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www.HartfordBusiness.com • June 3, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 9 4,000 room nights being utilized in the market, CRDA data show. The total number of days the con- vention center was used and overall attendance were largely flat last fiscal year, CRDA data show. Operating and tax revenues generated by the facility were down slightly. Even with Hartford's aging conven- tion-meeting infrastructure, especially the XL Center downtown, the city "can continue to compete successfully as a convention market,'' said Matt Fleury, CEO of the Connecticut Science Center. He knows that first-hand. Late last fall some 1,700 members and guests of the Association of Science-Technology Centers — representing 50 states and 48 countries — descended on Hart- ford and Fleury's facility for a four- day session, attracted here, in part, by lower costs for food, lodging and transporta- tion compared to nearby larger cities. Many came away fully im- pressed with what they saw and experienced in downtown, Fleury said, which should boost efforts to make Hartford a more appealing convention location. "It is imperative that we continue to support these venues with sufficient marketing, operating and capital funding," Fleury said. "Visibility in tourism and convention marketing requires an investment." Meantime, on June 3, some 250 of the nation's gourmet chocolatiers, including Con- necticut's own Munson's Chocolates in Bolton and Fas- cia's Chocolates in Waterbury, will host their Retail Confec- tioners International Annual Convention & Industry Expo in Hartford. The group last met in Connecticut for a 1994 regional meeting in Mystic. Places to spend Murdock said one of the advantages of smaller gatherings is they have the potential to grow into bigger events. Plus, small groups of attendees still must eat, drink and relax, and Hart- ford nowadays offers plenty of options, observers say. Anne Evans, district director for the U.S. Commerce Department's Com- mercial Division, coordinated with state economic-development authori- ties, other public agencies and U.S. and foreign manufacturers to bring the space-trade summit to Hartford. Evans said she watched as dozens of summit attendees crossed the street, to go to the Front Street Entertain- ment District, for dining and cocktails at Capital Grille, Spotlight Theatres, Ted's Montana Grill, and Infinity Mu- sic Hall. Evans said the summit exemplified how supposedly small events can yield extra attendees. Her initial attendance estimate of 150 grew to 245 by the end of first-day registration May 20. Attendance benefited from participants' word-of- mouth, plus unexpectedly strong local and national press coverage. Moreover, after the summit, Evans said she and 10 over- seas space-agency executives and manufacturing officials toured UConn's Technol- ogy Park in Mansfield and the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology in East Hartford. Advanced aerospace components and technology and the requisite manufactur- ing expertise necessary to return mankind to the moon were the summit's key topics. Hartford's central loca- tion in Connecticut, plus the proximity of an international airport and major highways, Evans said, are underestimat- ed by everyone except those who live outside the state. "The only people who said to me, 'Why Hartford?,' were people from Connecticut,'' she said. "What it tells me is that Connecticut doesn't realize we're a good city in a great place. We've got a nice infra- structure for meetings, big and small.'' Connecticut hotelier Len Wolman, principal in The Waterford Group, owner-operator of lodging space state- wide and other U.S. regions, including the Hartford Marriott, said many mov- ing parts are involved in bringing and WE'VE CHANGED OUR LOOK. Designed to look great on all your devices, our new site helps you get more informed and connected to Hartford business. VISIT HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM TO SEE WHAT'S NEW. CT Convention Center events — past, current and future • New England Regional Volleyball First to the Finish Winterfest, 39,890 attendees and booked through 2024. For 2021, NERV added an extra weekend, which should lift attendance above 40,000. • Irish Dance Teachers Association of New England regional, 7,400 attendees. • 2018 Association of Science-Technology Centers conference, 1,700 attendees. • 2020 Professional Golfers Association convention, 3,850 attendees. • CT Music Educators Association annual conference, 5,335 attendees — annual event gives Hartford the opportunity to host the National Association for Music Educators Eastern Division Conference in 2021, with estimated attendance of 10,125. • ConnectiCon, 35,000 attendees (annual event). • North Atlantic Region of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. will be in Hartford in 2020, with estimated attendance of 10,000. Source: Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau; Connecticut Convention Center Continued on page 10 >> Matt Fleury, CEO, Connecticut Science Center PDS has been meeting the needs of the construction industry since 1965. 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