By Amy Arnett
Businesses and events go hand-in-hand and have become a specialized field for event planners and venues alike. Here in West Virginia, corporate events from all over the nation are drawn to versatile spaces that cater to every possible type of event from one-time meetings and quick sessions to full-blown company retreats. The Mountain State boasts ideal venues for each type of corporate event, making it the perfect planning place.
Seminars and Meetings
Robert H. Mollohan Research Center
The essence of planning is looking to the future, and there’s no better place to do that than amidst West Virginia’s emerging technology. At the I-79 Technology Park in Fairmont, the Robert H. Mollohan Research Center offers large spaces that cater to companies looking for a high-tech backdrop.
The research center has an exhibition hall that seats 500 for presentations and features a 9’ by 16’ rear-projection screen, as well as a 165-seat, stadium-style auditorium that also has a projection screen with audio/visual infrastructure and a touch screen. According to James Estep, president and CEO of the West Virginia High-Technology Consortium Foundation, “The technology park demonstrates that West Virginia is participating in the new economies and embraces the knowledge worker.” The auditorium and exhibition hall are also joined by several smaller meeting rooms available for presentations and planning sessions.
Carnegie Hall
Named for steel baron Andrew Carnegie, Carnegie Hall in Lewisburg was built in 1902 and is one of four Carnegie halls still operating. “As grand and stately as its name, Carnegie Hall plays a crucial role in the educational, economic and cultural development in Southern West Virginia,” says Heather Falls, marketing director for the space. The building features several rooms, including an auditorium, studios, art galleries, offices and rental spaces.
The auditorium is often host to conferences and lectures, seating 420 and offering excellent acoustics for presenters. Meeting space throughout the building is also available; the Old Stone Room is a gallery space filled with work from local artists, and the Ivy Terrace is a popular outdoor venue for visiting companies.
Grand Pointe Conference & Reception Center
Often, presentations and meetings might require extra time and a place for attendees to stay. When that is the case, Grand Pointe Conference Center in Vienna is an example of one space that is ready to meet every need. Along with space that can accommodate every party size from five to 500, Grand Pointe offers banquet services and partners with Wingate by Wyndham to make it a true one-stop shop.
For meetings and seminars of all sizes, companies need workspaces that are serious about quality and convenience. In West Virginia, there are venues that are customizable to make every business a happy customer.
Parties
There comes a time for most organizations when throwing a party is necessary; anniversaries, milestones or garnering support are best done with a celebration.
When it’s time to plan a big bash, one of West Virginia’s best locations is the Bridgeport Conference Center in Bridgeport. The conference center is a prime event center for everything from intimate brunches to a show-stopping soiree. The full culinary staff and flexibility of the conference center staff help occasions go off without a hitch—and the ability to customize packages has made them a reputable party destination for businesses in the area. The conference center also has 192 hotel rooms on site so guests can party late then power down without the commute.
In the Eastern Panhandle, the Holiday Inn of Martinsburg is not an ordinary hotel but a facility that has serious party potential. With a large ballroom that can accommodate a group of almost 500 guests, the biggest celebrations can feel at home. The Holiday Inn also features rooms and meeting spaces that vary in size to suit any event. An on-site restaurant and lounge can be used for smaller corporate parties, and all of the facilities offer catering that has been met with great reviews.
Company Retreats
There’s nothing better than working hard for a reward, and company retreats offer the best of both worlds: productivity with a payoff. Mountain State retreats have activities for loungers, adrenaline junkies and everyone in between.
With a name like Adventures on the Gorge (AOTG), some heart-pounding activities are to be expected, and that’s exactly what the Fayetteville resort accomplishes for their corporate visitors. With retreat guests from the likes of Vanity Fair and Popular Mechanics, AOTG has perfected the retreat formula. According to President Dave Arnold, companies come in with a goal, and the resort works with them to provide meals, meeting space and activities. “They have breakfast, their meeting takes place, they have lunch and then go play,” he says. “That’s what we do. We run a way that you can have a corporate meeting and make it different.” After lunch, employees can experience amazing whitewater rafting or aerial adventures like rope courses and zip lining.
Snowshoe Mountain Resort
For a tailor-made retreat, companies head to Snowshoe, WV for a rugged outdoor setting surrounding a spa and lodge at Snowshoe Mountain Resort. Along with hosting several lifestyle events like beer, wine and music festivals, Snowshoe also works in creating corporate events from the intimate to the more involved.
The resort’s Outdoor Adventure Center features river rafting and kayaking, as well as hiking, adventure camps, horseback riding and snowshoeing, of course! Snowshoe also has a spa and a lake, where a white sand beach and water inflatables make for a great outdoor playground. Erin Stolle, director of sales for the resort, says Snowshoe’s lake is a hidden gem in West Virginia. “Our mountaintop meeting spaces combined with adventure provides a unique and memorable group event that fulfills the state’s wild and wonderful promise.”
Oglebay Resort
For those in the Northern Panhandle, Wheeling is working hard to reinvent itself and drive the local economy to its former glory as a steel town. Oglebay Resort welcomes visitors to the city who are coming as fruits of the labor of the town’s businesses and professional leaders.
“We are proud to be introducing and re-introducing corporations, groups and families to Wheeling,” says Caren Knoyer, Oglebay’s marketing director. “West Virginia has so many things to offer, and we are privileged to be a partner in its growth.”
Beyond their hometown pride, Oglebay also delivers on attractions. Their Festival of Lights is a main attraction during the winter months while the arboretum trails throughout the Mountain State scenery draw groups out of the classroom into the outdoors. Before they take a hike, groups can also participate in the exclusive training sessions held at the resort where entrepreneurs and business leaders learn the keys to successful problem solving. The resort offers corporate packages that are customized for each company’s needs—something that keeps the exact requests of their clients in mind.
Trade Shows
Trade shows and expos require large, accommodating facilities. In West Virginia, there are several locations that have the size and resources to host such events, including Mylan Park in Morgantown and the Charleston Civic Center.
Mylan Park
Mylan Park has proven to be a time-tested venue for large events, festivals and athletics. The West Virginia Oil and Gas Expo takes place at Mylan each fall, and vendors can purchase booths indoors or outdoors during the enormous trade show that showcases the latest and greatest in the energy sector. The success of events like the expo depends on the ability of the facility to deliver on their promises of ample space, free parking and truck access and setup capabilities—Mylan Park ensures that to every company.
The Ruby Community Center at the park is a 53,000-square-foot indoor facility with two overhead doors and a hydraulic lift for quick loading. The park also sits on several acres of outdoor space that provides multiple options for larger events and ample space for attendees.
In the state’s capital city, the Charleston Civic Center, which often calls itself the center of it all, has been a premier event venue since 1958. The center is the site of numerous concerts and sporting events in an arena that seats 13,500.
The arena and exhibit hall make excellent space for trade shows and expos like the West Virginia Sports Show, an event centered around sports and athletics in the Mountain State that spans the center’s excess of 100,000 square feet of event space, and Taste-of-All, a Generation Charleston-hosted event during FestivALL that allows visitors to explore and sample the dining options available in Charleston.
“We have such a variety of events,” says Anna Campbell, director of sales. “Our facility is used extensively by local representatives, and we attract more than 1 million attendees to events each year.”
