—it’s ideal.”
CHRISTENSENKIMPHOTOS:
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 25 tag lines is ‘Elevate your Game’ since we are in bluff country and the course offers vistas and curves that you find in this type of terrain, but we as a property have really elevated our own game, too.” A Potter’s Paradise The clay industry was a booming one in Red Wing from 1877 to 1967. Businesses like Red Wing Union Stoneware, Minnesota Stoneware, North Star Stoneware, Red Wing Stoneware and Red Wing Potteries produced stoneware, art and dinnerware that is now featured in the Pottery Museum of Red Wing. “We move pieces in and out of the exhib its and highlight one or two large exhibits each year. Our current exhibits include ‘MidCentury Kitchen’ and ‘Red Wing Saloon,’” says Museum Director Char Henn. Not only is the Pottery Museum of Red Wing home to a plethora of unique stoneware, but it also hosts open houses, family reunions, community meetings, conferences and school groups in its Potters Hall. Potters Hall can be configured for groups’ needs and can hold up to 83 with tables and chairs or 179 with just chairs. It also has Wi-Fi and A/V equipment available. A modern prep area is available for caterers within the meet ing space area. “We can work with groups on different [team-building] exercises they would like to incorporate,” Henn says. “We have a resident potter that we could bring in, too.” Get Connected POTTERY MUSEUM OF RED WING potterymuseumredwing.org | 651.327.2220 RED WING GOLF COURSE redwinggolfcourse.com | 651.388.9524 RED WING VISITORS & CONVENTION BUREAU redwing.org | 651.385.5934 ST. JAMES HOTEL st-james-hotel.com | 651.388.2846 AT your FINGERTIPS SUBSCRIBE FOR MEETINGSMAGS.COMFREE! OUR E-NEWSLETTER »LOCAL EVENTS »LATEST INDUSTRY NEWS »PEOPLE NEWS »WEEKLY UPDATES TIcasino.com | 1-800-222-7077 © 2020 Treasure Island Resort & Casino ON AN ISLAND Meet Sometimes business has to be taken care of, and sometimes it has to be in person. With 50,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, state-of-the-art a/v equipment, nearly 800 hotel rooms and award winning catering, Treasure Island is the perfect place to stay connected with your clients, partners and vendors. Let’s get down to business together.
CouldWhat Wrong?Go
HIT REFRESH
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT EXPERTS,
AND
By the time the now-iconic photo of one Fyre Festivalgoer’s pitiful cheese sand wich had gone viral, social media plat forms and news outlets were abuzz with shock and bewilderment—questioning how the seemingly star-studded island excursion could have resulted in half-built FEMA-issued tents, can celled musical acts and stranded attendees. But for seasoned planners, the legendary disaster was just another in a slew of daily reminders on the impor tance of contingency planning and the true value of the many hours spent crafting alternate options for the emergencies they hope will never come to pass.
TEAM EFFORT “At their events, planners are in a unique role in that they are the most knowledgeable person in the LOCAL PLANNERS LAW TALK TIPS, TOOLS AND TOP-OF-MIND CONCEPTS TO KEEP EVENTS SAFE AND RUNNING SMOOTHLY.
ENFORCEMENT PROFESSIONALS
Just as custom reigns king in today’s event design, food and beverage, and décor, cookie-cutter plans won’t do in case of an emergency—a concept plan ners likely already know but need to dedicate more time and effort to. “To effectively manage an issue as it arises, con tingency plans should be unique to that event,” says Rick J. Kaufman, APR, executive director of com munity relations and emergency management for Bloomington Public Schools. With over 30 years of emergency management experience, Kaufman also works as a consultant to other schools and organi zations across the country and finds that although most clients come to him with a plan already in place, many are years old or too incomplete, requir ing an audit for vulnerabilities or any possible gaps in operational response. “A solid plan should consist of elements of pre vention and intervention, response and recovery and a crisis plan. The contingency plan should also account for the needs of the client, and attendees, event activities and location specifics,” he says. “In most cases starting with a general framework is OK, but you need to get more specific and drill down from there. You need answers to big questions and that effort takes a significant amount of time.” For some, finding enough time to contingency plan may be the biggest challenge. “Unfortunately for most people, that planning isn’t a priority until something goes wrong,” says Meghan Gustafson, director of events and programs for the mpls down town council. “I am fortunate to have worked for organizations that take it seriously and make contingencies a part of each event but the task can seem overwhelming. Starting with a communica tion plan and building from there is a good start, but revisiting past plans to update with what you’ve learned from previous years can help to make that task less daunting.”
While most planners are well-versed in the basic elements of contingency planning, we checked in with crowd and emergency management experts, local planners and law enforcement professionals to talk tips, tools and concepts for planners to keep topof-mind when planning their next event.
MeganByGosch
room. They are the experts in their circumstances,” says Steven A. Adelman, an expert in safety and secu rity at live events, head of the Adelman Law Group, PLLC and vice president of the Event Safety Alliance.
“As attendees, we tend to be anti-authoritarian when we go out to play. We don’t listen to directions or pay attention very well. We’re more concerned with who’s going to win or who’s coming out on stage or what’s the next cool display. We’re looking for our friends. We’re not looking at signage, we don’t notice exits and we probably can’t hear your PA announcements, so we’re really relying on event organizers to have the answers if anything bad happens.”
And while that may seem daunting to some, experts like Adelman and local event professionals like Ann Dunne, assistant general manager for the U.S. Bank Stadium, agrees it’s important that planners remember they aren’t in it alone. Successful contingency plan ning relies heavily on a team approach, delegation and strong, clear communication. “You just can’t do it all yourself. It’s incredibly dif ficult to accomplish most other elements of the event planning process on your own, let alone the manage ment of contingency elements like security efforts or community relations. As a planner, you do need to take ownership over the safety and security of your employ ees and guests and work towards that every day. But on the whole, planning for contingencies should be a team effort and that’s where communication with internal staff and external resources is key,” says Dunne.
With over 17 years of experience in the event industry, including produc tion of Minneapolis’ annual Holidazzle and Aquatennial celebrations and the Basilica Block Party, mpls down town council Director of Events and Programs Meghan Gustafson has not only built strong working relationships with local vendors and suppliers, but also with local law enforcement, city officials and colleagues. “[When it comes to contingency planning,] a multifaceted approach is the best way to make sure you have all your bases covered. Talking with local experts through the process, whether that’s law enforcement, emergency responders, insurance or legal repre sentatives, or other people who work on similar events in your industry will only strengthen your planning,” says Gustafson.“Talking with your city permits office, local police and other government entities can also be a time-saver. Their input and advice can usually provide you with helpful contacts and tips you can use as a start,” she says. Gustafson also recommends plan ners check for resources from agen cies like the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). “Resources like the ones provided by the DHS (ready.gov) are fairly new, but due to all the issues happening at events around the world, there really needs to be more collabo ration and dialogue happening with the events industry and these departments and law enforcement are really starting to connect with event producers to cre ate connections so that we can all work together to keep people safe.”
Just as planners maintain clear and consistent chan nels of communication with event partners, from clients and internal staff to A/V providers and custo dial staff, to ensure day of production goes off without a hitch, planners must consider how contingencies can impact all involved with their events and commu nicate“Youaccordingly.don’twant to get caught flat-footed. Issues that pop up are only exacerbated when the left hand doesn’t know what the right is doing,” says Kaufman. “Everyone needs to know where direction is coming from, what their roles are and who is responsible Build Your Network
MEGHAN GUSTAFSON Director of Events and Programs, mpls downtoan council
BIG PICTURE Unfortunately, while man-made hazards and acts of violence continue to dominate news cycles and loom as a potential threat throughout the event planning process, experts worry planners may begin to miss the forest for the trees with less attention paid to other likely risks. “The inclination is to react to what we see in the headlines. We have far too many instances of active shooters, so we pay a disproportionate amount of our attention to guns relative to the likelihood that we will have a gun-related incident at our event,” says Adelman. From the placement of direc tional signage and seating or stage setup to the event of a flood or an attendee health or medical emergency, “we need to be able to deal with crowd management apart from active shooters because crowd management must be done regardless of the reason the crowd needs to be managed. This can get us out of the trap of thinking only of guns,” saysKaufmanAdelman.also advises planners to focus on the task at hand when planning for the worst-case scenario: the response. “We often focus too much on the threat and less on the response specific to that emergency.
ANN DUNNE Assistant General Manager, U.S. Bank Stadium
‘Active shooter’ may be the buzz word these It Takes a Village
QUESTIONS ARE KEY “Really, when it comes down to it, contin gency planning is all about asking good questions,” says Adelman. When crafting a thorough contingency plan, planners may turn to local law enforcement and emer gency responder professionals for help, “and that’s a great place to start but there needs to be more of a dialogue.” “No matter how much time I might spend with a client, I’m never going to be as knowl edgeable about their event as they are. I do know where things tend to go wrong and I know what the existing guidance is to help mitigate some of those risks. Experts may know enough about human psychology or a specific security issue, but planners need to take what they’ve learned from those con versations and adapt it to their events. The better and more specific the questions, the better prepared they’ll be,” Adelman says.
When hosting events at the U.S. Bank Stadium practice, community coordination and idea sharing are especially vital. For U.S. Bank Stadium Assistant General Manager Ann Dunne, who oversees the booking of events large (accommodating up to 70,000 guests at any given time) and small from start to finish, com munication with event partners could not be more important when it comes to contingency planning.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 29 for what, and they need to be adequately trained to take on those roles. Any confu sion on those expectations can slow down response time and cause more distress or “Mostpanic.”people don’t think to share pareddown versions of their plans with their on-site vendors and partners, not just their planning team,” says Gustafson. “Does your committee know they shouldn’t call 911 for a medical emergency because you have all the resources needed on-site and getting an ambulance into the site will cause more challenges and add to response time? Does your A/V vendor know who to call if they see something suspicious? You also need to prepare your leadership team and educate them on your plans so that, should some thing go wrong, they aren’t surprised and can support your efforts.”
With events taking place at the stadium almost every single day, Dunne’s seasoned team works tire lessly community-wide to ensure guests enjoy a safe visit. “We’re in constant communication with sta dium partners, so everyone from our food and beverage and security teams to the stadium’s cleaning and guest services crew as well as community service partners including HCMC, the Minneapolis Police Department, the local fire department, Metro Transit and even the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are all up-todate on event plans,” says Dunne. “With a venue as large as ours, those community members need to be in the loop so they can also effi ciently manage safety throughout theAndcity.”while the stadium has a proven track record for hosting major events without a hitch, Dunne says her team is always eager to learn from others. “Our company, ASM Global, manages over 300 venues across five continents including six other NFL stadiums, and with that network we’re able to share best practices and learn from other teams to develop some really creative event solutions. It’s been such an amazing resource to have on hand.”
Kaufman concurs: “Your plan can only be strengthened by the answers you’ve gath ered along the way. What are the hazards to your event? Are they geographical? Are they intentional? Will dignitaries attend? Will alcohol be served? Who will provide the security and what are they responsible for? What time will doors open? What time does the event end? Which exits and entrances will be used? Your questions will range from broad high-level to the minute detail, but this is a time you don’t want to hold back. It can sound elementary, but understanding that questions like these are your tools can be powerful and keep you prepared.”
Most importantly, although the complex process of contingency planning may be nerve-wracking at times, Adelman encourages planners to embrace the power that the practice can bring planners. “Understanding crowd management and contingency planning gives people— regardless of age, skill set, education level or expertise—helpful things they can do in an emergency that are within their power,” says Adelman. “Being told to stand in a corner and wait for further instruction— that’s disempowering. But when you break things like an evacuation plan for severe weather or finding back-up entertainment for an artist that can’t perform down into fairly simple, easily achievable elements, there’s something everyone can do to help solve a problem and to help keep people safe—that’s empowering.”
While active shooters may be one of the most concerning threats facing today’s live events, experts advise planners also keep issues like cyber security and climate change in “Climatemind.change should be on every one’s radar and may actually impact the live event industry disproportionately due to the number of events that take place outside of brick-and-mortar venues. As our climate becomes less stable, we have an increased potential for severe weather evacuations, underscoring the importance of having a severe weather action plan. Planners will need to stress site planning as well as access to accurate weather infor mation. Hint: Your cell phone app is not a reliable source of GPS-located weather information,” says Adelman. “Research suggests issues like climate change are going to have a greater impact on events and lead to further disrup tions in the industry, but today’s politi cal climate also poses a threat. As we begin to see more cases of protest and civil unrest—in Minnesota, that’s resulted in freeway closures and airport disrup tions—planners need to begin to plan for politically-motivated issues as well,” says Kaufman.
POWER IN PLANNING
days, but any number of threats could emerge that require a similar response protocol,” he says. “The reality is it’s about responding to situations we don’t have all of the information for. I counsel clients to concentrate on and practice drills using consistent protocols to create cultural con ditions so that they know what to do in a real-world situation.”
In consideration of the potential for violence at live events, Adelman also notes planning for substance as well as percep tion. “The fear of acts of violence is far more widespread than the acts of violence themselves, but addressing perception can enhance attendee confidence. Obviously you want to have the basics—security perimeters like a physical fence or use of bollards and a check of guests and their bags at the point of ingress, way finding signage and clear directions to exits—because visual deterrents not only help prevent bad behavior, they provide a sense of confidence to guests. In the past, uniformed security guards might have caused alarm, but these days when they see security, guests are more likely to think, ‘great, they’re considering our safety,’” says Adelman.
ON THE RADAR
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 31
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service: The national organization provides weather, water and climate information for the general public, but can also help plan ners prepare for hazardous conditions that may put attendees in harm’s way. Planners can register their event with the organiza tion’s local branch for assistance with accu rate day-of forecasting. noaa.gov, weather.gov
Plan your event twice: “I tell all new planners I work with to double the time they’ve spent planning event version A. You need a back-up plan for everything so you essentially need a second event ready to go at the drop of a hat,” says Schliesman. Be realistic: “Planners are often looking through rose-colored glasses when it comes to envisioning their event on the perfect day, especially when it comes to outdoor events in public spaces. These spaces may be someone’s home 365 days a year and planners often overlook the unshel tered people they may be displacing when they’ve repurposed a public space,” says Klukow. Air-tight weather plan: “You’d be surprised at the number of times we’ve had to ask, ‘What’s your weather plan?’ to even the most experi enced planners. Who’s going to moni tor the weather in the days leading up to your event? At what temperature will it be too hot? At what temperature will it be too cold? How much humidity is too much? You need these answers well in advance,” says Schliesman. Make an appearance: “If you’re trying to establish a relationship with a public sector or law enforcement contact, you need to meet them faceto-face—that’s across the board. The worst thing you can do is send an email and wait for a reply. You have to build up that rapport and that relationship is best established in person. The pros become regulars, stopping by through out the year to check in and stay ahead of what’s new or might be changing,” says Schliesman. Find a mentor: “I try to guide contacts to fellow planners who are steeped in experience. The goldstandard planners are generally pro ducing major events like the Basilica Block Party, the Twin Cities Marathon, the Twin Cities Pride Festival or the Minneapolis Aquatennial. New startups should find time to meet with these folks and experienced public safety partners to learn the pitfalls before they get too deep into their first event. It’s a favor to themselves as much as it is to us as community partners,” says Klukow.
Event Safety Alliance: Dedicated to helping event professionals mitigate foreseeable live event risks through education, skills train ing and advocacy, this nonprofit creates resources for planners like its Event Safety Podcast (an ongoing discussion for ideas and news from the world of live event safe ty), Event Safety Access Training (an online program for professionals in all aspects of event production), and "The Event Safety Guide," the country’s first published safety guidance manual created specifically for the live event industry. The Guide compiles relevant safety standards, insight from industry experts and reasonable operational practices regarding emergency planning, weather preparedness and more. eventsafetyalliance.org
While the ideal combination of guides, web sites and services will vary by event, local planners and industry experts have recom mended a few of their go-to tools: American National Standards Institute (ANSI): A private not-for-profit organization fostering national safeguarding standards for a range of industries, including the field of safety and security. ANSI will publish a new Crowd Management standard in early 2020 to provide planners with key ques tions and authoritative crowd management guidance for planning safe and secure events. ansi.org
National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4): As one of the world’s leading academic research institu tions in addressing sports safety and secu rity risks and threats and offers planners a variety of online resources, best practice guides and more. ncs4.usm.edu
Minneapolis Police Department Lieutenant Mark Klukow and Phil Schliesman, Block Event Special Event Committee coordinator for the City of Minneapolis, share their tips for successful community and public sector relationship-building.
Tips from the Pros
Tools of the Trade
PHIL SCHLIESMAN Block Event Special Event Committee Coordinator MARK KLUKOW Minneapolis Police Department Lieutenant
ERGYSYNMarquis Room Grand Ballroom MillenniuM Minneapolis 1313 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55403 USA T +1 612.332.6000 e minneapolis.us@millenniumhotels.com W www.millenniumhotels.com Studio Conference SucceSSful MeetingS Start with SurroundingSMartS Millennium Minneapolis is where stylish meetings come together. We offer 22,000 square feet of contemporary and inviting conference and breakout space, featuring high ceilings, natural daylight and city views. You will find everything needed for multiple presentation and seating formats, breakout rooms and separate meal venues. Most importantly, our dedicated staff is ready to accommodate your needs with a full complement of services. Contact us and mention promo code MME
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 33 ERGYSYN THE LOCAL INDUSTRY BANDS TOGETHER TO MAKE MINNEAPOLIS SHINE DURING ILEA LIVE 2019.
HalaskaMorganGoschMeganBy&
LLCPHOTOGRAPHYSZURSZEWSKIJOEPHOTO:
Hyatt Regency Minneapolis was the con ference’s main hub for educational sessions, and McNamara Alumni Center, Machine Shop, First Avenue, Walker Art Center and Orchestra Hall hosted some of the conference’s ancillaryD’Amicoevents.Catering played a big part in feed
Local Representation
34 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 LLC;PHOTOGRAPHYSZURSZEWSKIJOEPHOTOS: PHOTOGRAPHY;MARIEJEANNINE PHOTOGRAPHYB.LAUREN
It was the host committee’s task to make sure attendees experienced Minneapolis and St. Paul. “There were local touches woven throughout every turn,” says Christie Altendorf, co-chair of ILEA Live 2019. “It was important to everyone on that team from the very beginning that Minneapolis was not represented in a way that focused on flannel, campfires and canoes. While those things are very much a part of our great state, they only scratch the surface when it comes to showing the real Minnesota. In addition to our incred ible natural resources, the committee chose to highlight the commitment that the Twin Cities has to some of the best things in life: delicious food, transformative music, and an art and theater scene that is second to none.”
Meet Minneapolis, a member of the host committee, welcomed guests with a booth at the airport and hosted a custom website for attendees. Mayor Jacob Frey spoke at the open ing session. Izzy’s Ice Cream was served after the session with Maria Moyano of Museum of Ice Cream. Attendees could also sign up for tours of Surly Brewing Company and Paisley Park, go behind the scenes of the X Games at U.S. Bank Stadium and work out with Alchemy 365 at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.
CHRISTIE ALTENDORF & MEGHAN GUSTAFSON ILEA BRANDING AT MACHINE SHOP
OPENING PANEL AT HYATT REGENCY MINNEAPOLIS D’AMICO CATERING
With the goal of creating an environment that offers compelling education, authentic experiences and intentional connections, ILEA (International Live Events Association) Live 2019 brought planners from around the world in early August 2019 to inspire creativity, network with like-minded people, celebrate the industry and get to know Minneapolis.
CastSupporting “The most energizing part of this conference being in Minneapolis was seeing the excitement and growth that it brought the local event industry and how passion ate everyone was about showing who we are as a community,” says Altendorf. “We are unique in that collaboration truly does trump competition here and the fact that it was exemplified on the interna tional stage is a true testament to the character that embodies the Twin Cities.”
Minneapolis Ambassadors: Madonna Carr (Meet Minneapolis) Erica Bergum (Meet Minneapolis) Experiences: Jodi Collen (Be The Match), Gretchen Culver (Rocket Science Weddings & Events), Kim Fischer (CWT Meetings & Events) and Sarah Johnson (Machine Shop) ing (and wowing) guests. Altendorf, who is also the senior event planner and marketing manager for D’Amico, worked with culinary and production teams to design some of the ancillary events. In partnership with the McNamara Alumni Center and Todd Pinzuti of Bungalow 6 Designs, D’Amico served lunch to the participants of the Global Event Forum, a two-day summit that brought together some of the brightest people in the indus try. “Feeding those minds was of great importance, and the gorgeous setting, table and menu were all designed to satiate both the eye and the palate,” sheThesays.ILEA-MSP Chapter event, No Coast Up Close (a ’70s Yacht Rock-inspired event), welcomed everyone into town. A “Caviar Bar” (with faux caviar made up of small beads created via molecular gastronomy from different liquids) sat within an ice sculpture, while the Oyster Dessert Belt had chefs serving a white chocolate yuzu truffle “pearl” on a gold painted oyster half shell from a leather belt with silver buckets, traditionally used for shuck ing oysters. D’Amico’s executive pastry chef Leah Henderson created miniature desserts for the Esprit Awards Gala at the Walker Art Center, includ ing Salted Butterscotch Lollis, Malted Raspberry Meringue Tartlets, Black Currant Pistachio Parfaits, Dark Chocolate Black Cherry Bon Bons and Northern Lights Geode Macarons (“the per fect way to end the celebration on the rooftop of the Walker overlooking the skyline of Downtown Minneapolis,” says Altendorf). STADIUM TOUR SHOP
Sponsorship: Susan Diamond (Jigsaw Unlimited) Admin: Lataya Williams (U.S. Bank Stadium)
MSP Welcome Reception: Jessica Barrett (Machine Shop)
Volunteers: Connor Myhre (W20 Group) Ariel Gutierrez (Augsburg University)
MACHINE
Opening Party: Jim Leighton (RAIN Events), Jolene Ihle (Entourage Events Group) and Leah Anderson (Entourage Events Group)
Minneapolis Host Committee Conference Co-Chairs: Meghan Gustafson (mpls downtown council) Christie Altendorf (D’Amico Catering)
U.S. BANK
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 35
Esprit Awards: Matthew Trettel (The Wedding Guys), Ryan Hanson (BeEvents) and Ellaina Henke (The Wedding Guys)
36 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 LLCPHOTOGRAPHYSZURSZEWSKIJOEPHOTOS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 9 7 10 8 11
1. The Purple Xperience, a Prince tribute band, got the crowd dancing. 2. Attendees lined up along First Avenue’s Star Wall. 3. Marshall Charloff, front man of The Purple Xperience, interacted with the crowd. 4. Sound Bites were served from custom-designed hawker-style trays complete with Fender straps. 5. The Meat & Greet station. 6. Custom-designed donuts from Glam Doll Donuts.
Pearl:SponsorsLocal ATOMIC, BeThings*, BoothEasy, CORT Events, Culinaire*, EideCom, Entourage
The Mainroom had high top tables behind the dance floor and showcased a selection of First Avenue’s 50 years of music that culminated in a set from The Purple Xperience—a five-piece Prince tribute band. Jim Leighton, who chaired the event, says his favorite memory from the night was “when just about everyone in the building was on the dance floor singing Purple Rain together.” Events Group
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 37
7. Charloff posed for pictures. 8. The VIP lounge on the upper level. 9. Entourage Events Group created a custom “rocker chick” mural with fresh greens and herbs for hair. 10. Primped got attendees ready for the event. 11. Desserts from Farina Baking Company were served in the carnation installation.
Diamond: BeEvents*, Georgia Bridgwater Orchestra* Emerald: The Brand Booth*, metroConnections, SOS Charging Solutions*, The Wedding Guys* Sapphire: AV For You, BMINX (Hana April Inc.), Cvent*, The Purple Xperience, Walker Art Center* Platinum: A’BriTin Catering*, Big Ink*, CRAVE Catering*, Create Catering*, Curtis Kennedy Films*, Festivities, Jeannine Marie Photography*, Lauren B Photography*, Quest Events, Your-Type* Gold: D’Amico Catering*, The Deco Catering*, Premier Transportation*, Imagine Lights* Silver: Alchemy 365, Après Event Dècor and Tent Rental, BBJ Linen*, Beam Suntory*, Blommonster*, Bungalow 6 Design + Events, Dana*, Equal Parts Cocktail Company*, Girl Friday*, Ice Occasions*, ILEA MSP, Joe Szurszewski Photography, Maddy & Maize*, McNamara Alumni Center, Paisley Park, Platypus Papers*, Smartpress*, Stage Point*, Surly Brewing Company, Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel, The Depot, Transmission Music (DJ Jake), U.S. Bank Stadium, Visions*
Supporting Partners: Brett Dorrian Artistry Studios, Chameleon Chairs*, Dream Day Dressing Rooms, Farina Baking Company, Faribault Woolen Mill Co.*, Glam Doll Donuts, Haute House Studio, Izzy’s Ice Cream, Lakes & Legends Brewery, Primped, Pure & Clear Minnesota Ice, Rapit Printing, Winebow Fine Wine + Spirits *Denotes Esprit Awards Gala sponsors
The Purple Party Jolene Ihle of Entourage Events Group endeav ored to give the 500 guests at ILEA Live’s open ing night party at First Avenue (dubbed the Purple Party) real VIP treatment. “I really want ed to keep a genuine music club feel, an authentic experience where everyone felt like they had a place in the venue and where they felt welcomed and able to let loose in their own way,” she says.
The first stop was for attendees to line up on a red carpet along the Star Wall to have their photo taken, which The Brand Booth used to create a name badge that hung from a lanyard. “Discovery moments” were planted in First Avenue’s nooks and crannies; the people who understood, for example, why there were no brown M&Ms in the candy dispenser or were lucky enough to try one of the Electric Daisies (small, edible herbs that were stowed in the Green Room’s small fridge), passed along their insid er knowledge to friends. The Merch Wall was stocked with complimentary swag for attendees to take and wear. “People were surprised and delighted they didn’t have to pay for the items— it somehow felt sneaky taking it off the wall,” saysIhleIhle.visited the Minnesota History Center to learn more about the venue’s history. She discovered in her research that Joe Cocker was First Avenue’s first musician when it opened 50 years ago in April 1969. “On his rider, he requested a purple shag rug and when it didn’t arrive, measures were taken to bring in 2,000 purple carnations instead,” explains Ihle. “And that’s what we did. I ordered the carnations and Haute House created the floral design on the custom swing we built for the centerpiece on the dance floor.” The swing held designer star cook ies, cupcakes and silver-brushed macaroons from Farina Baking Company. Food enhanced the theme of the night. Glam Doll Donuts, which makes donuts for visiting bands, supplied themed donuts. The Meat & Greet station was an all-meat installation that truly lived up to its name, doling out meat in innovative ways that got people talking. The Rider Hot Crew Meals, served in kraft boxes, were inspired by riders of bands who played at FirstBecauseAve. it was a party for industry people, Ihle’s attention to detail was even more keen; she wanted to inspire people of all sects of the industry. Caterers, for example, were wowed by the hand-painted mural of a “rocker chick” that boasted fresh greens and herbs as her hair, creat ing a three-dimensional element that served as a backdrop and garden for chefs. Each space was different, allowing guests to choose their own vibe. The Green Room recre ated elements of 7th Street Entry and served as the hair and makeup area. The second floor was lavishly decorated to give it a VIP feel (vegetarian food was served in reverence to Prince) and fea tured a temporary tattoo station. The Backstage had custom-built in-house roadie case chairs and ottomans as well as the Meat & Greet station.
PHOTOGRAPHYB.LAURENPHOTOS:
Esprit Awards Gala When first tasked with producing ILEA’s annual Esprit Awards, co-chairs BeEvents Chief Creative Officer Ryan Hanson, CSEP and The Wedding Guys president Matthew Trettel may not have known when or how, but upending the traditional sit-down awards program was a must. “We knew we’d include at least a few the atrical, immersive moments and the concept flowed from there,” says Hanson. The event, which was held at the Walker Art Center, was inspired by events like Refinery 29’s 29Rooms, Google’s Curiosity Rooms and New York’s Sleep No More—“which is a fully immersive runall-over-the-building-type of experience”—the team set out to explore how an engaging event could play out across multiple spaces and a “curiosity fractured” theme was decided. From guest arrival, complemented by a sur prise outdoor performance as guests looked on from within, to floating fish and a cityscape dance party, each of the event’s distinct spaces was designed to be fully interactive. “The goal was for everyone to have an individual journey. We wanted that fractured concept to transcend by ensuring each space was its own experience. No one experience was the same,” says Trettel. “We essentially created seven individual events in one—each space was detailed as a standalone with its own unique challenges and identities,” says Hanson. After plenty of brain storming sessions, “we riffed on the question of ‘where can you get curious?’” says Trettel. “So ‘curious in space’ became Luna, the last stop on the journey. ‘Curious goes for a swim’ became FISHBOWL and was surrounded by glass and bathed in blue light with an aquaticthemed drag show and swimsuit-clad servers offering fish-shaped snacks. ‘Curiosity takes flight’ became Jetset—a Pan Am-style cock tail lounge—and ‘curiosity grows’ became Wunderbar, a botanical wine bar concept.”
Each room also featured its own embedded entertainment, all of which included Easter eggs to the themes of the other spaces. “Most people may not have noticed them, but we had a real blast with those. For example, the flight attendants from Jetset wore birds in their hair that were taken from the botanical gardens and when guests initially arrived at the traditionalseeming welcome reception, all of a sudden there’s a performance outside with the per formers pointing in. The guests were in a kind of fishbowl through that interaction and later that space was transformed into a more literal fishbowl,” says Hanson. No corner was left untouched. Even furlined and marionette-inspired elevators became extensions of the fractured concept
38 MNM+E | WINTER 2020
Clockwise from opposite top: A large installation welcomed guests to the Esprit Awards Gala; guests moved through the themed spaces at the Walker Art Center; an inflatable fish floated throughout FISHBOWL, the aquatic-themed room; the Walker’s rooftop was an after-party location, boasting views of the Minneapolis skyline; flight attendants greeted guests to the Pan Am-style cocktail lounge; elevators acted as rabbit holes; the botanical-themed wine bar space sparked curiosities; the awards ceremony began with an entertaining musical number.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 39 and proved to be playful surprises throughout the evening. “We were really thoughtful about the journey, from the moment guests stepped off the bus to the moment they departed. Every sound, every scent, every taste and graphic was thought through, and we really used entertain ment to guide people or entice guests through each space. We wanted to wow ’em and move ’em on,” Trettel says. And packed with comedic musical numbers, costume changes between categories and even a “dead” event trend in memorium video (“a popular highlight from the evening—people are still talking about that one,” says Trettel), the duo also successfully reimagined what an awards program could be. To ensure honor ees felt special and their work acknowledged, nominees received personalized invitations, locally curated gift baskets and unique photo experiences, but entertainment for all guests was a top priority. “We’ve all sat through so many—let’s be honest—boring awards shows and with this being an industry-centric awards program, we approached the program as, ‘let’s have a little fun with ourselves. Let’s be able to laugh with ourselves. Let’s be a little bit irrever ent.’ There were some formal award elements to the show but we put a twist on everything and were able to poke a little fun at ourselves and at the end of the day, it was amazing to cre ate something that resonated so much with the audience. We’ve heard from so many people who enjoyed the awards as much as the party. When do you ever hear that?” says Trettel. Good Impression “When you plan an event for event professionals, you always have to keep in mind that feedback will be given generously afterwards, and this conference was no exception,” says Altendorf. “As a host committee, we were delighted by all of the comments from international attendees about the celebrations that the committee had planned, how much people enjoyed the beauty of the Cities, the opportunity given to connect with like-minded professionals from across the globe and the fact that, ‘surprisingly,’ tempera tures were quite lovely.”
In its eighth installment, CWT Meetings & Events’ 2020 Future Trends Report identifies key developments in the industry in 2020, including: ATTENDEES
BY
OUTLOOK: GOOD CWT Meetings & Events’ 2020 Future Trends Report projects growth in the industry. RESEARCH COURTESY OF CWT
“The need for live events is becoming more relevant than ever before,” says Kurt Ekert, president and CEO of CWT, with up to 30 percent of marketing budgets expected to be spent on live events in 2020. “Face-to-face meetings are critical to establishing connections between brands and their customers, and employees and their companies, especially during times of uncertainty. Knowing how to manage risks globally while putting together an authentic and measurable experience for all participants will be key for success in this space in the coming year and beyond.”
There continues to be a focus on the impact of the millennial genera tion (aka Generation Y, those born between 1980 and 1995). The influ ence of this generation will continue to strengthen the industry as they are expected to form the largest group of business travelers across the world from 2024 onward. Centennials (aka Generation Z , those born from 1996 onward) are starting to enter the workforce. According to Mediakix Research, while their influence, due to their age, is so far limited, this will rapidly change over the next decade as their population reaches 2.56 billion globally by 2020. THE NUMBERS AVERAGE LEAD TIME 59 days PERCENTAGE OF SPEND ON FOOD & BEVERAGE 42% AVERAGE MEETING DURATION 3 days USE OF REGISTRATIONATTENDEEWEBSITES 61% COST PER ATTENDEE PER DAY 2019: $234 2020: $253 (+8% year-over-year) AVERAGE GROUP SIZE 73Digitalization: Mobile devices are adding new functionality with apps to create a higher degree of personalization for attendees. Shifting demographics: Millennials are poised to be the largest group of business travelers from 2024 and onward. Generation Z is right on their heels and can claim to have never known a world without the internet, smartphones and apps. This younger group is all about experience, authenticity and participation. Authenticity: People are craving experiences that feel authentic, where travelers can immerse themselves in a destination like locals. Growing attraction of off-the-beaten track destinations. Socially and environmentally responsible incentives also rank high for 2020, fueled by the next generation that views climate change as an increasingly pressing issue.
VENUE NEWS 42 AWARDS 44 SNAPSHOTS 46 PEOPLE PROFILE 48 Industry Update
NORTH AMERICA
Top 1.Cities10 NEW YORK, NY 2. SAN FRANCISCO, CA 3. CHICAGO, IL 4. ATLANTA, GA 5. TORONTO, CANADA 6. SAN DIEGO, CA 7. SEATTLE, WA 8. ORLANDO, FL 9. DALLAS/FORT WORTH, TX 10. LAS VEGAS, NV
Destinations on the rise are locations offering better value rates than firsttier cities. They are also becoming more attractive due to an increase in facilities including new hotels and venues. Read the full report at cwt-meetings-events.com/futuretrends.
The global meetings and events indus try is estimated at $840 billion and growing. “The overall growth trajectory in the meetings and events industry is rising at a steady 8 percent rate, which is encouraging,” says Derek Sharp, senior vice president and managing director, CWT Meetings & Events.
GLOBAL
DestinationsontheRise
CREATIVE EVENTS
cuisine:Instagrammable Food must be sharedInstagram-worthy—inrealtimetoanaudienceofhundredsoreventhousandsatonce—topassmusterin2020.
INFOGRAPHIC
Demand for meetings and events in North America is continuing to increase, but the pace of growth has fallen. Despite these headwinds, the U.S. economy continues to be strong with event sizes rising, including many companies in the tech sector that have moved to consolidate their smaller meetings into larger events. “More than ever, political events have a direct impact on compa nies’ quarterly and annual out looks. Some industry segments are pulling back, such as agriculture because of the trade situation, and are being a bit more cautious,” says Tony Wagner, vice president, Americas & South Pacific Regions of CWT Meetings & Events.
CWT identified 20 microtrends that are set to shape the year ahead when planning an event with a creative twist. Here are 5: Dating apps networking:for Tinder-style apps will help event attendees break the ice. Diversity: Greater diversity of presenters can bring an inspiring new slant to content and connect with the full range of attendees. Venues that tell a story: Unusual venues that reflect the aims of the event are booming— think spectacular views, historic spaces, or even an underwater event. First is best in seating: Early arrivals can grab the plush, expansive armchairs close to the speakers, while space at the back is for highboy chairs and stools.
The popular summer destination Madden’s on Gull Lake is proving to be a meeting hot spot year-round with its extended season perfect for winter retreats and holidayDuringparties.thespring, summer and fall, Madden’s offers 280 guest rooms and 42,000 square feet of meeting space for groups of all sizes. After mid-October, Madden’s becomes a cozy venue for small er groups requiring up to 40 guest rooms, meeting space, food and beverage service, a pool and lakeside spa.
VENUE NEWS »
Snowshoeing, cross country skiing, ice fishing, ice skating and ax throwing are also available for team-building activities.
MADDEN’S ON GULL LAKE EXTENDS SEASON
42 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 CENTER;ROSEDALEABRAMS;CAITLINLAKE;GULLONMADDEN’SPHOTOS: SIEMERSRYANPHOTOGRAPHY;ANDERSONTRAVIS(OPPOSITE)
Thr3 Jack is bringing the game of golf to Minneapolis’ North Loop for yearround tee time. Founded by siblings Bo Massopust and Lucy Robb, Thr3 Jack is the North Loop’s first indoor golf venue and restaurant. “It’s interactive, encourages participa tion, allows for competition, and offers an opportunity to teach and learn from and with each other,” says co-founder Lucy Robb.Inaddition to its 90-seat dining room and 40-seat patio, Thr3 Jack has six stateof-the-art golf simulators designed for year-round use by golfers of all skill levels. These simulator rooms are also available to rent for screenings, private parties and specialAdditionally,events. there is a private din ing room with flexible seating options to accommodate groups of up to 20 people. “Our food and drinks are craveable, from-scratch New American dishes, along with a selection of craft cocktails designed by Jesse Held of Earl Giles, local beers, and a wine list designed by Bill Summerville,” RobbThesays.restaurant boasts nearly 10,000 square feet with a 1,200-square-foot patio. The bar seats approximately 28 people.
Rosedale Center Opens New Food Hall POTLUCK Named after the Minnesota tradition of gath ering family and friends, POTLUCK joined Rosedale Center this past fall as its newest food hall craze. Guests can choose from local favorites like Grand Ole Creamery, Smack Shack and Nordic Waffles. Also, the popular Minnesota State Fair vendor Burger Dive has its first retail location at POTLUCK. “Food halls are dominating the conversa tion in retail and mixed-use development,” says Lisa Crain, senior general manager of Rosedale Center. “In response to the market and our 14 million shoppers annually, we are proud to offer this phenomenal collection of the top chefs, best food, and newest concepts to the POTLUCKmarket.”also offers Obachan Noodles & Chicken, Chickpea, southern-style restaurant Betty & Earl’s, among others.
REGIONAL NEWS
Tee Up … Even During Winter Months
“The space is dedicated to one group; your group will have exclusive use of the Wilson Bay Lodge facility, dining, and guest rooms and receive our undivided attention and service,” says Marketing Director Kathy Reichenbach. “By remov ing the distractions of a city conference Madden’s is a serene setting for accom plishing your group goals and building your team.” A winter retreat at Madden’s includes inroom woodburning fireplaces, breakfasts, dining space for up to 200, nightly bonfires with s’mores, a lobby bar, Wi-Fi, confer ence services, A/V, an indoor swimming pool, hot tub and sauna, and an event manager to help coordinate on-site.
The RenovationClubroomBallroomMetropolitan&
PURCHASING: 82 percent of the venues' office product purchases meet sustainable criteria.
AIR QUALITY: Over 200 readings were taken throughout the building in 2018, verifying that it has excellent indoor air quality.
COMMUNITY: After all food shows, a facility GREEN TEAM works side-by-side with event exhibitors to properly collect leftover food either for compost or donation to the local community food shelves.
• Generated over 12 million kWh of renewable energy on site, between District Energy's solar thermal panels and the photovoltaic panels on the parking ramp.
• Upgraded over 8,600 lights to more efficient technology.
xcelenergycenter.com/sustainability
This past October, Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the launch of its unprece dented campus-wide sustainability program. Additionally, the facilities were also awarded LEED Platinum Certification. Xcel Energy Center is the first and only NHL building in the United States to be certified LEED Platinum for Building Operations and Maintenance, and Saint Paul RiverCentre is now one of only three convention centers in the United States to possess this same certification. On Oct. 5, 2009, Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre formalized their goal to become a regional leader in sustainability by rolling out "50-50 in 2"—a collaborative effort to reduce the amount of trash generated across the campus by 50 percent while increas ing the amount recycled to 50 percent within two years. By the two-year mark, the facilities had decreased the amount of trash generated by 59 percent and increased the recycling rate to 53 percent. In the 10 years that followed the launch of "50-50 in 2," several other sustainability initiatives and goals concerning energy, water, purchasing, air quality, community and trans portation were implemented.
Since 2009, Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre have:
SUSTAINABILITY MILESTONE
• Purchased over 19 million kWh of wind power through Xcel Energy's Windsource program.
The D’Amico Catering venue began operat ing in 1996 and boasts 8,975 square feet of space that can be booked in its entirety or in any combination of five subsections.
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 43
ENERGY: Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre are the No. 4 purchaser of Windsource energy in Minnesota. WATER: Since 2015, staff have removed over 12,000 pounds of trash from the Mississippi River banks as part of their AdoptA-River commitment.
• Composted over 2,665 tons (and donated 312 tons of leftover food).
Located just outside of downtown Minneapolis, Golden Valley’s Metropolitan Ballroom & Clubroom reopened in October 2019 after a comprehensive décor refresh.
The décor updates include new flooring, vintage modern light fixtures, a new light installation above the dance floor and“Wemore.look forward to debuting The Metropolitan’s elevated, stylish new look, and hosting all types of events in this vibrant West Metro space,” says D’Amico.
• Recycled over 4,050 tons of material.
TRANSPORTATION: 40 percent of Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre staff commute to work by bus, bike, carpool or an efficient vehicle. "Over the past 10 years our sustainability program has grown to become part of our cul ture," says Jim Ibister, Saint Paul RiverCentre general manager and Minnesota Wild VP of facility administration. "I am incredibly proud of our organization's continued commitment to sustainability and dedication to have a last ing impact on the communities we serve."
“The Metropolitan has long been a memorable venue for Minneapolis corpo rate events, fundraisers, and weddings,” says D’Amico & Partners co-owner and founding partner Richard D’Amico. “My design inspiration for this project was every classic Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dance scene, with a little bit of Busby Berkeley thrown in for good mea sure. The result is a stunningly bright and fresh homage to the classic 1930s elegance with a clean, modern spin.”
44 MNM+E | WINTER 2020
Peter Botcher is the new executive chef of The Marquette Lounge, previously known as Jacques’ Restaurant, at The Marquette Hotel. Botcher will oversee all culi nary outlets, including The Marquette Lounge, hotel in-room dining, and The Marquette Hotel’s extensive banquet and catering offerings, including Windows on Minnesota located on the 50th floor of the IDS building. The Marquette Hotel is now managed by Wischermann Partners, Inc., which also manages Hotel Ivy and The Westin Edina Galleria locally.
REGIONAL NEWS
“Our team made it a priority to seek out local partners and source local ingredients that everyone could easily connect with and find joy in sharing as a group,” says Botcher. The Marquette Lounge offers breakfast, lunch, power hour and dinner. Botcher has 18 years of culinary experi ence. Before joining The Marquette, he was executive chef at Second Bar + Kitchen in Austin, Texas, and Butcher & the Boar in Minneapolis. He spent time training in Napa, California, and worked for chefs Steven Brown and Vincent Francoual.
AWARDS
Ty Rushmeyer, a tour coordinator at Surly Brewing Company, has been named the Hospitality Hero award winner for the sec ond quarter of 2019 by Meet Minneapolis, Convention and Visitors Association. Andrea Graham, senior brand experi ence manager at Surly Brewing Company, nominated Rushmeyer for his diligent work to curate the educational and immersive tour experience for Surly's guests. He has cultivated a team of highly engaging and informed tour guides to tell the Surly story. Graham also noted that when Rushmeyer sees a need, he fills it. For example, in spring 2019, Rushmeyer created an American Sign Language (ASL) guided tour program that happens monthly at Surly. It provides the ASL community with a brewery tour experi ence specifically curated to their needs and interests.“Tyuses Surly's tour program to cel ebrate our brand, our local brewing industry and our hospitality partners. His team provides guests with suggestions of other local breweries to visit, restaurants to check out and local hotels for travel ling groups who plan to spend the night,” Graham says. “Minneapolis is at the heart of Surly's program, and it shows through out every tour experience.” » New Director of Sales and Marketing at Radisson Blu Mall of America Radisson Blu Mall of America has appointed Gary O’Driscoll to director of sales and marketing. O’Driscoll brings nearly two decades of experience in the hospitality industry to his new role, and he has overseen hotels throughout Illinois and Texas. “Gary has a proven track record of success and has consistently surpassed his properties’ sales goals year-over-year. His fresh perspec tive and leadership will be a great addition to our talented marketing and sales teams,” says Harry Gorstayn, general manager of Radisson Blu Mall of America. In his new role, O’Driscoll is responsible for leading all sales and marketing efforts throughout the 500-room hotel. Prior to joining Radisson Blu Mall of America, he oversaw several properties in Texas as director of sales and marketing, including Wyndham Riverwalk San Antonio, Hilton San Antonio Airport, and Crowne Plaza Dallas near Galleria-Addison. Before moving to Texas in 2014, O’Driscoll oversaw market ing and sales for several properties in Illinois, including Hyatt Regency Deerfield and Chicago Marriott Southwest at Burr Ridge. He began his career in hotel sales in 2002 as a reservation sales manager for Wyndham Northwest Chicago. An Illinois native, O’Driscoll gradu ated from Western Illinois University with a Bachelor of Arts in sociology. He’s also received several accolades for his work in sales, including Aimbridge Hospitality’s Sales Manager of the Year, and he’s a four-time recipient of the company’s Presidential Award for achieving the highest market share growth.
Ty Rushmeyer and Andrea Graham
MEET MINNEAPOLIS HOSPITALITY HERO AWARD
F&B Radisson Blu Minneapolis Downtown recently welcomed Robert Foster as executive chef. With more than 20 years of experience as a chef in the Minneapolis area—nine years at Joseph Catering, 13 years at Jack’s Café and nearly three years at Radisson Blu Mall of America—Foster brings a deep understanding and great passion for hospitality to the compa ny. In just a short amount of time, Foster has reinvented the hotel’s breakfast and evening offerings in the Business Class Lounge and forged new local partnerships with Red Lake Nation and Kramarczuk Sausage Company. “I believe that every day is an opportunity to celebrate, and our menu is an opportunity to reflect that belief by creating inclusive menus that all of our guests can enjoy,” says Foster. Foster will also oversee the menu and oper ations for the hotel’s restaurant, FireLake Grill House & Cocktail Bar. When he’s not cooking at Radisson Blu, Foster enjoys spending time outdoors, canoeing, bicycling and cooking for family and friends.
“We wanted our event to assist with the positive impact this charitable organization is making in Minneapolis and the region,” says Kathy McCarthy, director of public relations and communications for Meet Minneapolis, Convention & Visitors Association. “The House of Charity’s greatest donation need was for more fleece tie blankets. With winter fast approaching, we knew creating these warm blankets would be a fun, impactful and inter active team-building activity—and provide an important benefit to some of the most vulner able individuals within our community.” BACK »
MN.MEETINGSMAGS.COM 45 Meet ServicesCelebrateinParticipatesMinneapolisESPA’sNationalWeek
The Meet Minneapolis Destination Services team, together with Minneapolis Convention Center and hotel services counterparts throughout the city, hosted a breakfast during ESPA’S National Celebrate Services Week. In partnership with House of Charity, the event included an opportunity to give back to theOncommunity.anygiven night, approximately 1,400 individuals in Hennepin County experience homelessness. The goal of House of Charity’s initiatives is to reduce this number and pro vide housing and services to those in need. An executive from the organization spoke to the group to share insights into how people can help support this go, and during our two-hour event, attendees made 11 blankets.
GIVING
ANDASSOCIATIONPROFESSIONALSSERVICEEVENTPHOTO: ASSOCIATIONVISITORS&CONVENTIONMINNEAPOLIS,MEET Hyland Hills Chalet for Weddings, Corporate Events & Reunions • Reservations April through September • Hillside provides additional ceremony & activity opportunities • Approved catering list ThreeRiversParks.org/HylandChalet • 763.694.7811
46 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 7 8 6 31 524 SNAPSHOTS ILEA LIVE 2019
REDUCE, REUSE, RETHINK
KD: We’re also working to make sure Eureka’s demonstrations in best practices are available to a wider group of stakeholders so that we can influence systems change.
LH: We’re always working to be the best demonstration of recycling toward zero waste as possible, and we want to leverage that expe rience and data to advocate for policy change that could make it easier to participate in a zero waste world. Right now, living a zero waste lifestyle can require a lot of privilege and time. The things that may be cheapest or most accessible may be the worst for us and our environment and we want to move that needle. Recycling is great, but reduction is better.
MNM+E: What’s next for Eureka and its services?
As co-presidents of Eureka Recycling, a social enterprise dedicated to demonstrating that waste is preventable— not inevitable—Kate Davenport and Lynn Hoffman want to help planners think beyond recycling bins and compost collection.
BY MEGAN GOSCH
MNM+E: Eureka already processes nearly 100,000 tons of recy clables each year and offers event consultation, zero waste educa tion and more. Are there specific goals you hope to accomplish as co-presidents?
KD: We’ve started to move away from that day-of event service piece. We’ve provided day-of services at everything from ice cream socials to major concerts like Rock the Garden, but we’re moving toward consultation with event planners to help them plan more sustainably. There are new service providers that can help with that day-of piece, so we can step into that role of helping event planners more directly through the planning process. We’ll be launching an online tool kit to help planners incorporate zero waste strategies in early 2020.
MNM+E: Where do you see room for improvement when it comes to planning sustainable events?
LH: We see event reports stating the number of tons of food com posted and the variety of recycling options used and it’s great, but the goal is to get planners thinking more about reduction and asking questions like, “How can we be creative about bringing reus ables into our event space?” or “How can we plan differently for less food waste?” Zero waste isn’t just about discarding correctly, it’s also about mitigating that overall impact.
48 MNM+E | WINTER 2020 WHITINGSARAHPHOTO:
KD: Zero waste is also about much more than the day of the event. It’s about how you plan your event—it can’t be an afterthought.
PEOPLE PROFILE KATE DAVENPORT & LYNN HOFFMAN
LH: And there are plenty of kudos to collect for doing that work in the planning process. If you’re measuring and capturing key sustainable stats from your event, that’s an amazing story for your organization to tell and a great marketing opportunity to get some mileage out of. eurekarecycling.org, info@eurekarecycling.org
Green Haven Event SpringbrookBunker763-576-2970AnokaCenterBunkerHillsEventCenterHills/CoonRapids763-951-7234MajesticOaksEventCenterHamLake763-755-2140TPCTwinCitiesBlaine763-795-0846MermaidEventCenterMoundsView763-746-2134MoundsViewEventCenterMoundsView763-717-4041NationalSportsCenterBlaine763-785-5600NewBrightonEventCenterNewBrighton651-638-2130NorthMetroEventCenterShoreview651-483-1727ShoreviewEventCenterShoreview651-490-4790CoonRapidsCivicCenterCoonRapids763-767-6522BanquetsofMinnesotaBlaine612-803-6468Fridley612-803-6468NatureCenterFridley763-572-3588Exceptional MEETINGS • RECEPTIONS • WEDDINGS www.tcgateway.com/meeting-space
