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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Seattle Art Museum Hosts The Gates of Paradise: Lorenzo Ghiberti's Renaissance Masterpiece
Three panels from the doors of the Baptistery in Florence, known as the Gates of Paradise, by celebrated Renaissance artist Lorenzo Ghiberti, will be on view at SAM Downtown. The Gates of Paradise: Lorenzo Ghiberti's Renaissance Masterpiece is comprised of three original panels and four sculptures, two before restoration and two after. This exhibition marks the first time that the panels have ever traveled to the United States since their creation over 550 years ago. The exhibit will also tour at the High Museum, Atlanta, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. At the conclusion of the tour the panels will return to Florence to be placed in a specially designed, hermetically sealed case in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo - never to travel again. The exhibit will run at SAM Jan. 26-Apr. 6, 2008.
Media Contact: Cara Egan, SAM Public Relations, (206) 748-9285; www.seattleartmuseum.org
Roman Art from the Louvre to Visit The Seattle Art Museum
The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) will be the only West Coast venue for Roman Art from the Louvre, an exhibition of masterworks from the famed collection of the Musée de Louvre in Paris, France. Showcasing approximately 180 prime examples of Roman art drawn from the Louvre's unsurpassed collection, the exhibition brings to life ancient Roman society from the first century BCE to the fourth century CE. Visitors will meet emperors and members of the imperial court, elite and ordinary citizens, women and children, soldiers, gladiators, foreigners and slaves. The masterworks include mosaics, frescoes, terracotta statuettes, monumental sculptures and marble reliefs. The exhibit will be at SAM Feb. 21-May 11, 2008.
Media Contact: Cara Egan, SAM Public Relations, (206) 748-9285; www.seattleartmuseum.org
The Seattle Art Museum Celebrates Completion of Major Expansion
Seattle Art Museum (SAM) has completed an 118,000-square-foot expansion, bringing the total square footage of its downtown Seattle museum to 268,000 square feet with an option to expand an additional 182,000 square feet at a later date. The new space includes new galleries, public spaces, a new restaurant, expanded museum store and features a spacious entryway and lobby. Hanging in the lobby is Cai Guo-Qiang's installation titled Inopportune: Stage One, consisting of nine full-size cars tumbling across the two-story space with moving lights simulating an explosion. Approximately 2,400 other objects are on display at the museum as well, nearly tripling the number of works previously displayed. Roughly coinciding with the opening of the expansion is SAM's 75th anniversary in 2008. Some of the area's most prominent art collectors and museum patrons have given gifts from their collections to be shown at SAM downtown. Nearly 1,000 pieces have been given or committed, making it the largest series of gifts in the museum's history.
Media Contact: Cara Egan, SAM Public Relations, (206) 748-9285; www.seattleartmuseum.org
Olympic Sculpture Park Opens
The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) opened its Olympic Sculpture Park to the public on Jan. 20, 2007, drawing 35,000 visitors on its first weekend. The nine-acre sculpture park features a 2,500-foot descending, Z-shaped path connecting the Belltown neighborhood in downtown Seattle with a beach on the waterfront. The path takes visitors past a range of permanent and rotating sculptures and major works by world-renowned artists such as Richard Serra, Alexander Calder and Mark di Suvero, while allowing visitors to take in the amazing scenery offered by Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains.
The park also features the PACCAR Pavilion, a glass and steel structure that houses a flexible exhibition, public event space as well as a café. The Gates Amphitheater sits adjacent to the pavilion, featuring descending grass terraces for outdoor films and performances. The Olympic Sculpture Park is open to the public, free of charge.
Media Contact: Cara Egan, SAM Public Relations, (206) 748-9285; www.seattleartmuseum.org
Teatro ZinZanni Relocates
Teatro ZinZanni, Seattle's performance of cirque, cabaret, song and dance has announced it will move its antique Belgian spiegeltent and facilities back to its original site on lower Queen Anne Hill. Performances at the new location slated to begin fall 2007. With its move back to lower Queen Anne, Teatro ZinZanni joins a booming arts and culture community centered in that area. The lower Queen Anne/Seattle Center area is home to many performing art organizations such as Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Seattle Children's Theatre and the Intiman Theatre. The Seattle Center is also home to two of the region's largest festivals in Bumbershoot: Seattle's Music & Arts Festival and the Northwest Folklife Festival, as well as museums such as Experience Music Project, Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame, Pacific Science Center and Seattle Children's Museum. Additionally, the Seattle International Film Festival offers year around programming in Marion Oliver McCaw Hall on the Seattle Center grounds.
Teatro ZinZanni Media Contact: Beth Brooks, One Reel, (206) 281-7788 x 240; www.onereel.org
SCVB Announces New Seattle Cultural and Heritage Guides
In May, the SCVB Cultural Tourism Department announced two new cultural and heritage guides for travelers. The Seattle Native American Heritage Guide, now available, features significant Native American attractions, museums, galleries, heritage sites, historic background and special events information. The Artists' Guide to Seattle launched in July, introducing visitors to Seattle from the viewpoints of sixteen local artists. Profiles include artists such as Emmy Award winning actor Tom Skerritt, internationally-known opera soprano Jane Eaglen, musician Chris Ballew and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Timothy Egan.
The new guides are free of charge and can be mailed to travelers upon request. The guides are also downloadable from the SCVB web site and available at the Seeattle Visitor Center & Concierge Services kiosk at WSCTC and other Seattle area locations. For more information, updates or to download a guide, visit www.visitseattle.org/cultural. The guides are supported by funding from 4Culture and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation.
Media Contact: Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau Public Relations Department, (206) 461-5800
HOTELS
Heathman Hotel Kirkland Now Open
The Heathman Hotel Kirkland, sister property of the Heathman Hotel in Portland, Oregon will open in fall 2007. The hotel, 20 minutes from downtown Seattle, features 91 guestrooms, 2,500 square-feet of meeting space, a 5,000 square-foot spa and Trellis, a 90-seat restaurant and bar, as well as a complimentary fitness center and complimentary high-speed wired and wireless internet. The hotel is the first multifamily unit in Kirkland to attain "Built Green" status and allows guests the opportunity to select their bed type preference upon check-in.
Media contacts: Emy Noel, Lane Public Relations, (503) 546-7883
Sheraton Seattle Completes Second Tower
The Sheraton Seattle Hotel celebrated the official opening of its second tower on June 8, 2007. The new Union Street Tower is 25-stories and has 420 new guestrooms, bringing the total number of guestrooms for the property to 1,258. This makes the Sheraton Seattle the largest hotel in Seattle. The new tower also has 16 new meeting rooms that add an additional 12,000 square feet of function space to the hotel. The project also included renovation of pre-function areas and ballrooms in the hotel's existing space. The Grand Ballroom was enlarged from 14,200 to 18,300 square feet with banquet seating for 1,400 people. The Metropolitan Ballroom doubled in size from 4,700 square feet to 9,440 square feet, with seating for 800.
The Sheraton Seattle is located in the heart of the downtown Seattle retail and entertainment district, one block from the Washington State Convention & Trade Center.
Media contacts: Kimberly Jones, Richmond Public Relations, (206) 682-6979; www.starwood.com
Silver Cloud Scores Between Sports Stadiums
The Silver Cloud Hotel Stadium opened in January 2007, across the street from Safeco Field and next to Qwest Field, just south of Seattle's Pioneer Square neighborhood. The nine-story property features 237 rooms and suites, 3,300 square feet of conference space, a fitness center, business center, complimentary guest laundry facilities and an open-air rooftop lap pool and sundeck. The hotel is home to Jimmy's On First, a new 5,700-square-foot restaurant with a sports bar and grill.
Media Contact: Brian Zuber, Silver Cloud Hotels, (425) 637-9800; www.silvercloud.com
Four Seasons Will Return to Seattle
Construction of the 21-story, $120 million Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences Seattle at First Avenue and Union Street downtown is well under way. The luxury property, which marks the highly-anticipated return of the Four Seasons brand to Seattle, will feature 149 guestrooms, 36 private residences, a signature water-view restaurant and event and meeting space, including an expansive ballroom and an outdoor infinity pool overlooking Elliott Bay. The project is being developed by Seattle Hotel Group LLC, which is comprised of local investors John Oppenheimer, president and CEO of Seattle-based Columbia Hospitality; former Seattle mayor Paul Schell; and entrepreneur Bruce McCaw. The project is scheduled to open in mid-2008.
Media Contact: Roger Nyhus, Seattle Hotel Group, (206) 323-3733.
Historic Seattle Men's Club Sees New Life as a Contemporary Hotel
The Arctic Club Hotel Seattle will open in spring 2008, with 120 rooms, 5,800 square feet of meeting space, a full restaurant and lounge and fitness center. The hotel is located in a historic building that is on the National Register of Historic Places and once housed a fraternal men's club founded by adventurers who had made their fortune in the Klondike gold rush. Photos of original club members will be prominently displayed throughout the hotel as a nod to the property's roots.
Media Contact: Lisa Nourse, Wilson Public Relations, (206) 838-8977.
New Hyatt Property Slated for 2009
The Hyatt brand is expanding its holdings in downtown Seattle with the construction of a $175 million, 39-story hotel-condominium project located one block north of the existing Grand Hyatt Hotel. Expected to open in January 2009, Hyatt at Olive 8 will feature 231 condominiums on the upper 22 floors and 346 hotel rooms on the lower 17 floors. On-site amenities available to both condominium owners and hotel guests include a spa, pool, maid and dry-cleaning services, valet parking and 24-hour room service in addition to separate lobbies and elevators for the hotel and condominium components of the building. Hyatt at Olive 8 will also contain 15,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space.
Media Contact: Lee Ann Benavidez, Grand Hyatt Seattle, (206) 774-1234; www.hyatt.com
Hyatt Place Hotel to Open in 2008
Development of a mixed-use Hyatt Place hotel is being planned for Sixth Avenue and Denny Way in the South Lake Union neighborhood. The hotel/condominium project will have 158 hotel rooms and 56 condominiums. Hyatt Place will open second quarter 2008.
Media Contact: Amy Patti, Hyatt Corporation, (312) 780-5620; www.hyatt.com
Eco-Friendly "1" Hotel Slated for 2010
Ground has broken on 1 Hotel & Residences, a 23-story, mixed use development on Second Avenue at Pine Street in downtown Seattle. The project includes 97 condominium units and 110 guestrooms and is the inaugural property under the 1 brand, which will combine five-star service with environmentally sustainable architecture and interior design. The Seattle hotel will be built to meet nationally accepted standards for the design, construction and operation of "green" buildings, as defined by the U.S. Green Building Council. The property is scheduled to open by 2010.
Media Contact: Margaret Nicoll, Gruman & Nicoll Public Relations, (425) 451-4387
CRUISES
Seattle Projects Record-High Cruise Business in 2008
Seattle's 2008 cruise season is another strong year for passenger volumes, according to Port of Seattle projections. The port anticipates 429,124 passengers and 208 sailings from Seattle. Five major cruise lines will homeport at Seattle's two cruise terminals. Cruise lines returning to the Seattle Homeport to offer cruises to Alaska's Inside Passage this season are Princess Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean and Seattle-based Holland America Line. Celebrity Cruises will offer three- and four-night Pacific Northwest Cruises in October 2008.
Seattle's cruise industry has experienced year-over-year growth since 1999 when the port hosted just six cruise ship visits. The Port of Seattle opened the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal in 2000 on Seattle's central waterfront and added the two-berth Terminal 30 in 2003 to help accommodate new cruise business. The 2007 cruise season logged another successful year with 190 sailings and passenger volumes of 390,040.
Media Contact: Mick Shultz, Port of Seattle, (206) 728-3091; www.portseattle.org.
ATTRACTIONS & TOURS
Seattle Aquarium's Expansion Opened in June
The Seattle Aquarium, located on the Seattle waterfront, reopened to the public on June 22, 2007 after a remodel and expansion. The project included replacing the pilings that support the aquarium's primary pier, an 18,000 square-foot expansion to the existing building, a completely new exterior and the addition of a 40-foot, 55,000-lb. viewing window into the new 120,000-gallon showcase exhibit.
Media Contact: Laura Austin, (206) 386-4329; www.seattleaquarium.org
Experience Music Project Debuts First Major Exhibition to Examine the Influence of Latinos in U.S. Popular Music
Experience Music Project, an interactive music museum, opened a new exhibit entitled American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music on Oct. 13. The exhibit is the first-ever bilingual and interactive museum exhibition that explores the influence and importance of Latinos in American popular music. The exhibition includes 100 artifacts such as Ritchie Valens' Harmony electric guitar and the Mexican-style vest he wore on American Bandstand in 1958, a gown and shoes worn by salsa star Celia Cruz, as well as oral history interviews with 45 Latino musicians. The exhibit will be at Experience Music Project through Sept. 7, 2008 followed by a national traveling tour.
Media Contact: Maggie Skinner, (206) 262-3245; www.emplive.org
NEIGHBORHOODS
The New "Seattle SLU:" A Neighborhood is Born
Seattle's South Lake Union (SLU) area is quickly transforming into a bustling urban neighborhood where there was previously only a commercial and industrial district. The rapid and deliberate development of "the SLU" includes a streetcar line, a new hotel, restaurants, residences, parks and a hub of facilities built specifically to house biotechnology companies. The 1.3-mile (each way) streetcar line, opened December 12 and connects the burgeoning neighborhood with Seattle's downtown retail core and the regional transit system. It will also provide convenient transportation to visitors, as well as those people who occupy South Lake Union's anticipated 15,000-23,000 new jobs and 8,000-10,000 new housing units. The SLU will offer visitors a place to stay, dine and recreate at a slower pace, just outside the hustle and bustle of downtown.
Media Contact: David Blandford, Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, (206) 461-5806
WINE NEWS
Gateway to Washington Wine
Ten miles northeast of Seattle, the town of Woodinville now boasts approximately 30 wineries and more are planned. Wine tourists flock to some of the state's largest wineries - Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia - and to a number of new boutique wineries, such as Betz Family Winery, Januik and Novelty Hill. Woodinville Village, a development that includes wineries, retail space, residential living and office space, broke ground in June 2006 with an estimated completion in 2008. The 22-acre village will be anchored by four local boutique wineries and feature restaurants, a hotel, a spa, 300 condominiums and more than 150,000 square feet of retail space. Brian Carter Cellars, De Lille Cellars, DiStefano and Washington Wine Company will all produce wines onsite and will have tasting rooms that are open to the public.
Washington State is the second-largest producer of premium wine in the United States, where a new state winery opens approximately every 15 days. Eight Washington wines made the Wine Enthusiast list of the Top 100 Wines of 2006. Four Washington wines were also in the top 100 on Wine Spectator magazine's "Round Up of the Year's Most Exciting Wines."
CONVENTION NEWS
Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau Builds New Visitors Center
Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau opened the new location of the Seattle Visitor Center and Concierge Services (formerly the Citywide Concierge Center) in the upper Pike Street lobby of the Washington State Convention & Trade Center. The new, highly-visible location allows the center to assist more visitors and convention attendees. The center features large plasma-screen displays of Seattle information, real-time Seattle Tacoma International Airport flight information and will include a self-service flight check-in kiosk by the end of first quarter 2008.
Media Contact: Heather Bryant, Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, (206) 461-5805
Washington State Convention & Trade Center to Purchase Additional Space
The Washington State Convention & Trade Center (WSCTC) acquired approximately 50,000 square feet of additional meeting and exhibit space with the purchase of the four-story 800 Pike Street building within the Convention Center complex. The interior of the building will undergo a complete redesign and renovation prior to its anticipated opening in 2010.
Media Contact: Michael McQuade, WSCTC, (206) 694-5105
AIR TRANSPORTATION
Sea-Tac Airport Undergoes World Class Upgrade
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) is experiencing a $4.2 billion upgrade that includes the construction of a third runway, enhanced transportation system, new terminals, enhanced security, updated retail, new concession areas and additional curbside baggage check-in locations.
Sea-Tac opened its Central Terminal as part of an ongoing upgrade. The new Central Terminal includes a dramatic new glassed-in courtyard with panoramic views of airport operations and the Olympic Mountains, retail shops and more than a dozen new eateries, including locally-known restaurants such as Ivar's, Uwajimaya, Red Hook Brew Pub, Dilettante Chocolates and Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Bar. In May 2004, the airport received a new and expanded 14-gate Concourse A and new adjoining South Arrivals Hall. Eight airlines operate from Concourse A, including: American, America West, China Airlines, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, Sun Country and US Airways. The airport's north loop portion of its Satellite Transit System (subway) was upgraded in 2003 with new track, improved control system, state-of-the-art trains, better signage and audio instructions. A re-built South Transit Station debuted in spring 2004. The Port of Seattle expects the entire airport upgrade to be completed in 2009.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport set a new record for numbers of passengers in 2006, according to the Port of Seattle, which operates the airport. Approximately 30 million passengers passed through Sea-Tac in 2006, up 2.4 percent over 2005.
Media contact: Rachel Garson, Port of Seattle, (206) 431-4923; www.portseattle.org.
Air France Sets up Shop at Sea-Tac
Air France entered the Seattle market on June 11 by inaugurating a new daily, non-stop route between Seattle and Paris. With the new service, the more than 50,000 people making the journey between Paris and Seattle annually will no longer need to connect through another city. Additionally, this makes Paris the fourth European city, along with London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen, which is directly accessible by air from Seattle. From the Air France hub in Paris's de Gaulle International Airport, travelers will be able to connect with flights to 126 European destinations in 34 countries.
Media Contact: Kristen Loughman, Air France US, (212) 830-4356
Lufthansa now offering direct flights to Germany
Lufthansa Airlines will begin daily non-stop service between Seattle and Frankfurt, Germany, beginning March 30, 2008. Lufthansa is the largest carrier of international passengers in the world and Frankfurt Airport is the eighth largest in the world. The service will be aboard a 221-seat Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
Media Contact: Ralph Lockwood, Huson International Media, (408) 879-6666; www.lufthansa.com.
Northwest Airlines Announces New Non-Stop Service to London Heathrow
The Port of Seattle and Northwest Airlines has announced the start of new international daily non-stop service between Seattle and London, to begin June 1, 2008. This is the fourth new international service added to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in 2007.
Media Contact: Northwest Airlines Media Relations, (612) 726-2331; www.nwa.com.
JetBlue Begins Two New Routes to Seattle
JetBlue begins two new routes to Seattle on May 21, 2008. Daily non-stop service from Long Beach, CA, will use both the 150-seat Airbus A320 and the 100-seat EMBRAER 190 aircraft. JetBlue also begins seasonal service from San Diego’s Lindbergh Field.
Media Contact: JetBlue Corporate Communications, (718) 709-3089; www.jetblue.com
Hainan Airlines Chooses Seattle as First United States Destination
Northwest Airlines will inaugurate new international daily non-stop service between London Heathrow Airport and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to begin June 1, 2008. Also, Hainan Airlines will offer non-stop service between Seattle and Beijing, beginning June 9, 2008. Sea-Tac Airport will be the first United States destination served by Hainan Airlines. Hainan Airlines will start service using an Airbus A330-200 but has ordered Boeing 787s for future use.
Media Contact: Roger Nyhus, Nyhus Public Relations, (206) 323-3733
Virgin America to Begin Flights Between Seattle and San Francisco and Los Angeles
Virgin America began service between San Francisco International Airport and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) on March 18, 2008, with three daily roundtrip flights. The airline will also begin three daily roundtrips between Los Angeles International Airport and Sea-Tac on April 8, 2008. Virgin America plans to add a fourth flight to the route beginning on May 11, 2008.
Media Contact: Abby Lunardini, Virgin America, (650) 533-7576
Aeroméxico Flies into Seattle Market
On July 4, 2007 Aeroméxico began the first direct route from Sea-Tac to Mexico City, Mexico. Latin America's largest carrier, Aeroméxico's new service from the Seattle area will feature connections to major Mexican destinations such as Veracruz, Acapulco, Cancun and Oaxaca, among others. Arriving and departing from Sea-Tac's South Satellite, the route will be served by new Boeing 737-700 aircrafts.
Media Contact: Heather Bryant, Seattle's Convention & Visitors Bureau, (206) 461-5805; www.visitseattle.org.
Air Canada Announces New Seattle-Calgary Service
Air Canada expanded its services to and from Seattle on June 1, 2007 with the addition of a new Calgary route. As part of Air Canada's Jazz brand, service consists of daily, non-stop service aboard a Canadian-made Bombardier CRJ aircraft.
Media Contact: Air Canada Media Relations, media.relations@aircanada.ca
American Airlines Adds Seattle to Austin, Texas Route
On April 10, 2007, American Airlines began new service between Austin, Texas and Seattle. A 136-seat MD80 aircraft will serve the route, making one round-trip a day.
Media Contact: American Airlines Corporate Communications, (817) 967-1577; www.aa.com
Midwest Airlines Ventures Into the Pacific Northwest
Midwest Airlines launched a new route between Milwaukee and Seattle on June 18, 2007. Daily service includes a mid-morning departure from Milwaukee and an early afternoon departure from Seattle. Midwest Airlines also began daily nonstop service between Kansas City and Seattle on April 1, 2007.
Media Contact: Randy Smith, 414-570-3665; www.midwestairlines.com
Alaska Airlines to Inaugurate Service to Hawaii
Alaska Airlines has announced it will begin flights between Seattle and two Hawaiian destinations in October 2007. On Oct. 12, the airline will inaugurate daily nonstop service to Honolulu, followed by the commencement of service to Lihue, on the island of Kauai, on Oct. 28. The new flights will be operated by a Boeing 737-800, accommodating 16 first class passengers and 141 in the main cabin.
In the past five years, Alaska Airlines has expanded its route structure eastward from its Seattle hub to include Washington, D.C., Newark, Boston, Miami, Orlando, Denver and Chicago, as well as Dallas/Fort Worth.
Media Contact: Alaska Airlines Corporate Communications, (206) 392-5101; www.alaskaair.com
Download in PDF format.
Contacts:
David Blandford,
(206) 461-5806,
dblandford@visitseattle.org
Heather Bryant,
(206) 461-5805,
hbryant@visitseattle.org
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