As hotels and event spaces begin to cautiously reopen after coronavirus-related shutdowns, we're here to round up the biggest news of the week—in one convenient place. Got a tip? Get in touch!
Here are six things you need to know this week.
1. A D.C. nightclub is popping up on the roof of the Kennedy Center.
One of Washington, D.C.'s most popular nightclubs is getting creative to bring back business. Starting this weekend, Heist, which has been closed since March, is hosting a weekly Saturday-night pop-up on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Arts' rooftop. The 20,000-square-foot outdoor lounge will have 60 tables, each spaced six feet apart; there will be prerecorded playlists, and no DJ or dancing to enforce social distancing. Since local regulations require food to be served with alcohol, the club is offering snack trays and desserts from Occasions Caterers. Decor will feature a robbery theme with high-tech lighting and artistic projections, and visitors will place their orders for the evening when they book the table. According to organizers, tickets for the first night of the residency sold out in just 15 minutes.
2. Hotels continue leaning into tech-forward solutions.
From advanced mobile apps to virtual site visits, hotels and other event venues continue focusing on technology to help bring back business. Hawks Cay Resort in the Florida Keys, for example, recently launched a new online portal that offers virtual tours for meeting planners. It's part of an ongoing initiative to promote groups and events post-pandemic, led by the hotel's new regional director of sales, Anna Lawrence. The property has 20,000 square feet of event space, plus a full-service marina, six restaurants, a saltwater lagoon, and five swimming pools.
Last week, meanwhile, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts unveiled a new mobile app focused on low-contact, in-stay features. The hotel company is currently offering mobile check-in and check-out at nearly 300 hotels—with the new app, the brand will be able to expand those services to nearly 6,000 hotels by the end of 2020. The platform also offers digital room keys, contact-less account management, and more. “Our new app could not have arrived at a more critical time," says Jessica Davidson, the chain's senior vice president of digital. "The pandemic has propelled digital adoption and travelers now expect streamlined, low-contact experiences."
The Avenida Houston Virtual Studio is a permanent, 5,250-square-foot space inside Houston's George R. Brown Convention Center.Photo: Courtesy of Houston First
Houston's George R. Brown Convention Center is pulling out all the stops to bring back events and meetings. Houston First, the city's DMO, has unveiled a new, 5,250-square-foot broadcast studio inside the venue called the Avenida Houston Virtual Studio; the permanent space is available for virtual, in-person, or hybrid meetings. The convention center is also the first in the country to implement biodefence air filtration technology, plus 15 thermal scanning devices inside the building and electrostatic sprayers that clean up to 54,000 square feet of surface area per hour.
BizBash's parent site, Connect, takes an in-depth look at the studio and new safety measures here.
4. Over 150 restaurants signed a letter endorsing Joe Biden.
More than 150 chefs and restaurant owners around the country have signed an open letter supporting presidential candidate Joe Biden and condemning President Trump's handling of the pandemic. The "Restaurants for Biden" letter, which was released by the former vice president's campaign, outlines how the PPP program, shortages with personal protective equipment, and more have—in their opinion—damaged the hospitality industry. According to Eater, signers include "celebrity chef Elizabeth Falkner, television star and baker Duff Goldman, chef and cookbook author Anita Lo, Nina Compton of Compère Lapin in New Orleans, Brandon Jew of Mister Jiu’s in San Francisco, and Fran Camaj, owner of the Los Angeles-based Gjelina restaurant group."
5. Convention centers continue to receive the GBAC STAR designation.
The focus on achieving the GBAC STAR cleaning accreditation doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon, with 57 more facilities receiving the designation just last week. In addition to Canada's Montreal-Trudeau International Airport, Seattle's CenturyLink Field, and a number of Hyatt hotels around the country, 14 more convention centers completed the requirements this week—including the Tampa Convention Center in Florida, the Charlotte Convention Center in North Carolina, the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, America's Center in St. Louis, and the Edmonton Convention Centre in Alberta.
"Bay Area Walls" will be visible when the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art reopens on Oct. 4.Photo: Courtesy of SFMOMA
Inspired by the Bay Area's history of murals, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has commissioned new large-scale wall projects by local artists for a series titled “Bay Area Walls,” which will be on display when the museum reopens on Oct. 4. And in December, the museum will debut "Close to Home: Creativity in Crisis," an exhibition featuring seven local artists’ responses to the pandemic.
"As the museum reopens its doors after six months of closure precipitated by the pandemic, it will be more focused than ever on strengthening our role within our immediate community,” explains Janet Bishop, the museum’s curator of painting and sculpture.
