There are many reasons people flock to SkySong in southern Scottsdale — and one of the biggest reasons is its growing reputation as a meeting destination.

SkySong now hosts more than 4,500 events each year in its 14,000 square feet of conference spaces, bringing more than 63,000 people into the project and the Scottsdale community. With 16 different meeting venues to choose from, it offers a unique hub found nowhere else in Greater Phoenix.  And this doesn’t even include the outdoor offerings at the 38-acre campus.

And with the opening of the new Element Hotel at SkySong, the draw of SkySong as a meeting, conference and event location is growing even stronger — providing yet another reason for business travelers to go to Scottsdale and cementing the city’s reputation as a hub for commerce and tourism.

“We have always considered SkySong a gathering place for innovation, and that includes it becoming a central point for collaboration,” said Sharon Harper, President & CEO of Plaza Companies, the master developer of the project. “These types of meetings and conferences help make SkySong even more dynamic and impactful over time.”

The Element Hotel at SkySong has added a key feature to the property for meetings and conferences — the proximity of an on-site hotel that can host business travelers coming to SkySong from out of town.

“We are seeing a great deal of business travel occupying our new Element Hotel at SkySong.  The meeting capabilities and spacious rooms on the property are certainly one of the biggest reasons for this,” said Joe Blewitt, Vice President of Asset Management for Jackson Shaw, the developer of the Element Hotel at SkySong. “SkySong offers a tremendous amount of synergy for the Element.  We have been able to staff the hotel with ambassadors of customer service, who are able to not only accommodate the needs of the SkySong visitor, but also provide a resource for those planning such events.” 

The impact of SkySong’s meeting space goes beyond the project’s boundaries and has a positive impact on the community as a whole, said Rachel Sacco, President & CEO of Experience Scottsdale.

“Meetings and conferences play an essential role in Scottsdale’s tourism industry, giving people all over the world reasons to visit and explore Scottsdale,” Sacco said. “The city is privileged to have SkySong in its portfolio, as it offers meeting groups a sleek and innovative space to host their events. Plus, groups that meet at SkySong are in close proximity to nearby hotels, restaurants, shops and attractions in both South Scottsdale and Old Town. Once SkySong’s thousands of meeting attendees get a taste of all that Scottsdale has to offer, they are sure to return.”

Plaza Companies is the master developer of the overall SkySong development, in partnership with Holualoa Companies; University Realty, a subsidiary of ASU Enterprise Partners; and the City of Scottsdale.

With the opening of the new SkySong 5 office building and the Element Hotel at SkySong, the overall developed space at SkySong now exceeds 750,000 square feet.

SkySong is a 42-acre mixed use development designed to:

• Create an ecology of collaboration and innovation among high-profile technology enterprises and related researchers;

• Advance global business objectives of on-site enterprises;

• Raise Arizona’s profile as a global center of innovation through co-location of ASU’s strategic global partners; and

• Create a unique regional economic and social asset.

Companies located at SkySong have the opportunity to partner with Arizona State University, which has more than 100,000 students studying across four metropolitan Phoenix campuses, in Lake Havasu City, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and online. ASU is one of the largest public universities in the nation, with the majority of its students attending its campus in Tempe, Arizona, less than three miles from SkySong. 

In addition to locating its own innovative research units at the center, through ASU’s on-site operations, tenant companies have a single point of contact for introductions to researchers, faculty and programs to address their specific needs, including through the web site corporate.asu.edu.

For more information on SkySong, visit www.skysong.com or www.facebook.com/skysongcenter.