An at-a-glance guide to leading meeting&convention destinations CityFile
Washington,D.C. W
Walter E.Washington Convention Center: An Extraordinary Events Venue
ORLDLY BUT accessible, international but with neighborhood
color,Washington, D.C., offers the perfect blend of business and pleas- ure to create powerful experiences for meeting attendees. And in the center of the nation’s capital stands theWalter E.Washington Convention Center, an extraordi- nary building in a powerful city and the venue of choice for events of all types. From its captivating Grand
Lobby—witha 60-foot-tall curved wall of African makore wood and stone flooring—to its state-of-the-art technology, capable of serving the most demanding uses, the convention center has taken its place as a world-class meetings, trade-show, and events venue. It has won awards for its inspiring design and impact on urban renewal, and has generated nearly half a billion dollars in economic activity each year while bringing millions of visitors to a revitalized downtown. Owned and operated by theWashington Convention and Sports Authority (WCSA), the 2.3-million-square-foot convention center hosts some of the largest gatherings in the region and is one of the most energy-efficient buildings of its size. The
At a Glance
Walter E.Washington Convention Center 801 Mt. Vernon Place, NW Washington, D.C. 20001 Phone: (202) 249-3000 Website: www.wcsa.com Facebook: Walter E.Washington Convention Center Twitter: DCConventions MEETING & CONVENTION SPACE Total event space: 2.3 million square feet
100 pcma convene October 2010
DISTRICT OF CONVENTIONS: The 2.3-million- square-footWalter E.Washington Convention Center is in the heart ofWashington, D.C.
facility includes 703,000 square feet of prime exhibit space and 198,000 square feet of meeting space, witha total of 77 breakout rooms, plus 48,000 square feet of flexible event space. Atop the Grand Lobby is a 52,000-square- foot ballroom, the region’s largest. Rich wood finishes and an intri- cately detailed barrel ceiling that soars four stories above the floor create a one-of-a-kind setting for gala dinners and events. The center also has a number of
rooftop spaces and special product offerings for small meetings, as well as a $4-million art collection with more than 130 works by regional, national, and internation- al artists. Topping it off, theWalter
E.Washington Convention Center is the first WCSA-operat- ed facility to use WCSA’s new, state-of-the-art Oculus Digital Signage Network (ODSN). The network encompasses more than 140 digital displays and signs installed throughout the center and provides customized updated information, includ- ing daily event schedules and other event and building details, special production video for events, ads, sponsor and exhibitor content, broadcast TV, internal video broadcasts, event video distribution, and artistic content.
Exhibit space: 703,000 square feet Exhibit booth capacity: 3,500 Maximum number of breakout rooms: 77 NEARBY HOTELS Renaissance Grand Hyatt Embassy Suites Marriott Metro Center ACTIVITIES AND ATTRACTIONS The White House U.S. Capitol Restaurants Shopping
National Mall Theater Access to all of D.C.’s diverse neighborhoods ACCESSIBILITY TheWalter E.Washington Convention Center is located only six miles from Reagan National Airport and 28 miles from Baltimore/Washington Inter- national Airport and Dulles Interna- tional Airport. The city offers great accessibility by highway and Amtrak. The ease of both air and land travel will ensure visitors arrive ready to enjoy all this great destination offers.