theWit Hotel
201 N. State Street
Chicago, IL 60611

Lose yourself in the vibrant epicenter of the Windy City at theWit, a Doubletree Hotel, the newest downtown Chicago boutique hotel. Located on historic State Street — in the heart of the revitalized theater and Loop business districts –, this all-new destination pulls the chair from underneath pomposity and seriousness … igniting the neighborhood with a new energy and spirit of fun. Relax in plush accommodations with breathtaking views of the Chicago River, the skyline, and Millennium Park. Take a short stroll and marvel at the city’s premier museums, cultural landmarks, and entertainment. Experience the allure and style of the Chicago Loop. Make theWit, a Doubletree Hotel, your shining star among downtown Chicago hotels.

Blending the amenities of a resort with the flair of a boutique hotel, theWit, a Doubletree Hotel, has brought a new energy and vitality to the downtown Chicago Loop. Striking design, unparalleled comfort, and remarkable services create a dramatic sensory experience.

Total Capacity of Venue:
300

Private or Semi Private Space Available:
Yes

Room Set at Capacity:
350 Theater Style

Contact theWit Hotel Chicago for your next meeting or event

Brookfield Zoo Announces new Chicago Event Space

This amazing 24,000 square foot, clear-span tent that was recently constructed at Brookfield Zoo by Classic Party Rental and will once again be available in the Spring of 2010 for large customized events in conjunction with our beautifully landscaped 216 acre campus.  

Just 14 miles west of Chicago, close to three major expressways and complimentary parking for all guests at after hour events, Brookfield Zoo not only offers a most unique event experience, but also convenience and affordability that is sure to please your guests.
 
The tent will certainly be in high demand next spring, especially due to the fact that we also plan to open our Great Bear Wilderness exhibit at this time.  It is going to be a fascinating 7.7 acre habitat consisting of roaming Bison prairie, underwater Polar Bear viewing, and would be a most unique and memorable setting for cocktails before dinner!
 
For more information on customizing your event, please contact and mention “Here’s Chicago”:

Brookfield Zoo
Susan Schoen
708-688-8357
susan.schoen@czs.org
Watch our video!

Visit Our Web Page on Hereschicago.com

Brookfield Zoo’s beautifully landscaped, 216-acre campus is home to 3,000 amazing animals and offers unforgettable events. Guests can enjoy cuisines from around the world while exploring world-class exhibits such as Habitat Africa!, Seven Seas, and Tropic World. We offer corporate picnics, weddings, meetings, galas, birthday parties, and much more! 

Chicago’s Event Planning Guide

Beyond the Ivy Rooftops Chicago
1010 Waveland
Chicago, IL

Have your next party, bachelorette party or company outing/client outing at one of Beyond The Ivy Rooftops three historic Wrigley Field venues. All locations provide spectacular views of the game, amazing food and friendly service. Each venue has a unique identity, making each rooftop a special experience. We offer all food, drink and meeting space all included in one ticket price. Our venue is unique because we offer bar type bleachers where the person who books the venue can get around to the entire crowd without blocking anyone’s views! Visit BeyondtheIvy.com for more information!

We offer 3 venues all on Waveland with great views into Wrigley Field. We included all food and drinks. We offer an experience where you can get work done and have a great time.

1010 Waveland is LARGER THAN LIFE! Everything is over sized! The bleachers are huge, the food and drink service bars are huge, even the pictures on the walls are over sized! Where else can you have a private sky box big enough for 200 of your closest friends or colleagues?

1038 Waveland
A hip and modern vibe kick inside and out of 1038 West Waveland. The low club style seating, sleek shiny tall tables, and over the top artwork all immerse Cub’s fans in a club like game experience.

1048 Waveland
Nostalgia and history make 1048 Waveland. The traditional feel and historic photographs at 1048 Waveland immerse a Cub’s fan in what makes us Cubs fans different… our rich history. Speaking of rich—the club house is filled with marble, granite and wood!
Our most Important Target Market is ?

People looking to have a first class event with little to no work with managed costs and an amazing venue and value. Our rooftop’s space, design and amenities make it easy for people to enjoy a Chicago Cubs game!

We are most proud of our ability to?

We are proud that the person who spends the money to host an event at Beyond the Ivy can get the value from his or her event by easily getting around our space and not blocking anyone’s views and spending quality face time with everyone!
We are famous with customers for our ability to?

We put together an event from start to finish, with all food and drinks included, we are the event that people want to come to and we provide great value for your expense. Our staff works to make sure people’s needs are met and exceeded.

Unlike our competition, we offer customers?

Other roofs have limitations about where certain clients can be during games- we offer free rein and space for people to be in different places. Bar Bleachers with great views of the game, outdoor beer gardens, and 3rd floor clubhouses!

We would like our customers to tell their friends that we provide the best?

We want our guests to walk out and say that they had a good time at Beyond the Ivy and we want the person who planned the event to say they got a good value by being able to communicate with the people they have paid to have with them at BTI.

Our company enhances customer lives by offering?

Beyond the Ivy understands giving back is important and we offer many half price days that can be used as fundraisers for not for profit groups! We love hosting your benefits and work closely with many organizations throughout Chicago and the USA.

We offer our customers the best?

Experience for a group to see a Chicago Cubs game. We offer more room, more convenient seating where you can see the game and enjoy the people you are with.

Recent Clients:

Please call for references or to tour the facility. Banks, Casinos, Accounting Firms, Manufacturing, Service, Hotels, Meeting Planning Firms, we take groups of 2-500.

Awards/Achievements:
Recognition on Radio, TV News, Architecture Books, and customer comments!

Visit Beyond The Ivy Wrigley Rooftops on Hereschicago.com for more information and to book your Chicago Bachelorette Party, Corporate Event, Company Outing, Client Outing, Birthday Party and more…

Certainly any hotel claiming a Magnificent Mile address should live up to its name. And after a $36 million total renovation, the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile achieves exactly that. Drawing from the context of the city itself – hustle and bustle balanced by the calming effects of natural elements – this newly transformed hotel offers a stunningly stylish, energetic and contemporary vibe. Here, business and entertainment intersect in a multidimensional setting that inspires guests to engage, relax, retreat, work and play.

Recently transformed public space introduces a spectacular multifunctional lobby that reinvents the way guests socialize, work and relax. All of our meeting space, located on the 5th, 6th and 7th floors has been masterfully redefined to accommodate 21st century meeting needs. Additional multifunctional meeting space has also been added to the 4th floor, giving this premier Chicago meeting site a total of 65,000 square feet of event space. New dining concepts include a signature restaurant offering a contemporary décor and menu and a new lobby bar that surrounds a torch-like illuminated sculpture – the new iconic symbol of the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile.

The Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile is a Planner Preferred Meeting Space on Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s Meetings and Events Resource Guide.

Visit Hereschicago.com for a complete list of Chicago’s best Wrigley rooftops for your next company outing, friends get together, bachelorette party, or corporate event. Wrigley rooftops are one of the best networking venues in Chicago. It’s truly a unique and cost effective way to bring friends or clients together for one of Chicago’s most memorable corporate activities during the summer.

Prior to or after the game, book your group space at Cubby Bear or Vine’s on Clark. Both Wrigleyville venues are across the street from Wrigley Field and have group space for small and large groups!

Wrigley Rooftops Video produced by

Contact Chicago Indoor Racing if you are seeking great suburban meeting space, fun Chicago Corporate Activities, Buffalo Grove Meeting Venues, North West suburban conference space or a West suburban meeting venue for your next conference or Chicago suburban sales meeting, fun things to do in Chicagoland, or Chicago team building.

Each event at Chicago Indoor Racing is customized by one of their group coordinators. They will assist you in all the finer details of your event and can help you achieve all of your goals, no matter how simple or complicated. Chicago Indoor Racing Buffalo Grove or Chicago Indoor Racing Addison can work with groups of six to groups of 600 or more. Chicago Indoor Racing’s group event space features the latest in Audio Visual capabilities, including complimentary LCD projectors with pull down screens, as well as flip charts.

Chicago Indoor Racing in Addison | NOW OPENED!

Our new 105,000 square foot location in Addison features two new tracks and a variety of state of the art meeting spaces & entertainment concepts, including CyberSport. Groups events can be booked by calling Alisa Peters at Chicago Indoor Racing; individual walk-ins and same day reservations are happily accepted. Corporate and Group Events.

Five Meeting Rooms featuring the latest in Audio Visual Technology and wireless Internet access.

(The entire facility is a “hot-spot”)

Stewart’s Bar and Grille, a full service Restaurant and Bar, features a large array of cuisine sure to delight any palate! After the Race each location features a full service restaurant with a variety of dining options for individuals and groups of all sizes. They also feature a multitude of alternative entertainment that can be enjoyed before and after racing or dining.

Click here to email or call Alisa Peters at Chicago Indoor Racing for either location (Buffalo Grove or Addison) and tell her Hereschicago.com sent you!

Threats of federal regulation and sensational coverage are creating a paralyzing environment where companies across the country are canceling meetings and events for legitimate business purposes.

After three strong years, Chicago’s downtown hotels are facing tougher times as businesses cut travel budgets and tourists stay home. Because more businesses and groups are canceling meetings at hotels or spending less on food and drink, hotel owners are looking for ways to cut costs.

Business-related travel – including meetings, events and incentives – is a vital part of our national economy and essential to sustaining well-paying American jobs, the health of large and small businesses and the solvency of public services supported by federal, state and local tax-revenue. Broadly, business travel creates 2.4 million jobs, injects more than $240 billion into the national economy annually and generates $39 billion in federal, state and local tax revenue.

Specifically, meetings and events:

Create 1 million jobs to the American workforce in local communities – from big cities to small towns – across the United States.

Many of these jobs support working families in the hospitality and food service industries.

Generate $27 billion in wages for hardworking Americans that are critical to local economies across
the United States, and can play a critical role in our nation’s economic recovery.

Provide $16 billion in tax revenue at the federal, state and local level.

Contribute $101 billion in spending to the U.S. economy.

Support over 200 local convention centers around the county

Are responsible for nearly 15 percent of all travel in the United States.

When businesses cancel productive meetings and events, the American worker and local communities from coast-to-coast are the unintended victims.

Without the jobs generated by meetings, events and incentive travel, the current unemployment rate of 7.6 percent would rise to 8.2 percent and cost the average American household an additional $136 in annual taxes.

Critics have mislabeled many meetings and events as unnecessary and frivolous – causing companies that have received federal government support and many that have not – to cancel planned and future activities.
Whether a company has received emergency government lending or not, its inclination is to avoid the prospect of being ridiculed like AIG, Wells Fargo and others.

No region of the country is immune to the economic impact of canceled meetings, events and incentive programs. American workers and local communities pay the price as meetings, events and incentives decline.

The U.S. Labor Department reported a loss of nearly 200,000 travel related jobs in 2008 and Department of Commerce data predicts a loss of an additional 247,000 travel-generated jobs in 2009.

The meetings and events component of business travel is responsible for nearly 15 percent of all travel in the United States, drives $101 billion in spending, generates one million jobs and creates $16 billion in tax revenue at the federal, state and local levels.

Without the one million jobs generated by meeting and event travel, the unemployment rate in the United States would jump from 7.6 percent to 8.2 percent.

As meetings and events decline, local communities – nearly all of whom are dependent on visitor taxes – struggle to pay for essential services such as education, public safety and social services.

Business travel and events are a smart and cost effective way to retain and develop employee talent, generate ideas and share knowledge that drives future business growth.

Meetings, events and incentives are essential tools for companies to strengthen business relationships; align and educate employees and customers; and reward business performance. Members of Congress share this practice when convening their annual retreats at resorts outside Washington, DC

Incentive programs are two to three times more effective than cash at motivating employee performance. Companies can spend less on incentive travel than on cash compensation to achieve exceptional productivity from employees.

The recipients of incentive travel programs are typically hardworking middle class Americans who have earned trips for their exceptional performance.

According to a recent survey of Fortune 1000 Chief Marketing Officers, meetings and events provide the highest return on investment of any marketing channel.

Companies using taxpayer dollars must abide by best practices for meetings, events and incentives.

Companies that have received emergency government lending have an obligation to operate in a transparent and accountable fashion.

The travel community has addressed an urgent public need by developing clear, workable guidelines designed to ensure responsible business travel practices within companies that have received emergency government lending.

Additional punitive policies to limit meetings, events and incentive travel will unite business, labor and local government leaders in opposition.

The demand for face to face meetings is strong and the importance of having them is greater than ever in our history.  For example, within one week of sending the invitation for our Here’s Chicago Meetings and Hospitality St. Pat’s BASH event taking place on March 2, 2009 we are at capacity with the most meeting and event professionals registered in the history of this event with over 400 registered attendees and another 100 on the waiting list. 

“Business, Meetings and Incentive Programs are what built this economy” and “Our industry is being punished for the mistakes of a few”

“In Obama’s defense, I don’t believe he knows that the meetings industry contributes to “mainstreet”, the exact market he is trying to help. Bus boys, waiters, bellman, sedan drivers, etc.” says Jim Grillo, CMP of Hereschicago.com. 

Meetings, conventions, exhibitions, and incentive travel generated $122.3 billion in direct spending in the United States last year, according to the Convention Industry Council’s Economic Impact Study, released in September. Corporate meetings and events comprised one-third of that, or $40.3 billion; association events accounted for the rest.”

The industry employs 1.7 million people on a full-time basis, and is the 29th-largest contributor to the country’s gross national product.

Looking at types of meetings, conventions and exhibitions account for $67.9 billion, or 55.5 percent, of the total direct spending pie. Corporate and association meetings generated $48.1 billion in spending, or 39.4 percent of the total, while incentive travel made up the remaining 5.1 percent, generating $6.2 billion in spending. (Conventions and exhibitions are defined as events where exhibitions make up the largest component of the meeting, while meetings have a larger meetings component.)

The largest share of the convention and exhibition dollar, 35 percent, is spent in hotels. The rest is widely distributed throughout local economies, with 24 percent spent on air transportation, 14 percent in restaurants, and 12 percent on business services.
 
It is our responsibility today to communicate the positive messages from our industry and how we all directly contribute to the future growth of our economy.
 
Let’s make history together,
 
Jim Grillo, CMP
President
Hereschicago.com
Chicago’s Meetings and Events Resource Directory
 
Emmy Award Winner, Alternate Media/News 2008
Hall of Fame Supplier, Illinois Meetings & Events 2008
President, Meeting Professionals Internatio, nal Chicago 2003-2004
President, Hospitality, Sales & Marketing Assn of Ill. 2001-2004
Committee, Meeting Professionals International 2004-2008
Mentor/Ambassador, Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau, 2000-2002
Member, MPI International Student Advisory Council 2008-2009
 
For a P.R. Toolkit, visit the U.S. Travel Association (USTOA)

The awards honor the dedication and creativity of event professionals who have earned the respect and admiration of their clients and peers. The award winners were selected through an online reader poll. The winner are:

Best Attraction – Navy Pier
Best Audio-Visual – The Meetinghouse Companies, Inc.
Best Banquet/Reception Venue – Tie between Galleria Marchetti and River East Art Center
Best Boats/Cruises/Charters - Kanan Cruises
Best Caterer – Blue Plate Catering
Best Conference Venue – Gleacher Center
Best Convention & Visitors Bureau – Chicago Convention & Visitors Bureau
Best Destination Management Company – On the Scene
Best Eco-Friendly Supplier – Greg Christian Catering and Events
Best Entertainment – Just for Fun Entertainment and Events, Inc.
Best Décor – Kehoe Designs
Best Florist – The Meetinghouse Companies, Inc.
Best Golf Resort – Lincolnshire Marriott Resort
Best Historic Venue – Chicago History Museum
Best Hotel with Meeting Space (less than 440 rooms) – The Blackstone Hotel
Best Hotel with Meeting Space (more than 440 rooms) – Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile
Best Photography/Videography – Tie between Promax Productions and Studio T Photography
Best Rental Service – Classic Party Rentals
Best Teambuilding Facility/Organizer – Corporate Event Interactive
Best Transportation – Windy City Limousine
Best Unique Venue – Chicago Illuminating Company
Best Venue Outside Chicagoland – Pheasant Run Resort
Editor’s Pick Best Event Décor – Ivan Carlson & Associates
Editor’s Pick Best New Intimate Event Space – Vertigo Sky Lounge
Editor’s Pick Best Casino – Horseshoe Casino Hotel
Editor’s Pick Best Experimental Event Expert – Minding Your Business

New this year, Illinois Meetings + Events magazine recognized its first-ever Hall of Fame, chosen by the magazine’s editorial advisory board.

Lifetime Achievement – Bill Pry, Partner – BBJ Linen
Best Special Events Planner – Andrew Schorr, President and Principal – In the Loop
Best Meeting Professional – Kimberly LaBounty, President – Apex Management & Special Events Inc.
Best Up-and-Coming Meeting Professional – Justin Rhodes, Associate – Corporate Events for Jones Lang LaSalle, Chicago
Best Supplier – Jim Grillo, President – hereschicago.com
Best Up-and-Coming Supplier – Renee Barricklow, Event Producer – Kehoe Designs, Chicago

“We are pleased to recognize the outstanding contributions of these organizations and individuals to the meetings and events industry, which plays an important role in Illinois’s vitality and economy,” says Lauren Hurley, editor of Illinois Meetings + Events magazine.

Thank you to our event partners; Underground, The Meetinghouse Companies, Inc. and Classic Party Rentals.

Illinois Meetings + Events magazine is one of eight regional meetings and events magazines published by Tiger Oak Publications, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn.  The idea-driven magazine focuses on the issues facing today’s meeting and event professionals in Illinois and beyond and looks to address all aspects of the industry through in-depth feature stories, insightful departments and helpful news and updates on tips and trends. For more information and to view photos from the event, visit www.ilmeetingsmag.com.

Visit Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s event planner resource guide featuring Chicago’s top Planner Preferred vendors for Chicago meetings and events.

Navy Pier® The only thing we overlook is the Lakefront.

Make your event or corporate meeting part of history at a Chicago Landmark.
 
Built in 1916 as part of Daniel Burnham’s famed Plan of Chicago, today Navy Pier boasts the ultimate in flexibility of space, state of the art facilities, and unparalleled amenities in a spectacular and truly unique lakefront setting.
 
Festival Hall Exhibition Space • 170,000 sq. ft. of functional space divisible into two halls
 
Thirty-six flexible Meeting Rooms
 
Historic Grand Ballroom • 18,000 sq. ft. with a spectacular lake view
 
Lakeview Terrace • 15,000 sq. ft. with beautiful lake and city views
 
Rooftop Terrace and Tent • 8,000 sq. ft. tent on outdoor space above Lakeview Terrace
 
Plus, distinctive catering, exceptional service, on-site enclosed parking for 1,600 vehicles, and dozens of restaurants, shops and attractions to complete your Navy Pier experience.

Contact our sales staff at Navy Pier

Dance All Night! offers a wide range of well-maintained equipment for rental – everything from wireless microphones to theatrical lighting to Chicago party rentals.  Dance All Night has over 25 years of experience providing audio visual rentals, projection, lighting and corporate entertainment for corporate events, small and large meetings in most Chicagoland conference centers, convention centers and meeting spaces.  Moreover, with Dance All Night! you’ll pay the same rate for up to a weekly rental that other companies charge for JUST ONE DAY! You won’t find a better deal anywhere on equipment rentals to include microphones, speakers, lighting, projection systems and more.

Wireless Microphone System Rentals
Dance All Night! offers excellent wireless microphone systems from names such as Countryman and Yamaha. We can service your rental needs in the Chicago area and beyond – we rent from coast to coast!

Sound System Rentals Sound System Rentals
Sound systems from Dance All Night! will keep your event hopping! We stock power amplifiers, CD decks, source mixers, power mixers and speakers from first-rate manufacturers.

Video Projection Rentals Video Projection Rentals
With our video projection systems, you can screen a movie, play a video game or present a corporate image piece. Dance All Night! has whatever you need – video projector, monitor, projection screens or video recording equipment – to add a visual spark to your next event.

Video Effects Rentals Video Effects Rentals
Add visual dazzle to your next gathering with a video effects mixer from Dance All Night! Featuring more than 200 special effects, our mixers are sure to enhance your dance party or other event.

Theatrical Lighting Rentals Theatrical Lighting Rentals
Dance All Night! has an extensive inventory of theatrical lighting available for rental – including NSI Lighting Systems, 24 and 12 channel light board systems, ETA lighting systems and lighting support systems. All rentals come with spare bulbs, color frames and filters.

Party Lighting and Effects Rentals Party Lighting and Effects Rentals
Pump up the party with lighting and effects from Dance All Night! We offer strobes, black lights, lasers, beamers, fog machines, confetti cannons and more! Neon lighting, custom lighting and outdoor lighting options are also available.

Entertainment & Party Rentals Entertainment & Party Rentals
Dance All Night! is your ultimate party supply source. We offer everything from the basics like tables, chairs, tents and power generators to items that add extra elements of fun to your event like moonwalks, fun food machines (cotton candy, popcorn, sno-cones, etc.), theme props and décor. We even have live entertainment – musicians, jugglers, clowns, face painters, caricature artists, mimes, stilt walkers, magicians and more!

Dance All Night is a Planner Preferred Party Equipment Rentals Company on Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s event planning resource directory.

Visit Hereschicago.com for a full list of Chicago’s Planner Preferred for Party Rentals  Party Equipment Rentals  Chicago Chicago Companies that specialize in Party Rentals and Wedding Rentals for Parties, Wedding and Events featuring Planner Preferred Party Equipment Rentals Chicago, Wedding Rentals Chicago, Party Rentals Chicago for your next special event in Chicago