What was once known as the Clearing to early 19th century traders, trappers and settlers now stands as a media darling for its tourism appeal and quality of life. Portland has been crowned this year as one of the world’s top 25 cities, according to U.K.-based Monocle magazine; one of Business Week’s “Top 10 Cities to Beat;” and the No. 1 “Greenest City in America” according to Popular Science magazine.
At the heart of Portland’s popularity is its setting.
“We are fortunate with our location,” says Michael Smith, vice president of convention sales at Travel Portland, formerly the Portland Oregon Visitors Association.
Mt. Hood is an hour away and home to Timberline Lodge, which offers snow skiing throughout the year, even during the summer months, and the newly renovated Resort at the Mountain, offering outdoor pursuits such as skiing and golfing.
An hour to the west spans the Oregon coast, while a half-hour east of downtown Portland sprawls a miniature Grand Canyon at the Columbia River Gorge, which Smith calls “one of the most awe-inspiring vistas.”
Oregon wine country sits 15 minutes from downtown and features a dozen different wineries.
“The wineries are family owned, and they get tickled when people come to visit,” Smith says, also noting that wine tours play a big part of any convention’s off-site excursions.
Within the city itself are ample venues for group escapes.
Dubbed the “City of Roses,” Portland’s International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park supports the moniker with over 7,000 rose plants of approximately 550 varieties.
Located just above the rose garden, the Japanese Garden stakes its claim as the most authentic Japanese garden outside Japan. Its 5.5 acres afford views of Mt. Hood in the background.
Downtown, the Portland Classical Chinese Garden offers another escape.
“It looks prison-like from the outside, but step inside and it’s magically transformed. It catches people by surprise,” Smith says.
Another outdoor venue, Tom McCall Waterfront Park, which runs along the Willamette River, can be rented for functions. During summertime it is host to jazz festivals and beer gardens, as well as other activities like salmon bakes.
Green doesn’t stop at Portland’s parks and gardens. The Oregon Convention Center, offering 50 meeting rooms and 250,000 square feet of exhibit space, is one of many Portland buildings that are certified through the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.
“The convention center for us is one of our major selling points on virtually every front—green, design, workability and staff,” Smith says. “It’s a key component in our sales job. We can put it up against any building in the country.”
Portland has gained a reputation for its green initiatives.
“We continue to beat the drum loudly for green meetings, a strength of ours,” Smith says. “That’s the watchword of the convention industry these days. We firmly believe we’re the greenest city in which to meet, and we’re continuing to find people interested in that aspect. If there is any interest in green, it gives us a leg up.”
Ease of public transportation plays a key role in being green, including the Metro Area Express (MAX) Light Rail, which connects to the airport among other points in the metro area. An extension is in the works south to Clackamas County. The Interstate 205/Portland Mall Light Rail project, dubbed the Green Line, is slated for a 2009 debut and will run the length of the Portland Transit Mall along 5th and 6th avenues downtown, connecting Union Station and Portland State University. The project will also bring improvements to the Transit Mall, including refurbished streets, sidewalks and public art.
A new Portland Streetcar Loop is also in the works, which would connect Lloyd Center to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) and connect to the existing downtown streetcar system.
For visitors, ART, The Cultural Bus stops at several Portland-area attractions.
Diverse Digs
Hotel options in Portland are also expanding. Smith says talks are moving forward regarding the construction of a headquarters hotel at the Oregon Convention Center, which is expected to house between 600 and 800 guest rooms and will be flagged a Westin. The hotel, which will be built as a green hotel, will also offer meeting space complementary to the space available at the convention center.
“Our attention is focused on the headquarters hotel; it’s one thing that would provide the best push forward,” Smith says. “We’ve been very successful without it but could be more successful with it. We’re starting to lose more business because we don’t have one. In order to stay competitive, we need that hotel.”
Smith explains that larger groups have to weigh costs of busing attendees to various hotels as well as deal with the inconvenience.
“We run into whether they want to put up with the transportation or go somewhere else,” he says. “Sometimes we get the business, but we’re tracking lost business more often.”
Portland offers meeting space at several of its properties, including its three largest: the Hilton Portland & Executive Tower, the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront hotel and the Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center Portland–Lloyd Center.
Additional space can be found at The Benson Hotel, the Sheraton Hotel Portland Airport, the Red Lion Hotel Portland–Convention Center and the Holiday Inn Portland–Downtown Convention Center.
Aside from the Oregon Convention Center, the city’s other large group venue is the Portland Expo Center, offering 330,000 square feet of exhibition space and 11 meeting rooms.
Neighborhood Nuances
Each of Portland’s neighborhoods has its own allure, including Old Town/Chinatown, a lively art and entertainment district, as well as the home of one of the largest collections of cast-iron buildings in the country. Every weekend from March through December, Old Town hosts the renowned Portland Saturday Market, the country’s largest and longest-running open-air crafts market.
The tree-lined Nob Hill district, also known as Northwest Portland, is home to boutiques, restaurants, pubs and cafes, while the Sellwood and Moreland districts in Southeast Portland are hubs for antique shoppers.
The burgeoning Pearl District, north of downtown, has transformed numerous industrial buildings into high-end boutiques, restaurants, galleries, spas and a premier shopping district.
Shoppers find a piece of heaven in Portland, which does not charge a sales tax.
For cultural off-site venues, the Portland Art Museum, site of the city’s largest art collection, recently added a modern and contemporary art wing and is open to groups. Another off-site option is OMSI, featuring a variety of hands-on science exhibits. OMSI also has an Omnimax Theater and is home to the USS Blueback (SS-581) submarine, which was featured in the film The Hunt for Red October.
Last year the Museum of Contemporary Craft reopened in its new home on Portland’s North Park Blocks, doubling the museum’s previous size. The museum houses more than 1,000 craft objects and also welcomes groups to its galleries.
Vancouver, Wash.
Also blessed with Vancouver, Wash.a striking backdrop, Vancouver, Wash., sits on the north bank of the Columbia River directly across from Portland. Less than two hours away, attendees can retreat to the Pacific Coast to the west, the Cascade Mountain Range to the east and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument and Mt. Hood, which are both less than two hours away.
“Our great location and proximity to Mt. Saint Helens and the Columbia River Gorge gives our visitors a diversity of experiences for pre- and post-convention activities and day excursions,” says Rosemary Cooke, director of sales for the Southwest Washington CVB. “Also, as the oldest city in the state, we have many historic attractions that appeal to all audiences.”
According to Jennifer Kirby, marketing and communications manager for the Southwest Washington CVB, affordability and accessibility are also top selling points.
“We’re on the Interstate 5 corridor and also very close to Portland International Airport, and in comparison to Portland, we’re generally more affordable,” she says. “We’re not as large of a metro city as Portland, but often that is an advantage to us. Groups may be looking for more of that small-town feel. But we don’t lack in sophistication; we have some beautiful properties.”
Vancouver’s three largest meetings properties include the LEED-certified Hilton Vancouver Washington, with a 30,000-square-foot convention center; the recently renovated Red Lion Hotel Vancouver at the Quay; and The Heathman Lodge.
The Hilton Vancouver Washington, already LEED certified for its construction, recently received a Green Seal certification, which addresses hotel operations and programs, such as using environmentally friendly cleaning products and locally sourced food.
Next year, the city will welcome a new 91-room Holiday Inn Express and Suites to bring the city’s room total up to 2,500.
Other projects include the recent opening of the Vancouver Land Bridge, a 40-foot-wide pedestrian bridge over State Route 14, adorned with native plantings. The bridge connects Fort Vancouver to the waterfront, where artwork by Maya Lin now resides.
“Before, you couldn’t walk directly from the fort area to the waterfront. The land bridge is somewhat of a landmark,” Kirby says.
Lin’s art installation is part of the Confluence Project. Pacific Northwest Native American tribes and civic groups from Washington and Oregon asked Lin to participate in a project commemorating the bicentennial of the journey of the Corps of Discovery—the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-’06. The project consists of a series of seven art installations along the Columbia River Basin created to evoke the history of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
Well-established local attractions include the Vancouver Natural Historic Reserve, including Fort Vancouver, and Officer’s Row, a tree-lined street with Victorian homes from the mid-1800s. The buildings served as residential housing for many of the soldiers, officers and families stationed at Vancouver Barracks. The Queen Anne Victorian George C. Marshall House is one of the homes available to groups for rent, while the Ulysses S. Grant house is now home to The Restaurant at the Historic Reserve.
For unique venues, groups can use the Pearson Air Museum, which holds up to 450. The museum is located at Pearson Field, one of the nation’s oldest operating airfields. Groups can set up inside the hangar, which dates from the early 1900s, and host a reception amid small aircraft, or keep the space open for live entertainment.
For More Info
360.750.1553 www.southwestwashington.com
Travel Portland 503.275.9750 www.travelportland.com
