Braving the Mid-Atlantic Storms

They've braved the wind, they've struggled through the snow and they've survived the floods. Though clearly worthy of positions with the U.S. Postal Service, some tradeshow managers don't want government jobs, just successful events in the Mid-Atlantic region. Convention and visitors bureau heads and facility managers want this for them too and, short of playing God, they aren't doing too bad.

The Mid-Atlantic states have suffered their share of inclement weather, most notably in 2003, when Hurricane Isabelle tore through the region in September, and over the President's Day weekend when Washington, D.C. suffered its worst snowstorm in seven years. Yet, except for a few problems, the heads of convention and visitors bureaus and facility managers insist that weather hassles of late have been freak occurrences, with weather generally mild in comparison to ice storms in the Northeast and tropical storms farther south. They also noted that convention centers lay relatively dormant during the winter, so cancellations and postponements haven't been an issue.

Still, things can get rough. The President's Day weekend storm last year blew the roof off the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum in Baltimore and the museum isn't scheduled to reopen until November. In addition, a Baltimore water taxi full of passengers capsized while traveling from one side of the harbor to the other.

Understandably, weather problems, and how facilities deal with them, are a factor for show managers considering holding shows in the region. The Mid-Atlantic region may not get a lot of harsh storms, but when they do hit, they catch the area off guard, according to Brooke Selby, group vice president of IDG World Expo. "Weather problems are all relative to that city's understanding of what is the norm," she pointed out.

Selby said she had a difficult time when six inches of snow fell during the COMNET Conference & Expo held Jan. 26-29 at the Washington (D.C.) Convention Center. While Selby said a storm of that size wouldn't even close schools farther north, D.C. literally shut down for the last two days of the show with many temp staffers and local exhibitors and attendees unable to get to the convention center.

After 26 years in the city, Selby said, her team may be changing both the date and location of COMNET next year, for a number of reasons, including the unpredictable weather.

"The weather can be unexpected, even extreme at times, but it rarely affects downtown, where convention travel takes place," said Kristin Zissel, travel media and marketing manager for the Baltimore Area Convention & Visitors Assn.

She noted that hotels, restaurants and attractions are all within a short walk of the convention center. In addition, most convention business takes place during the summer, specifically from April through November. "We tend to get one to two doozie snowstorms a year, but that's it," Zissel said.

The Pennsylvania Convention Center doesn't even try to book major conventions during the winter, using that time for routine maintenance, according to Marissa Vee Phillip, communications coordinator for the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau. Plus, local events keep the center busy during the winter months, most notably the annual New Year's Day Mummers Parade. The oldest folk parade in the country, this event draws visitors from around the world. Close to 30,000 people march through the streets to the convention center, decorated in sequins and feathers, playing banjos and singing. The convention center hosts performances and a slew of craft exhibits.

In March, just a month before tradeshow activity really picks up, the center hosts the Philadelphia Flower Show. At that time of year, "It could snow a foot or be beautiful weather," Phillip said.

Michael Myers, general manager of the Greater Richmond Convention Center in Virginia, said his facility was designed with bad weather in mind. It has a wide roof overhang to protect the sidewalks from filling up with snow, and it's got its own backup electrical power supply. As a result, during Hurricane Isabelle, the lights at his facility stayed on, unlike those at most of the surrounding hotels and older downtown buildings. Nor did the structure sustain any serious damage. Even so, Myers said three events planned for that weekend were rescheduled. Despite the storms and cold fronts, he maintained the weather isn't a major concern of show organizers looking to book at his facility. "You can't predict the weather," he said.

Rebecca Lenington, executive vice president of the Pennsylvania Recreational Vehicle & Camping Assn., echoed that sentiment. "We've been through everything here," she said, referring to the Pennsylvania RV & Camping Show held every September at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, Pa. The show has survived a flood, a tornado and even carried on shortly after Sept. 11, when the U.S. government was building an onsite bunker to use for agents hunting for anthrax in tons of mail.

The association is determined to keep its September dates. "We're pretty well locked into when the RVs come out," she said. "The show has to be held when the units are introduced."

During the flood in 1999 – which hit the first day of the show – a foot of muddy creek water rose up to flow through the 300,000 net square feet of outdoor space on which new RVs were parked. That night, she and her labor crew, who usually are done washing all 1,200 of the show's vehicles once things begin, rewashed every last unit.

"It's what you do. Everybody just works together," Lenington said. At the end of the show, she passed out "I survived the flood" T-shirts. Would the weather ever prevent her from returning to Harrisburg in the future? "Oh no. We have to do it there. There are very few facilities that can accommodate us with so much product," she explained. "It's wet but, hey, we're hardy. We're campers."