What makes your city a top meeting/convention destination?
In the last decade, we invested more than $6 billion in that package, and we're still going. We're currently building the largest light rail network in the nation and adding a new symphony hall. In the past, all you needed was a convention center, some hotels, and an airport. Today, the ability to draw attendance is everything, so you need to offer everything. You still need state-of-the-art facilities and accessibility, but they must be in an exciting, fun destination with great restaurants, attractions, and pre-and post-meeting opportunities. Denver offers that complete package. Denver can handle any size group, from 10 people to the 35,000 who will come next summer for the Democratic National Convention.
Tell us about a meeting you're thrilled to have just signed on or a recent meeting you're very pleased with.
We just had the biggest booking in our history - a 10-year deal with Snowsports Industries of America that will bring 20,000 people every January, one of our slowest months. The Heart Rhythm Society booked Denver for 2010 and 2014, based on its successful show and record-breaking attendance here in 2007.
What is your city's roadmap for the future? In November, voters approved a tax increase for 11 initiatives that run the gamut from building a new $90 million symphony hall to improving the Denver Museum of Nature & Science as well as allocating $30 million annually for maintaining our roads and city infrastructure. The entire seven-county metro area is working together here. Two sports stadiums have been built, and a $6 billion light rail network, the largest in American history, is under construction based on a vote of the people.
What green initiatives is your city/convention center undertaking?
Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper has launched GreenPrint Denver, a program to make Denver the "greenest" city in the nation. Projects include everything from expanding the already successful recycling program to planting more than a million trees in the next decade. Denver has committed that the Democratic National Convention here in 2008 will be the greenest political convention ever. This year, our bureau planted trees rather than send holiday cards, and we are using recycled paper and conforming to all the initiatives outlined in Green- Print Denver.
How did you get into this career? How long have you been there, and where have you been in the past? I had a degree in management with a minor in engineering, and when I got out of school and saw there were no jobs, I took a job with Hilton in Chicago. I moved with Hilton to Denver, and while I liked the travel industry, I found I really loved the city. I left Hilton and joined the Denver CVB for three years, started my own meeting publishing company, and then sold the company and came back to the Denver CVB in 1993. I have been here ever since.
What is it about working in this industry that grabs you?
I don't know any industry that's more exciting or offers more growth potential. I'm just thankful every day that there were no engineering jobs available when I got out of college.