Tampa Bay is used to the spotlight. With four Super Bowls and a World Series under its belt, along with meetings and conventions of every size and theme, it’s safe to say the area can handle whatever the meeting world throws at it.
Tampa will be catching a major one this year—the Republican National Convention—which will hold court on the downtown waterfront Aug. 27-30. The countdown is under way, not only to make sure all the convention venues are in tip-top condition but that the city and surrounding areas are shipshape for the expected 40,000 to 50,000 attendees, whose economic impact will be in the $185 million to $200 million range, according to CVB estimates.
“The town is really sprucing up,” notes Travis Claytor, communications manager for Tampa Bay & Company. “There are beautification projects throughout the area to make sure we put our best foot forward.”
Tampa
Much of the upgrading is taking place at the convention “footprint” itself, a stretch of downtown Tampa fronting the Hillsborough River that boasts a number of venues within walking distance of one another.
The main facility where the convention itself will be hosted, the Tampa Bay Times Forum (formerly the St. Pete Times Forum), just put the wraps on a $40 million renovation that replaced all 19,000-plus seats, added a 10,000-square-foot outdoor party deck, boosted the indoor lighting and upgraded the luxury suites.
The waterfront convention district also includes the 600,000-square-foot Tampa Convention Center, which will be home base for the estimated 15,000 media members who will be covering the RNC, “the second-largest media event outside of the Olympics,” says Krista Soroka, Tampa Bay & Company’s director of community relations and the liaison between the CVB and the convention host committee.
Spruced-up downtown promenades along the river will lead to shopping and dining venues as well as attractions like the Channelside Bay Plaza retail, dining and entertainment center, as well as the Florida Aquarium, which has launched a multiyear expansion project that includes a new two-story wing and increased private function space.
To encourage delegates to get out and enjoy the city, the CVB has partnered with local businesses to create a discount savings card for attractions, shopping and dining. Delegates are also receiving information on historic, Latin-flavored Ybor City, a stop on Tampa’s streetcar line, as well as nearby Busch Gardens and neighboring Pinellas County, home to St. Petersburg and the award-winning beaches of Clearwater.
“This is an incredible opportunity to bring this many people into the area who will see what we have to offer,” Soroka says.
And where will all these people be staying? Countywide, Tampa offers about 24,000 hotel rooms, with 2,500 rooms in the downtown convention hub, including the Tampa Marriott Waterside and the Westin Tampa Harbour Island, and another 4,000 within four miles of the Times Forum.
On the north end of the downtown core, the venerable Hotel Floridan, first opened in 1927 and known as the city’s first skyscraper, is being restored and is slated to open sometime this year. Other hotel renovation projects include the Tampa Airport Marriott, which just completed a $9 million upgrade of all 298 guest rooms.
St. Petersburg/Clearwater
With about a third of the RNC room block planned for St. Petersburg/Clearwater, this peninsula set across the bay from downtown Tampa is looking forward to August as well.
“It’s a great time for us, because that’s normally when we’re slowest,” notes D.T. Minich, executive director of Visit St. Petersburg/Clearwater. “A lot of attendees will bring their families, so we’re putting some deals and packages together for delegates and families. A lot of them will be first-time visitors, so we want them to see the beaches and attractions.”
Indeed, Clearwater beaches are something to see, and the experts agree. Coastal geologist Dr. Stephen Leatherman, who compiles an annual list of the country’s best beaches, has placed Caladesi Island State Park and Fort De Soto Park in the top spot and also named Clearwater Beach the No. 1 city beach in the Gulf region.
St. Petersburg has vaulted onto the international art stage as well with the recent expansion of the Salvador Dali Museum, which moved into new digs on 1-1-11 and is celebrated for having the largest collection of the surrealist’s work outside Spain.
“The Dali had an incredible 370,000 visitors the first year, which is double what they were doing, and groups have done some amazing events there under the geodesic dome,” Minich says, referring to the museum’s exterior glass structure comprising more than a thousand triangular-shaped glass panels.
Also new on the art scene and available for group functions is the Chihuly Collection, showcasing the work of acclaimed glass sculptor, Dale Chihuly.
With people descending on Tampa Bay later this year, one thing they’ll encounter is a renovated main terminal at the St. Petersburg/Clearwater International Airport. (Tampa International Airport is on the other side of the bay.)
“Most of the renovation will be complete in time for the convention,” Minich says. “They’re modernizing the facilities and restrooms, and adding new information desks in baggage claim areas.”
Area hotels are checking in with renovations as well, including St. Petersburg’s National Register landmark, the Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club, which recently unveiled a new lounge-like lobby featuring a library, cafe, resort shop and expanded Promenade bar.
Another historic property also just renovated its lobby and bars: the Loews Don CeSar Hotel on St. Pete Beach, offering 277 guest rooms and 22,000 square feet of function space.
Other St. Petersburg/Clearwater properties catering to groups include the Clearwater Beach Marriott Suites on Sand Key, the Hilton St. Petersburg Carillon Park and Safety Harbor Resort and Spa, founded in 1925 and named an official Florida Heritage Landmark.
If convention delegates are looking for after-hours fun, the Clearwater Aquarium made a major splash in the entertainment world with the 2011 release of Dolphin Tale, which tells the story of Winter, an Atlantic bottlenose dolphin whose tail was destroyed by a crab trap when she was three months old. The aquarium nursed her back to health and had her fitted with a prosthetic tail. Now you can go behind the scenes of how the movie was made and view actual sets from the film along with movie images and a variety of props, thanks to the aquarium’s newest attraction, Winter’s Dolphin Tale Adventure.
Sarasota
Set about a half-hour south of St. Petersburg, Sarasota is also a player in the RNC planning process, albeit with a smaller part.
“We’re getting a lot of inquiries for overflow rooms; that’s the role we’re playing right now,” says Kelly Defebo, meetings and leisure sales manager for the Sarasota & Her Islands CVB. “We’re really excited to have the exposure of the RNC. It gives us the opportunity to talk to people we might not have before, and it’s opening a lot of doors already.”
Defebo says the RNC groups looking for off-site venues are being directed to the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium, boasting 10,000 square feet of exhibit space, as well as to the Sarasota Bradenton Convention Center, adjacent to the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport and offering 93,000 square feet of expo space. The facility also features 4,600 square feet of meeting rooms, with a full-service Holiday Inn on-site and more than 3,000 hotel rooms located within two miles.
Sarasota offers a host of other properties, including its largest convention hotel, the Hyatt Regency Sarasota, with 294 rooms, more than 20,000 square feet of function space and a recent $22 million renovation under its belt.
Other properties boasting upgrades include Longboat Key Club and Resort, which rolled out a new 2012 wellness program that includes educational seminars and health-related classes scheduled throughout the year. The resort also unveiled a new restaurant, The Tavern, featuring a “farm to table” menu, while its John Ringling meeting room was updated with new carpet, wall coverings and lighting features.
But bigger renovations may be on the way for Longboat Key Club, which is finalizing details on a $400 million redevelopment plan that would include, among other things, a new Rees Jones-designed golf course, a new green-certified hotel and a new meeting center with 17,000 square feet of space.
Meanwhile, the Hampton Inn & Suites at the airport, the city’s only LEED-certified hotel, just added an electric station capable of charging four electric/hybrid cars.
“Right now, it’s a complimentary service for guests and non-guests, though if it grows in popularity, we might charge non-guests,” says Stephanie Merrithew, the property’s director of sales.
In addition to area hotels, Sarasota is renowned for its impressive museums and cultural venues that also double as off-site settings for group events. Standouts include the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, a 66-acre estate overlooking Sarasota Bay; the historic Sarasota Opera House, offering 1920s-era elegance; the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, which includes a spacious Grand Foyer seating as well as a bayfront lawn for events; and the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, where gatherings are surrounded by lush foliage and banyan trees.
