Philadelphia
Valley Forge
- Pennsylvania Convention Center (215.418.4700; www.paconvention.com) plans to finish a $70 million expansion in late 2009. Upon completion of the project, the center will have 1 million square feet of function space, including the largest contiguous exhibit space in the Northeast (541,000 square feet) and the largest convention center ballroom in the East (60,000 square feet).
- Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide (www.starwoodhotels.com) is adding to Philadelphia’s hotel inventory with the upcoming debut of three properties. A 90-room Four Points by Sheraton will open in spring 2008 across the street from the Pennsylvania Convention Center (PCC); a W hotel is slated to open across from the PCC in 2009 with 250 guest rooms, 95 condo units and 11,000 square feet of meeting space; and a 135-room aloft hotel is scheduled to open later this year near Philadelphia International Airport.
- Foxwoods Casino Philadelphia (www.foxwoods.com) and Sugarhouse Casino (www.sugarhousecasino.com) have received approval from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board for two casino projects at Penn’s Landing on the Delaware River. Foxwoods is planning a $560 million first phase on a 16-acre land parcel, and Sugarhouse is planning a $550 million slots casino just north of the Ben Franklin Bridge. Both will feature restaurants, retail shops and space for future hotels.
Valley Forge
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Valley Forge Suites (610.407.7178; www.vfsuites.com) plans to complete a $10 million renovation in 2008, which will include enhancements to its 4,000-square-foot ballroom.
- A Courtyard by Marriott (888.236.2427; www.marriott.com) is scheduled to open this fall at Chester County’s Great Valley Corporate Center, home of 50 biotech and pharmaceutical companies and a branch of Pennsylvania State University. The property will have meeting facilities.
- The Waterford (610.354.8220; www.the-waterford.com) is a new multilevel ballroom and entertainment center at the Radisson Hotel Valley Forge. The sleek venue, a $2 million conversion of its former dinner theater spaces, offers high-tech amenities and can accommodate up to 700 people for gatherings.
- RiverCrest Golf Club and Preserve (610.933.4700; www.rivercrestgolfclub.com) recently unveiled a 49,000-square-foot clubhouse that offers six venues for groups of up to 350 people, state-of-the-art audiovisual and conferencing equipment, and catering services.