Meeting News - October 20, 2008 - (Page 34)

Destination Insider: Florida Coast to Coast Tampa Bay Ramps Up Its Arts Scene Mention Tampa Bay and all things nautical— sailing and beach parties, among them—come to mind. Rarely does Florida’s “Left Coast” leader conjure up images of a thriving arts community. But that’s about to change as the city embarks on a trio of museum projects that will both raise the bar on the Bay’s arts scene and offer visiting groups a host of new and chic venue options. Come December, the Tampa Bay History Center will unveil its new, 60,000-sf waterfront home, a LEED-certified facility with classrooms and special events space. Next February, the Glazer Children’s Museum will break ground on a 50,000-sf complex that will include meeting and function space when it opens a year later. And, by September 2009, the Tampa Museum of Art (TMA) will debut a home of its own, a 66,000-sf downtown facility overlooking the Hillsborough River. “There’s a kind of art synergy that’s finally happening here, although it’s been planned for quite a while,” said Steve Klindt, the TMA’s director of development and public affairs. “The new museums are replacing some really tired, old facilities that were never really built as museums,” he said. “Now they’re all going to be in homes specifically designed for galleries and exhibits, and we’re going to have lots of rental space for meetings and receptions, as well.” The new TMA and Glazer Museum will sit adjacent to each other in Curtis Hickson Park, a venue in its own right, and next to the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, yet another option for group events. All three facilities will share a common thread via the city’s rambling Riverwalk system, which should be completed sometime in early 2010. “It’s going to add a really nice flavor and tone to the city,” said Cindy Bosselmann, director of marketing for the Tampa Bay History Center, who added that her new facility in Tampa’s already hopping Channelside District will become a destination in itself, with a 65-seat theater, a conference hall, and a new Columbia Cafe restaurant. Tampa Bay & Co., the city’s convention and visitors bureau, is also cheering the projects, which will give the organization a bit more ammunition when selling the city to meeting planners. “It’s really exciting; we’re creating, in one fell swoop, a cultural arts district, and the facilities are coming on line right along with the new Tampa Riverwalk,” said Norwood Smith, Tampa Bay & Co.’s director of sales.“It’s the most aggressive urban development the city has ever undertaken, opening up our best assets of the destination to delegates and visitors alike.” —Marc Boisclair A passion for business in all the right places Enjoy special group and competitive rates when you book your next meeting at one of our participating destinations. The Sonesta Collection offers flexible meeting facilities, personal service and passionate experiences in some of the most desirable locations. 1.800.Sonesta Sonesta.com Boston • Miami • New Orleans • Orlando • Brazil • Costa Rica • Egypt • Mexico • Peru • St. Maarten 34 MeetingNews October 20, 2008 www.meetingnews.com http://www.Sonesta.com http://www.Sonesta.com http://www.meetingnews.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Meeting News - October 20, 2008

Meeting News - October 20, 2008 Contents Letters to the Editor What's Up @ MeetingNews.com People Making News Transportation & Services Conference Centers Advertisers Index Live From the Forum

Meeting News - October 20, 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.