850 Columbus business leaders gathered at Experience Columbus Annual Meeting in March
It is evident that Central Ohio is growing rapidly. With the immense amount of construction projects popping up around the city, businesses are defiantly starting to notice a trend. On March 2nd at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, 850 local business leaders gathered for the Experience Columbus Annual Meeting to receive more in-depth knowledge of the changes that are taking place throughout the city.
The much anticipated Convention Hotel project was a popular topic
The most notable story of the event is the much discussed arrival the new Hilton Convention Hotel in downtown Columbus, just across the street from the existing Convention Center. The new facility will house 532 rooms which will be a huge help in accommodating the growth of many Columbus based events such as the Arnold Sports Classic and the Quarter Horse Congress. The CEO of Experience Columbus spoke to the Columbus Dispatch where he discussed the idea that Columbus is still a “Value City” for holding events which will be desirable in a more budget conscious economic future. Astleford was quoted stating “The more people explore, the more they like what they see of not only our authentic Midwestern values, but also the incredible value propositions we offer as a meeting and visitor designation.”
2012 Bicentennial Celebration already in the works
Another highly discussed topic is the planning of the 2012 Bicentennial Celebration in which the planning committee is already hard at work building a stronger image of Columbus as a destination attraction. You are sure to see more about this in the next two years if you are a Columbus resident.
Public/Private partnerships have been a driving force behind many new Columbus projects
Astleford stressed the importance of public/private partnerships as both the Convention Hotel and downtown parks are being financed by these partnerships. Huntington Park, the new home of the Columbus Clippers is another facility that was funded by public/private business relationships. The Franklin County Commissioners and other private partners were presented with an award for their efforts on the Huntington Park project.
Awards were given out to noteable 2009 Columbus attractions and events
The Columbus Museum of Art received an award for their Egypt Columbus attraction as well as COSI for their work with the Metropolitan Library. Also receiving an award was the highly attended Pelotonia bike ride to benefit cancer, which was sponsored by Columbus based NetJets.
