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Planner’s Perspective

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Joyce E. DePass
Director of Meetings and Events
The Urban Land Institute (ULI)
Washington, D.C.


Describe your event.

The ULI Fall Meeting in Denver attracted more than 6,000 top professionals in the development industry, including real estate developers, architects, public officials, academics, and consulting professionals.

Why did you decide to host the meeting in Denver?
The ULI Fall Meeting is the premier real estate development and land use event. We select cities that are taking great strides in these areas, where attendees can explore cutting-edge real estate development projects first-hand. Denver provided a wide array of options for mobile workshops, and product council and special interest tours. That, combined with an extraordinary lineup of speakers, resulted in a highly successful event.

What did your attendees seem to enjoy the most?
Denver is both an accessible and walkable city. Attendees were able to move from their hotels to the convention center and from the convention center to their off-site venues and development tours with ease. Our headquarters hotel was the Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center, a wonderful property. Attendees loved the hotel and its proximity to the convention center. We also used the Grand Hyatt Denver, Denver Marriott, Hotel Monaco Denver, Denver Magnolia Hotel, and Adam’s Mark–The Hotel of Denver.

Was anybody particularly helpful?
The Denver Metro CVB was a tremendous help. Leah Hatting of the bureau was an absolute joy to work with. She takes great pride in her city and knows it well. Debbie Welsh of the Colorado Convention Center also did a wonderful job for us. What would you have done differently? I ended up with three overflow hotels and needed more, so the only thing I would have done differently is added more hotels before the city sold out.

What were some of the unique off-site venues that you used?
The Colorado Governor’s Mansion, Denver Athletic Club, The Sculptured House, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Museum Towers Project, Colorado History Museum, Seawell Ballroom, Ellie Caulkins Opera House, Belmar estate, and the private dining rooms of several downtown restaurants.

How does Denver compare to other cities where you have hosted meetings?
I found the people of Denver to be very accommodating, resourceful and welcoming of our organization. You don’t get that level of hospitality in every city.

Do you have any advice for other planners who might bring a meeting to Denver?
Take the time to get to know the city and all Denver has to offer groups of every size.