May 21, 2014: Minneapolis to Host 2018 Super Bowl, James Beard Awards Move to Chicago, Florida School Sells $200 "Prime" Graduation Seats

1. MINNEAPOLIS TO HOST 2018 SUPER BOWL: The N.F.L. chose Minneapolis as host of the 2018 Super Bowl over bids by New Orleans and Indianapolis. One of its fan attractions will be an eight-story ice castle built by the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Minneapolis Star-Tribune: “The theme of Minneapolis’ bid, ‘Built for the Bold,’ which emphasized the $1 billion Vikings stadium under construction and the state’s friendly ethos, was seen by some observers as an underdog to New Orleans. But after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the victor, a number of team owners said the new stadium was a decisive factor.” http://strib.mn/1i1sShW

2. JAMES BEARD AWARDS MOVE TO CHICAGO: The 2015 James Beard Foundation Awards ceremony will move to Chicago, the first time the program will be held outside of New York City since the awards started in 1990. Chicago Sun-Times: “Mayor Rahm Emanuel used his notorious persistence and powers of persuasion to personally lobby for the prestigious event. He joked about what a pest he had made of himself with Susan Ungaro, president of the James Beard Foundation, during a Millennium Park news conference celebrating Chicago’s victory with champagne on ice.” http://bit.ly/1lEcxRh

3. FLORIDA SCHOOL SELLS $200 "PRIME" GRADUATION SEATS: Manatee High School in Florida is charging $200 for the best seats to watch this year’s graduation ceremony, and students have to pay $20 each to participate in the event, which is held on school grounds. Fox News: “The school said this year's graduation will cost about $12,000. The school district usually gives the school about $3,000 to pay for the event, but this year the district will not be offering the money.” http://fxn.ws/TtB8C2

* LOCAL NEWS *

ATLANTA:  The Atlanta Food & Wine Festival is May 29-June 1 at venues in Midtown.

BOSTON:  Great Wolf Lodge will open a new resort in Fitchburg on June 5. The new property will offer an indoor waterpark, 400 suites, and several restaurants.

CHICAGO:  Enolo Wine Bar opens soon in River North. The venue will have wines by the bottle, glass, or flight, as well as craft beers, cocktails, pizzas, and pastas. It will seat 64.

LAS VEGAS:  Baskow & Associates, the destination management firm, has hired Linda Davis as its senior director of global sales.

LOS ANGELES:  The MPI Southern California chapter will host its annual installation awards and dinner on June 12 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. This year’s gala theme is “evolve."

Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board is welcoming visitors to an unofficial “Summer Sneak Preview” day on May 24 with music, film, and other cultural events around town.

The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association's 44th annual Beastly Ball is June 14 at the zoo.

Local event listings from Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  South Florida Business Journal: "AT&T is setting up a Cell on Wheels on Ocean Drive for Urban Beach Week. The device will help accommodate the expected high number of beach selfies and family photos zooming onto social media sites during the long holiday weekend in South Beach." http://bit.ly/1i0RMOE

NEW YORK:  Hamptons magazine will celebrate its annual Memorial Day issue with cover star Heidi Klum Saturday at Southampton Social Club.

Local event listings from Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

SEATTLE:  Quartz will host its the Next Billion event series at the Seattle Art Museum on June 2. The event will look at the impact of the next billion people to gain access to the Internet in the coming years, and speakers will include Twitter co-founder Evan Williams, Mozilla's Mitchell Baker, and Margaret Gould Stewart of Facebook.

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  Washington City Paper: "The Alexandria (Virginia) City Council voted over the weekend to allow food trucks to vend at parks, schools, churches, farmers' markets, and other private property over a 16-month trial period beginning July 1."  http://bit.ly/1sQPS8e

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With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Anna Sekula in New York.

BizBash Daily is the must-read digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.

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