25 March 2008

Convention activity heating up in state of Tennessee

Four cities in Tennessee are flexing their convention muscles, with developments including:

Ãƒ~¼ With more than $5 billion invested in Memphis in the last decade, the city now has more than 2,700 first-class hotel rooms within walking distance of the convention center and the Beale Street Entertainment district.

Ãƒ~¼ High demand at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville -- including the resort turning down two million room nights -- has led to plans calling for more than 400,000 square feet of new meeting space and a new 400-room all-suite hotel.

Ãƒ~¼ Also in Nashville, local government officials approved a 1.2 million square foot convention center as part of a $595 million project that will also include a hotel and two 1,000-car parking garages.

Ãƒ~¼ The 35-year-old Clarion in downtown Chattanooga is being remodeled to open this summer as an upscale Doubletree Hotel by Hilton. The hotel will have 11,000 square feet of convention space. Also being remodeled: the Chattanoogan, a downtown resort with 25,000 square feet of meeting space.

NashvilleÃ¢â¬â¢s city council still has to approve the new convention center, but backers say it is going forward.

Ã¢â¬ÅâœWeÃ¢â¬â¢ve been evaluating demand for about 10 years now and feasibility studies have repeatedly shown demand,Ã¢â¬~ said Butch Spyridon, president of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau.

In Memphis, J. John Oros, executive vice president and COO of the CVB pointed out that the city has a variety of attractions that are sometimes overlooked by convention-goers.

Ã¢â¬ÅâœOur 50 attractions are unique to Memphis; thereÃ¢â¬â¢s the National Civil Rights MuseumÃ¢â¬~¦and attractions that focus on our music history, such as Sun StudioÃ¢â¬~¦and of course, Elvis PresleyÃ¢â¬â¢s Graceland Mansion,Ã¢â¬~ he told MeetingNews.com.

Report by David Wilkening