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Bently ReserveWow your attendees in the heart of downtown San Francisco at the beaux arts-style Bently Reserve, a massive meetings and events venue that occupies nearly a whole city block. Built in 1924, the venue has a deep history. Two ships, the Apollo and Niantic, were discovered beneath its foundation in 1925, and it once served as a major branch of the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Now on the National Register of Historic Places, it underwent a two-year renovation, as well as the addition of Bently Conference Center, in 2008. Restored features—think ornate molding and marble, rich walnut paneling and antique fireplaces—add a modern (thanks to LEED certification) yet nostalgic touch to the building, and an impressive mural by artist Jules Guerin welcomes guests as they enter the lobby.

For meetings, there is more than 14,000 square feet of space split among meeting rooms, boardrooms, a ballroom and a lounge. Eight smaller rooms accommodate groups of 10 to 68 people and, in addition to the conference center lounge, have more than 6,400 total square feet of usable space. The opulent 8,000-sq.-ft. Banking Hall was named the best ballroom in North America by BizBash in 2013.

Grand Theatre Center for the ArtsPlanners can add cultural flair to events in Northern California at the historic Grand Theatre Center for the Arts. Located in Tracy, California, the Grand Theatre is an hour’s drive from Sacramento and a 90-minute drive from San Francisco. This 37,000-sq.-ft. venue originally opened in 1923 as a vaudeville house and now regularly hosts plays, concerts, comedy shows and weekly Friday night jazz performances. “The beauty of the original brick walls in the lobby combined with the new retro style of the renovation makes the venue especially appealing,” says Kim Scarlata, division manager of the Tracy city manager’s office.

The Grand Theatre Center has two separate meeting spaces. Eleni Tsakopoulos-Kounalakis Theatre (known among locals as ETK) seats 584 people and has advanced audiovisual capabilities. The more intimate Studio Theatre can accommodate up to 104 guests.

PLACES | SITE VISITS

70 COLLABORATE  FEBRUARY/MARCH 2015

Insider TipPlanners can use Bently Reserve iPads in each meeting room to customize lighting, windows, projectors and other technology with a single swipe.

Insider TipStop for a bite at new gastropub The Commons, a five-minute walk from Grand Theatre Center, to dine on farm-to-fork dishes or wind down with barrel-aged cocktails.

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