Looking for an event space in Los Angeles to host a large meeting or event? Here's a look at 10 new and renovated venues—including convention centers, ballrooms, meeting rooms, banquet halls, auditoriums, conference rooms, clubs, and more—with a capacity for big events.
The former Irwindale Speedway (which had previously been renamed Toyota Speedway) is now the Irwindale Event Center. The 63-acre facility is under new management and is drawing major huge events like the ESPN X Games. It's the only Nascar stock car racing facility in Los Angeles County. In addition to the massive racing stadium for large events, there are also 12 luxury skybox suites above it for smaller events or hosting V.I.P.s during large ones.
This year, the Natural History Museum marks its centennial with the completion of a massive expansion and renovation. Included in the update are the museum's Nature Gardens, which opened to the public in June, comprising 3.5 acres. There's the capacity for different sized events in various garden areas, with the whole space holding more than 1,000. There's an amphitheater with space for performances and film projections, as well as water features, a living wall, a pond, and a nature walking path.
The Natural History Museum's Otis Booth Pavilion also opened in June. The six-story, airy glass structure showcases the museum's recently restored 63-foot-long massive fin whale overhead. The whale is supported by 29 stainless steel cables and illuminated by 33,600 red, green, blue, and white LED lights, which are on all of the walls and ceilings, allowing for 3D projections.
The Mondrian Hotel has undergone a significant revamp with new private event spaces, lobby upgrades, and an updated the look for Skybar. Changes include design updates to revitalize the public spaces and connect the hotel's modern design aesthetic to local context. The entire pool deck, including a restaurant and Skybar, holds about 900 for large events.
Long Beach has tons of new large venue offerings, thanks to a $40 million redo of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. For instance, the lobby of the Long Beach Arena has been transformed from a basic entry walkway into a lounge that offers comfortable seating areas and eye-catching decor like artwork and colorful crystal chandeliers. The former Arena Lobby is now the Pacific Gallery, a venue that can be used separately or in conjunction with a convention or event. The patio area overlooks Rainbow Lagoon and Long Beach’s downtown waterfront. The 19,000-square-foot space can accommodate 1,400 for a reception or 800 for a seated event.
Aesthesia Studios is a full-service photographic studio on the Westside that opened in June. It has 10,500 square feet of studio space on five stages, 1,500 square feet of flexible space for production support, and 2,000 square feet of terrace, available together or separately. There are two full kitchens with catering options and underground parking as well as valet. The studio was designed by architect Ted Tanaka and is owned by filmmaker Grant Mitchell and Italian architect Tiziana Alessandro Mitchell.
On the heels of a multimillion-dollar renovation, the Luxe City Center Hotel offers new indoor and outdoor meeting options for groups. Walking distance from the L.A. Convention Center, the venue has 6,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space, including a 3,000-square-foot ballroom with a wall of windows that opens onto a terrace with private cabanas, fire pits, and water features.
The Hyatt Regency Century Plaza has extensive meeting facilities, with more than 100,000 square feet of flexible function space, including an exhibit hall and one of the largest ballrooms in town. Last year, the hotel completed a $1.3 million renovation of its largest ballroom, the 25,000-square-foot Los Angeles Ballroom. It holds 2,300 for a reception, 1,812 for a banquet, or 1,140 in a classroom setting.
Last year, Fairplex officially opened its high-tech Sheraton Fairplex Conference Center right for large events in a variety of flexible spaces. The 85,000-square-foot center has spacious seminar rooms and breakout rooms with interactive digital whiteboards, video conferencing, and high-speed Wi-Fi. Catering options at the space, which includes a ballroom with a capacity of 1,000 seated for a meal, include fresh farm-to-table produce grown at the on-campus FairView Farms. The new center is I.A.C.C.-certified and Silver LEED-engineered.
For a large downtown event space, the Vertigo Salon offers a spacious, sun-filled environment. The 5,000-square-foot venue, located atop the historical Standard Oil Building, has luxe chairs, beveled glass mirrors, and black crystal chandeliers throughout. Interior designer Ryan Saghian designed the venue, which can be used for groups that want pampering services, or furniture can be reconfigured to host any type of event.
For large events in a nightclub environment, take a group to the 20,000-square-foot Create, formerly Vanguard, which opened in May as a partnership between SBE and electronic dance events producer Insomniac. The renovated space includes a new Funktion One sound system and four distinct areas: an expansive main room, the Living Room lounge downstairs, a large patio with cabanas, and an upstairs private lounge. Within each space are V.I.P. areas, highlighted by four tables surrounding the DJ booth and stage, and a balcony booth upstairs provides guests with their own terrace overlooking the main room and performance area. It has what's being billed as the largest LED screen in the city.
