The City of Santa Clarita will host a public meeting to gather feedback and comments from residents, business owners and other parties interested in sharing thoughts about a conference center in Santa Clarita. The meeting will be held on Thursday, November 8, 2012 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Century Room at City Hall, located at 23920 Valencia Boulevard.

The City’s Tourism Office is developing a Conference Center Master Plan, which will include extensive research and analysis, assess current meeting facilities and demands, and provide a roadmap for the potential future development of a conference center in Santa Clarita. The City has hired Kosmont Companies, a management consulting firm, to oversee the Conference Center Master Plan development process.

Santa Clarita’s growth as a destination for tourists in the last decade has created a demand for infrastructure development to remain competitive and attract new special events, sports, and corporate meeting business. Members of the Santa Clarita Tourism Bureau believe adding a conference center would help the area remain competitive and attract more conferences, conventions, and revenue-generating tourism events, while enhancing opportunities for the Santa Clarita business community.

In 2009, at the direction of the Santa Clarita City Council, the City’s Tourism Office worked with tourism partners to commission a conference center feasibility study, which concluded that the area can support a moderately sized conference center facility. The next step in making a conference center a reality in Santa Clarita is to create a Conference Center Master Plan.

As the area continues to grow, tourism will remain a strong and growing industry. The City of Santa Clarita continues to encourage the industry’s growth as it supports thousands of local jobs and revenue for area businesses. Santa Clarita has consistently ranked among Los Angeles’ top growing tourism destinations according to PKF Hospitality’s monthly E-Trends report, which tracks destination occupancy, hotel room rates, and area growth.

For more information about the Conference Center Master Plan or the public meeting, please contact Amy Sparks with the City’s Economic Development Division at (661) 286-4084.