What's New

From Québec to British Columbia, convention centers across Canada are undergoing ambitious expansions.

The most recent announcement came from the Toronto Congress Centre, which is building an expansion that will double its size when it opens in the fall of 2007. Planned for the space just north of the existing facility, it will bump up the exhibition space by 500,000 square feet and include 40 new meeting rooms and a 25,000-square-foot ballroom. In total, the north and south facilities will include more than one million square feet of trade and convention space. The new addition's eco-friendly design will incorporate energy and water conservation features.

In Alberta, Edmonton's Shaw Conference Centre recently unveiled a $25 million expansion that boosts its size to 110,000 square feet. The new hall boasts floor-to-ceiling windows with a 270-degree view of the North Saskatchewan River Valley. It also includes 26,000 square feet of new space, banquet space for up to 1,200, plenary/keynote space for up to 2,000 attendees and 10,000 square feet of additional reception space.

Meanwhile, Vancouver hotels and convention facilities are getting ready for the 2010 Olympic Games. An expansion in progress at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre is scheduled to be finished in 2008.

In Tremblant, Québec, an expansion of the year-round resort will include a multifunctional convention center with 95,000 square feet. The new center, along with 1,500 new condo/hotel rooms, will open by 2009.

Even the intimate Victoria Conference Centre in British Columbia announced a recent addition: Groups can use an 8,000-square-foot outdoor courtyard that is protected using a temporary, removable enclosure. It expands the facility's usable area by 20 percent.

• Facilities Update

  Alberta

  A Holiday Inn in Calgary was converted into the Hotel Arts. New management renovated the 188 rooms and expanded meeting space to 3,500 square feet.

• Edmonton's Shaw Conference Centre debuted a 26,000-square-foot hall in 2006. The facility now has a total of 110,000 square feet.

• More than three-quarters of the guest rooms and cabins at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge have new bathrooms and softgoods.

• British Columbia

  The 357 guest rooms at Vancouver's Empire Landmark Hotel are being renovated in phases. Completion is scheduled for spring 2008.

• A 120-room Four Points by Sheraton, 20 minutes north of Victoria, opens in March. It will include a restaurant, day spa, and 5,000 square feet of meeting space, including a ballroom that can accommodate 300 banquet-style, a boardroom, and two smaller rooms.

• Opening this coming spring is the Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa in Sidney, 25 minutes north of Victoria and close to Victoria International Airport. The boutique hotel will have 55 guest rooms, a spa, and 1,300 square feet of meeting and banquet space.

• The Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel remodeled its meeting rooms and public spaces and added a 525-square-foot meeting room. The hotel now has high-speed Internet access in all guest rooms.

• The second phase of the Westin Bear Mountain Victoria Resort & Spa opened adjacent to Victoria's new Bear Mountain Golf and Country Club, which boasts the first Jack Nicklaus-designed course on Vancouver Island. It includes a 6,000-square-foot conference facility, spa and wellness center, and 91 additional guest rooms. A second Nicklaus-designed course is scheduled to open in 2007.

• The Executive Hotel Vintage Park is Vancouver's first wine-themed hotel. It has partnered with 35 regional wineries, which sponsor suites at the property. Each night, a complimentary wine sampling features the partners' products. The hotel has 130 guest room and suites, and meeting space for 120 people.

• An expansion at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre will add 359,000 square feet of meeting space, bringing the total to 492,000 square feet. It is scheduled for completion in 2008.

• A renovation at Vancouver International Airport will add nine gates to the international terminal; expand customs, check-in, passenger screening, and baggage handling facilities; and equip the airport to handle new, larger passenger aircraft. The work will take a decade.

• Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts plans to open a new five-star hotel in Vancouver in early 2007. It will occupy 15 floors of a new 60-story building downtown.

• The Victoria Conference Centre added 8,000 square feet of space by developing a removable enclosure for its courtyard.

• New Brunswick

  Two hotels were converted to Crowne Plazas: Crowne Plaza Fredericton-Lord Beaverbrook has 168 rooms and nearly 10,000 square feet of meeting space, including two ballrooms; Crowne Plaza Moncton-Downtown offers 191 guest rooms and 14,000 of meeting space, including a large ballroom.

• Ontario

  The Hazelton Hotel is slated to open in mid-2007. It will have 77 guest rooms and suites, a small meeting space, a private 26-seat screening room, and a spa.

• The National Trade Centre in Toronto is adding a 75,000-square-foot conference facility and a hotel; both are expected to open in 2007. The center now has 24 meeting rooms and more than one million square feet of space.

• The 53-story Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences, Toronto will combine a 267-room hotel, conference and meeting facilities, restaurants, and a spa. Construction is slated for completion in 2009.

• The Sheraton Centre Toronto outfitted 700 guest rooms with new furnishings and softgoods. During 2006 the hotel refurbished and expanded the exhibit hall to 27,000 square feet.

• The Pantages Suites Hotel and Spa completed a 6,400-square-foot conference facility with six boardrooms and banquet space for up to 200 people.