Charlotte
Cosmopolitan, Yet Comfortable Southern Charm
By Ashley WrightCaptivating, colorful and cosmopolitan—that's what local hospitality officials throughout Charlotte, N.C., are saying about the largest metropolitan area in the Carolinas and one of the fastest growing regions in the nation. "Charlotte is teeming with new development and is becoming more urban and cosmopolitan by the day," said Jeff Hewitt, senior director of sales for the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA), the operating organization for Visit Charlotte.
Take, for example, the 30-acre North Carolina Music Factory, an entertainment district with outdoor stages, restaurants, bars, and other arts and entertainment-related businesses that are all set to open later this year. According to Ken Thomas, vice president of entertainment at ARK group, the development is "progressing nicely." He said, "The front stage/courtyard is complete and the sound and lighting systems are complete, so it will be ready to host events this summer. The rear amphitheater is also under construction with a scheduled completion in mid-summer. We hope to do several events in the fall and then roll out a full concert schedule beginning in the spring of 2009."
While Charlotte is described as a cosmopolitan city, at the same time, local Southern charm is not lost, said Molly Hedrick, CVRA senior director of communications. "Right across the street from Blue Restaurant—an upscale dining experience in Uptown—there is Mert's Heart and Soul, your true 'down South experience' with cornbread that is to die for. It's locally owned and operated and just the ultimate in Southern tradition."
Planners are taking note of the city's assets. Jeanne Sleeper, president of JBS and Associates, a California-based, full-service meeting planning company, emphasized the city's attributes and its ability to service groups. "Our 7,002 attendees benefited from a level of attention to detail, a desire to help make my client's show successful and a customer service approach that many cities aspire to achieve and Charlotte delivered."
Center City
Bustling with new developments, Center City, the downtown area surrounding the Charlotte Convention Center, is home to both new and time-honored staples.
Three new hotel ventures, according to Visit Charlotte officials, will debut in Center City soon: The Ritz-Carlton, aloft and Twelve. The Ritz-Carlton is slated to open in 2009 in the Bank of America Corporate Center building and will offer 120 guest rooms, 30 suites and 13,600 square feet of meeting space. The 176-room aloft is slated to open in November, and the 150-room Twelve is set to open in 2009. Both are set to have meeting space for small groups.
Other key developments in the works include a Center City baseball stadium and the 265,000-square-foot EpiCentre, a mixed-use project that will feature various entertainment options such as shops, restaurants, a movie theater and a bowling alley. According to CRVA's Hewitt, all tenants are scheduled to open by the first half of 2008.
The EpiCentre will connect to the Charlotte Bobcats Arena and the 374-room Omni Charlotte Hotel, which features 16,000 square feet of meeting space. The hotel recently completed guest room renovations, with meeting rooms scheduled for renovation in the near future, said Irene Peterson, director of sales.
Also in Center City, the Wachovia 1st Street project on South Tryon Street is under way and will combine several cultural facilities on one campus, including the Mint Museum, the Afro-American Cultural Center, the Bechtler Art Museum and the Knight Theatre, according to Visit Charlotte officials. All facilities are slated to open by 2009 excluding The Mint Museum, which will celebrate a grand opening in fall 2010. According to the Mint museum's executive director, Phil Kline, the expansion will add gallery space for the Mint Museum of Craft + Design and the Mint Museum of Art. It will also add a grand room and a special events room with an outdoor terrace. Existing event space can accommodate up to 200 guests, banquet style. A 170-seat theater is also on site.
Opening in 2010, the NASCAR Hall of Fame will connect to the Charlotte Convention Center via an over-street walkway and will offer groups a 40,000-square-foot ballroom, according to the Visit Charlotte's Hedrick. The six-acre hall of fame will also include a 1,000-space parking deck to better accommodate convention center visitors.
The Charlotte Convention Center offers 280,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space that is divisible into four halls, a 35,000-square-foot ballroom and 90,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. Full-service, in-house catering is available from award-winning chefs who are equipped to serve more than 6,000 guests at a time, Hedrick said.
Additional meeting space in the Center City area includes Cricket Arena with seating for more than 9,600; Ovens Auditorium, which recently underwent a renovation and can at seat 2,500; Bank of America Stadium, with a seating capacity of approximately 72,500; and Charlotte Bobcats Arena, which accommodates 20,000 people.
Hotels in Center City include The Blake, which was converted from an Adam's Mark and offers 308 guest rooms and 52,000 square feet of meeting space. According to General Manager Jerry Anderson, the hotel is undergoing phase one of a renovation that will enhance, among other areas, the on-site restaurant. The second floor of the north tower is being transformed into a "world-class spa," Anderson said, adding that upcoming projects will include a facelift to the meeting facilities. "We will have more than 600 upscale rooms in the Charlotte market along with amenities that no other hotel has at this time."
The
Hilton Charlotte Center City and
The Westin Charlotte have teamed up to offer a packaged combination of flexible convention and exhibition space and professional planning services that they, along with the convention center, call the "Charlotte Convention Connection," said Greg Greenawalt, director of sales and marketing for the Hilton Charlotte Center City. "Our unique 'one-stop shop' approach will help association executives and convention planners save time and effort when coordinating multi-facility conventions. By dealing with one entity, we save our clients more than just time and effort; we eliminate headaches associated with multiple points of contact."
The
Hilton offers more than 30,000 square feet of function space and recently completed a renovation of its 442 guest rooms.
The Westin Charlotte opened in 2003 and offers 700 guest rooms with 44,000 square feet of meeting space. "In addition to better serving Charlotte-bound conventions, the alliance makes the bold statement that our facilities now rival those of larger, more well-traveled cities," said David Montgomery, director of sales and marketing. "With top-notch facilities, a progressive infrastructure and world-class entertainment, Charlotte is quickly becoming a preeminent destination for business in the South."
Executive Park
The Executive Park area runs along I-77 and includes the Hilton Charlotte Executive Park with 181 rooms and 10,000 square feet of meeting space. The hotel recently completed a $6 million renovation that included the remodeling of all guest rooms and meeting rooms and added new food and beverage outlets and a new self-service business center.
The 279-room Charlotte Marriott Executive Park Hotel features 15,000 square feet of meeting space and recently completed a $7 million renovation in mid-2007, according to Kimberly Tuomala, director of sales and marketing, who noted that a Starbucks was also added to the property.
South Park
Located 10 minutes south from Center City, the South Park area is known as an upscale destination for shopping and dining and is home to the SouthPark Mall.
The Charlotte Marriott South Park has 192 guest rooms and 11,950 square feet of meeting space. According to Tom McNeill, director of sales and marketing, the hotel recently completed a renovation of its guest rooms and meeting space. The hotel is also adjacent to SouthPark Mall, the area's upscale shopping mall that recently underwent an expansion that added two high-end anchors, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.
Airport Area
Charlotte Douglas International Airport is roughly six miles west of Center City.
Two recent additions to the area include the U.S. National Whitewater Center (USNWC), about seven miles north of the airport, and the Billy Graham Library, about five miles south of the airport. The USNWC made its debut in 2006 as the world's only multi-channel, re-circulating whitewater river. On site is a 500-seat outdoor amphitheater, a 2,400-square-foot conference center, a ropes course, and hiking, biking and running trails. Sports events planners are taking advantage of the new facility.
The presidential-styled Billy Graham Library opened in May 2007 to tell the life story of Minister Billy Graham. According to Visit Charlotte officials, the library is a 40,000-square-foot complex that also houses the original Graham family homestead, a resource center and an on-site restaurant.
Nearby is the 275-suite Renaissance Charlotte Suites Hotel, which is undergoing a multimillion-dollar renovation that is scheduled for completion this month, said spokesperson Sheri Smith. The property offers 19,000 square feet of meeting space.
Ballantyne
The Ballantyne community is a mixed-used development that is roughly 11 miles south of Center City and about 18 miles from the airport. "Charlotte is definitely increasingly more cosmopolitan, and Ballantyne is expanding along with it," said Christina Argeris, public relations manager for The Ballantyne Resort and Spa.
The Spa at Ballantyne Resort recently installed pipeless pedicure chairs and introduced Beau Visage, a computer-based photo imaging device that discovers personalized skin needs, Argeris said, adding that it is the first resort spa to offer this cutting-edge system. The resort offers 214 guest rooms, 25,000 square feet of meeting space and The Lodge at Ballantyne Resort with 35 guest rooms.
Another hotel option in the area includes the Courtyard by Marriott - Ballantyne, with 90 guest rooms and 624 square feet of total meeting space.
Cabarrus County
With 1,000 new hotel rooms and upgrades to major attractions expected in the next year, Charlotte's neighbor, Cabarrus County, is booming, according to
Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) officials. "Situated in the heart of NASCAR country, Cabarrus County offers race fans an opportunity to get an up-close look at the high-octane excitement behind the fastest growing sport in the country," said Judy Root, communications director for the CVB. "For those who don't want to spend 24-7 doing NASCAR, the area offers plenty of other attractions as well, including world-class shopping and fascinating historical sites."
Key Info · Sales Tax: 7.25 percent in Charlotte and 7 percent in Cabarrus County.
· Hotel Tax: 8 percent in Charlotte and 6 percent in Cabarrus County.
· Transportation: The typical cost of a taxi from the airport to the Center City is $16. |
Sharon Campbell, vice president of sales and marketing for the CVB, said the Embassy Suites Hotel Charlotte - Concord - Golf Resort and Spa and the Concord Conference Center, had a very successful first year—so successful that owners are already planning to expand. According to Ann Ellis, marketing and sales specialist with the CVB, John Q. Hammons Hotels Inc. recently announced plans to invest $25 million to $30 million to enlarge the resort, bringing the total number of suites to 433 and the meeting space up to 76,000 square feet. The resort is the official hotel of Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Six new hotels will open in 2009 in the county, increasing room availability by 700, according to Ellis. One of the new properties to come online will be the 402-room Great Wolf Lodge. Currently under construction, Great Wolf Lodge will offer 16,000 square feet of meeting/banquet space and two spas.
Lowe's Motor Speedway is also located in Cabarrus County and offers additional venues for special events like the garages at the speedway, which offer 20,000 square feet per garage, according to CVB officials. Events can also be held in the Speedway Club Clubhouse, which underwent a $5 million renovation in fall 2006, and The Drag Strip at Concord, which broke ground in February and will be the only four-laned drag strip in the United States when it opens later this year. The strip will feature a 34,000-square-foot starting-line tower that includes 16 luxury suites and an additional 4,000 square feet of roof access for guests.
