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Short Takes

Museums & Attractions
  • The Los Angeles landmark Griffith Observatory reopened in November, following a $93 million renovation and expansion project. The facility, which was built in 1935 and offers some of the best views in the Los Angeles area, had been closed since January 2002 for its restoration. It now features 60 exhibits, including The Big Picture, which at 20 feet long and 152 feet tall is the largest astronomical image ever produced. The observatory also features a display of the planets, the new 200-seat Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater and the Cafe at the End of the Universe, which is managed by Wolfgang Puck Catering. Additionally, the facility’s acclaimed planetarium boasts a new Zeiss projector and 300 luxury seats. Due to high visitor demand, Griffith Observatory is currently unavailable for private events, but may be available for special event rentals in the future. For more information, call 213.473.0800 or visit www.griffithobs.org.

Programs & Packages
  • Lake Tahoe, Nev.-based employee development firm Repario Ltd., created the Building a Dream team-building program. During the four- to six-hour program, participants build bicycles for a group of “customers,” who, unbeknown to the Building a Dream participants, are actually underprivileged children from the local community. At the end of the program, participants are surprised by the children as they receive their new bikes, along with their own helmets and locks. The Building a Dream program can be conducted on-site or in a conference facility for all sizes of groups anywhere in the country, and is run in conjunction with the nonprofit organization Bikes for Tykes, which has been refurbishing old bicycles for underprivileged children since 1987. The program is designed to improve the performance of teams by emphasizing leadership, communication, collaboration, creativity, and quality. For more information, call 800.513.8759 or visit www.buildingteams.com.

  • Santa Barbara’s Hotel Andalucia has partnered with the nearby Santa Ynez wine country’s Artiste Winery to offer a blending class and excursion to groups staying at the hotel. The Hotel Andalucia’s Wine Camp allows participants to take turns blending barrel samples and creating, designing and painting the label for their own special bottled blend. The Wine Camp is designed to allow groups of business partners to enjoy each other’s company with the help of the hotel’s lush surroundings and winery experts, while making their own blend of wine that they can enjoy together later on. The Wine Camp is available for groups of 10-30 people and is priced from $30 per person. Hotel Andalucia features 91 guest rooms and suites and 5,000 square feet of meeting and function space. For more information, call 805.884.0300 or visit www.andaluciasb.com.

Managing Matters
  • The Meetings Connection (MeCo), a free online community and resource environment for meeting and event planners, announced the launch of its Job Board. With the debut of its Job Board, MeCo added several features to benefit both job seekers and employers, including detailed job postings; the ability for companies to post contract work; the ability for both job-seekers and employers to save, organize and maintain records online for future contact and reference; comprehensive resume searches for companies seeking employees; and the ability for job-seekers and independent contractors to post their resumes as either private or public. MeCo features a community of approximately 900 members. For more information, visit www.meetingscommunity.org.