Want to score big with attendees? Central West Florida can help. This sunny enclave, including the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Sarasota, boasts award-winning beaches, outdoor adventures that range from sponge diving and swimming with manatees to safari excursions, and a globally recognized art scene that includes the largest collection of Salvador Dali works outside Europe. Not to mention the convention facilities and hotels that have hosted such big-name events as the Republican National Convention in 2012.
But sporting events have a major impact here as well–four Super Bowls and a World Series, for starters, along with big-league play from professional franchises in football, baseball and hockey, plus exciting seasons featuring the minor leagues. Area sports venues, including Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tropicana Field, where MLB’s Tampa Bay Rays play ball, also pitch in with event space for groups, which makes for some interesting meeting action.
Following are some high-energy options for group gatherings in Central West Florida.
TAMBA BAY TIMES FORUM
Home of the 2004 Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning and five-time Arena Football Champion Tampa Bay Storm, the Tampa Bay Times Forum underwent a $40 million renovation before hosting the Republican National Convention in 2012. In addition to hockey fans, groups have benefitted as well; upgrades included the addition of an 11,000-square-foot, 700-person Bud Light party deck complete with sweeping views of downtown Tampa and including high-top table seating and chair and couch arrangements throughout.
“It’s great for a more laid-back event, maybe a happy hour,” says Samantha Nemeroff, the Forum’s event hospitality coordinator. “It’s a beachy, loungy spot. We’re right by the channel where the ships go by, so it’s a really beautiful location.”
Groups also can gather in the Forum’s Firestick Grill restaurant, which also overlooks the Tampa skyline and can accommodate about a hundred with full audiovisual capabilities. Meanwhile, the 19,000-seat arena features a huge new scoreboard that is available for corporate messaging.
“We host about 150 events a year,” Nemeroff says. “People love to go behind the scenes and get the whole arena to themselves. You’re not paying for a ticket to a game, so it’s kind of like free access.”PageBreak
BRIGHT HOUSE FIELD, CLEARWATER
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Spring training ground for the Philadelphia Phillies and home to the minor-league Threshers, 8,800-seat Bright House Field welcomes group events with a tiki-hut pavilion in left field, group picnic areas and party suites.
“We can do all kinds of food and beverage and entertainment,” says Doug Kemp, manager of special events and suites level for the Phillies Florida. “The left field concourse lends itself to bigger events, like a thousand people. We can set up tents on the concourse because it’s so big.”
For smaller gatherings, there are three 30-person party suites–or one large 90-person suite–that open onto a covered, 200-person outside deck, all with ballpark views.
In the summer, when the Threshers take the field, Kemp says many groups meet in the afternoon and stay for a game. Others get even more interactive.
“We’ve done softball and kickball games with groups,” Kemp says. “This location just lends itself to team building.”
IMG ACADEMY, BRANDENTON
Offering coaching and tailored athletic programs within a 450-acre campus, IMG Academy specializes in college prep programs, sports camps and pro/collegiate training in tennis, golf, basketball, soccer, lacrosse and other sports. The complex also offers adult programs that include executive and corporate retreats ranging from single-day sessions to multiday packages stressing physical and mental conditioning, hand-eye coordination, nutrition and body management. Groups can customize their retreat with IMG’s Corporate Development Program, which addresses the principles of leadership, teamwork and conflict resolution.
Less-structured experiences also are available.
“[Groups] can meet in our conference room and then have a morning or afternoon on the tennis courts,” says Anne Carter, adult hospitality coordinator at the academy.
SARASOTA YMCA, EVALYN SADLIER JONES BRANCH
It’s fun to play at the YMCA, which groups will discover when they meet at the Sarasota YMCA, Evalyn Sadlier Jones branch. Home to the Selby Aquatic Center, it hosted the Pan American Masters Championship biennial swim meet in 2013. The 7,717-square-foot Welch Family Center is available for private events, while a 50-foot climbing tower and 45-foot climbing wall take team building to new heights.PageBreak
ED SMITH STADIUM, SARASOTA
An ice show on the grass. An Arts in the Ballpark series. Cocktail parties in the Third Base Lounge. A Sherwin-Williams trade show. These are just some of the private events hosted at Ed Smith Stadium, home of Baltimore Orioles spring training. The stadium welcomes corporate groups of 20-200 at facilities that include World Series Suites, the Home Plate Suite and the Left Field Pavilion. Groups also may opt for a private pre-game picnic.
“We’ve done business lunches in the middle of the locker room. Most people have never even been in a major-league locker room,” says David Rovine, vice president of the Orioles-Sarasota.
Another unique option is Diamonds on the Diamond.
“It’s a black-tie event,” Rovine says. “But because we don’t allow heels on the field, everyone wore tennis shoes and decorated them with faux diamonds.”
NATHAN BENDERSON PARK, SARASOTA
Recently chosen as the site for the 2017 World Rowing Championships, Sarasota’s new Nathan Benderson Park is in planning mode for the construction of facilities that will also benefit meeting groups. Chief among them is a two-story boathouse that is expected to have at least 20,000 square feet of event space on the second floor.
“It will be a multipurpose space for small meetings and conferences as well as weddings,” says Nicole Rissler, director of sports for Visit Sarasota County. “It’s being designed with all the bells and whistles, including air walls, a space for catering and an outdoor patio.”
Set on the park’s Regatta Island, the new boathouse will be joined by a finish tower, which will house offices and additional small conference rooms. Both are slated to open in 2016.
In the meantime, groups can schedule team-building exercises at the park right now.
“If that’s something they’d like to do, the park offers rowing and kayaking,” Rissler says. “The team-building market is something they’ll be diving into significantly once those structures are up in 2016.”
