Remington's closure sends organizations searching

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Other area venues seizing opportunity |ret||ret||tab|

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by Paul Schreiber|ret||ret||tab|

SBJ Reporter|ret||ret||tab|

pschreiber@sbj.net |ret||ret||tab|

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When Remington's nightclub at 1655 W. Republic closed in late July, it left some area organizations looking for a new home to hold their events. |ret||ret||tab|

The facility was purchased by Ridgecrest Baptist Church for $3.3 million. Ridgecrest's plans, which include keeping the site alcohol- and tobacco-free, rule out a number of events that have been held at Remington's in recent years.|ret||ret||tab|

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Wingapalooza|ret||ret||tab|

For the last three years, Remington's hosted the Sertoma Club of Springfield's annual restaurant chicken wing competition, Wingapalooza. The event, which netted more than $20,000 last year, was scheduled for Nov. 10, but had to be shifted a week earlier to Nov. 3 and moved to the Clarion Hotel, said Bruce Helm, Sertoma president.|ret||ret||tab|

The logistics of moving the three-year-old event that has grown from more than 1,700 visitors to about 2,300 visitors were formidable, Helm said.|ret||ret||tab|

"We had to scramble quite a bit to try to find a location that would be big enough" to accommodate the crowd, band staging area, restaurant personnel and their gear, Helm said.|ret||ret||tab|

Additionally, the move to Clarion cost Sertoma about $500. Remington's didn't charge a facility fee because management retained alcohol sales during the event.|ret||ret||tab|

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Ozarks Literacy Council|ret||ret||tab|

The annual Ozarks Literacy Council's Pizza Bowl held on the Tuesday before the NFL Super Bowl is looking for a new venue, said Paula Shumaker, executive director. The event is slated for Feb. 1, 2005.|ret||ret||tab|

Working to nail a location down by the Literacy Council's Sept. 15 meeting, president Mike Sowers said he hoped the potential for drink sales would prove attractive to area venues. |ret||ret||tab|

"Certainly, cocktails and beverages are probably not an insubstantial part of the evening," Sowers added.|ret||ret||tab|

More than 800 people attended last year's event, which pitted local pizza vendors and national pizza chains against each other in a taste competition, Sowers said. The event raised about $12,000 to be applied to Ozarks Literacy Council's various adult and children's programs, he added.|ret||ret||tab|

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Local fallout|ret||ret||tab|

After Remington's shut down, Oasis Inn and Convention Center received calls from organizations that held or were scheduled to hold event at Remington's, said Shelby Williams, sales and marketing director for Oasis. |ret||ret||tab|

The facility is currently working on a $6 million renovation that should be completed next spring.|ret||ret||tab|

One of those events, the International Beer Festival, was able to secure Oasis the same date it had previously scheduled at Remington's May 7, 2005, said Annie Carlyn, director of marketing and special events for Springfield Little Theater.|ret||ret||tab|

The four-year-old festival had between 3,500 and 4,000 people in attendance at Remington's this year, Carlyn said. Proceeds benefit Springfield Ballet, Springfield Little Theater and Springfield Regional Opera. Carlyn did not have a dollar total for the event.|ret||ret||tab|

Remington's closure shouldn't impact the Springfield Convention and Visitor's Bureau's work of securing incoming groups to Springfield, said Dana Maugans, director of sales.|ret||ret||tab|

The CVB booked nearly 50 events in Springfield last year at venues ranging from schools and churches to the Springfield Expo Center and the Ozark Empire Fairground's E-Plex, Maugans said.|ret||ret||tab|

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E-Plex and Expo|ret||ret||tab|

Pat Lloyd, general manager of the 80,000-square-foot E-Plex, said he hadn't been contacted by any groups since Remington's shutdown. |ret||ret||tab|

The E-Plex employs primarily print media, as well as bus backs and billboards to generate business, he said, adding that about 90 percent of weekends are already sold for next year.|ret||ret||tab|

Bob Pottberg, general manager of University Plaza Hotel and Convention Center, echoed Lloyd's position and said he had seen little to no business moving to the 95,000-square-foot Springfield Expo Center.|ret||ret||tab|

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