No place on Earth exemplifies the impermanence of everything more than Silicon Valley. Business models must always evolve and transform. Originally, room-sized mainframes were the norm. Then desktop machines became ubiquitous, and now, with tablets and smartphones dominating the landscape, we are moving toward a post-PC world. Such are the issues that drive discussions in Silicon Valley. It is a culture of constant change.
The weather here, on the other hand, does not change much. Forty miles south of San Francisco, Silicon Valley is a place where the sun shines 300 days out of the year. For groups, plenty of activities exist, both outdoor and indoor, while accessibility is a big selling point with the newly revamped Mineta San Jose International Airport.
San Jose
San Jose goes back to 1777, when it was founded as El Pueblo de San Jose de Guadalupe, California’s first public settlement. Today, it is the largest city in Northern California and the 10th-largest in the U.S. As the anchor city of Silicon Valley, San Jose positions itself as a world center of innovation, where collaboration is key.
The San Jose McEnery Convention Center will soon undergo a desperately needed renovation and expansion, at a price tag of $120 million, funded through a special dedicated hotel tax. A new addition will be constructed in front of the current center, adding 125,000 square feet of flexible meeting and ballroom space and increasing the total to 550,000 square feet of usable space. The original facility will remain fully operational throughout the project, which concludes in fall 2013.
“The tax was imposed, the bonds have been sold, and the money is in the bank,” says Bill Sherry, CEO of Team San Jose, the nonprofit that operates the convention center and nearby cultural facilities.
The original building, along with its dilapidated central plant, will be thoroughly overhauled and brought up-to-date. After completion, the entire complex will be able to host multiple conferences at the same time, which it previously wasn’t able to do. Unlike the original building, the architecture of the new addition will take advantage of San Jose’s perpetual sunshine by encouraging outdoor components for meetings and events.
“The expansion is going to consist of a lot of glass,” Sherry says. “Attendees will be able to look out over the courtyard and the Civic Auditorium. At the same time, the bottom ground-floor doors will be convertible, so you can swing them open. We really want to turn the courtyard into an extended meeting place where people can gather.”
Two hotels will still remain connected to the convention center. The Hilton San Jose will still offer 48,000 square feet of meeting space, while the San Jose Marriott provides 21,000 square feet of function space. Across the street sits the historic Sainte Claire, a majestic throwback to times past and popular for weddings, banquets and corporate events. The property offers 10,000 square feet of meeting and event space. Also across the road, the 239-room Crowne Plaza San Jose is currently undergoing a $7 million renovation and will reopen in January 2012 as the Hyatt Place San Jose Downtown. Until then, the hotel is operating as the independent Convention Plaza Hotel as it undergoes the renovation.
Sherry is also the director of aviation for San Jose Mineta International Airport, where he oversaw a $1.3 billion expansion over the last four years. Loads of new restaurants, bars and concessions highlight a shiny new terminal, as do award-winning, technology-driven public art projects. With even faster free Wi-Fi and more plugs, the airport, across the board, is a much more pleasant place to hang out.
“The most favorable comments we get from a passenger’s perspective fall into four different areas,” Sherry says. “They love the free Wi-Fi, they love the powered seats, they love the public art, and they love the concessions. Those four things hit a grand slam from a passenger’s perspective.”
Another game-changing public project, the San Pedro Square Public Market in downtown San Jose, opens this month, giving the neighborhood what it’s needed for decades—a site-specific town-square destination for locals and travelers alike. The market will offer artisanal products and eclectic goods from independent owner-operators, all anchored around the Peralta Adobe, San Jose’s oldest building. For planners, the market will offer a variety of options, from intimate gatherings in the plaza to larger-scale business socials.
Santa Clara
Sitting northwest of San Jose is the municipality of Santa Clara, home to many high-tech giants. Companies like Intel, NVIDIA, Agilent and National Semiconductor are all headquartered here. And like San Jose, Santa Clara also boasts a convention center right on light rail transportation and also within an easy drive from San Jose International Airport. With 3,800 hotel rooms in the immediate vicinity, Santa Clara constitutes a smaller alternative to San Jose for meetings, trade shows or conventions.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the Santa Clara Convention Center maxes out at 302,000 square feet, including the recently expanded Mission City Ballroom, which tips the scales at 22,400 square feet. In spring of last year, the Silicon Valley Concierge Association named the facility “Best 2010 Event Venue,” and at the end of that year, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) California Integrated Waste Management Board awarded the Santa Clara Convention Center the WRAP Award for the eighth consecutive year.
A few local hotels are time-tested for groups. Connected to the convention center is the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara. With a total of 60,000 square feet of meeting space, the Hyatt can handle up to 1,400 attendees for a convention or meeting.
The Santa Clara Marriott just completed an expansion of its meeting facilities, including the addition of the new 5,500-square-foot Sedona Room, which opens directly onto an outdoor patio. The property’s meeting space now tops 40,000 square feet, spread across 30 rooms, the largest being the California Ballroom, which can accommodate up to 1,000 for a banquet. The Wi-Fi has also been significantly revamped.
Popular off-site venues include the Triton Museum of Art in downtown Santa Clara and the de Saisset Museum on the campus of Santa Clara University. Both can stage functions for small groups, and each one frequently rents its facilities for private meetings and receptions, whether for sit-down dinners, lectures or standing-only events.
California’s Great America, Silicon Valley’s most popular themed amusement park, packs in visitors all summer long. The entire campus can be rented out for huge events. Facilities include a 15,000-square-foot pavilion, a 10,000-capacity amphitheater and two smaller indoor theaters.
And for groups not schooled in Silicon Valley history, the recently expanded Computer History Museum in Mountain View is the world’s largest facility for the preservation and presentation of computer artifacts. With award-winning architecture, the museum provides numerous options for conferences, corporate functions, high-end receptions and more.
As a whole, Santa Clara will continue to be in the news during the upcoming years, as the San Francisco 49ers are soon moving in. Work begins on a voter-approved 68,000-capacity stadium in 2013.
Palo Alto/Menlo Park
One can safely say Palo Alto and Menlo Park are the areas where the embryos of Silicon Valley first emerged. Stanford University, SRI International and Palo Alto Research Center gave birth to many ideas and experiments that contributed to the personal computer revolution. Some of the most prestigious venture capital firms in the world are also located here. High-tech companies naturally find themselves drawn to this part of the valley.
Technically in East Palo Alto, The Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley is like an oasis in the middle of a fast-paced corporate world. Offering 7,000 square feet of art-filled meeting space, the property is known for distraction-free boardrooms and spaces. The ballroom accommodates up to 268 people for a banquet and 145 for a conference. Popular among executives and local attorneys, the hotel’s restaurant, Quattro, provides even more space for groups and events.
The Westin Palo Alto sits one mile from Stanford University and Stanford Shopping Center, offering a total of 8,500 square feet of available meeting and banquet space. Since the property is adjacent to the Sheraton Palo Alto, an additional 13,000 square feet of reciprocal-use space is available.
Menlo Park is a smaller, more residential city, but the locale is likewise steeped in Silicon Valley history and offers numerous options for smaller groups. The Rosewood Sand Hill, a luxury resort and spa, offers 17,000 square feet of meeting space, including a ballroom, three boardrooms and outdoor reception space. The property’s Madera Restaurant recently received a Michelin one-star designation.
Farther up the peninsula, the high-tech state of mind continues into the expanses of San Mateo County. From Menlo Park northward, the county extends through the redwood forests to the Pacific Ocean on the western side, and all the way up to San Francisco International Airport at the northern end. Beach resorts, airport hotels, high-tech clusters and mountain wineries all highlight the landscape here.
“We offer all things California except snow sports,” says Anne LeClair, president and CEO of the San Mateo County/Silicon Valley CVB. “The toughest thing for meeting planners coming here is narrowing down what they would like to do while they’re here. The options are endless.”
Gary Singh is a newspaper columnist, travel writer and freelance journalist.
