• Adams Memorial Hospital; • Adams Public Library; • Riverside Center; and • Coming in 2016 – Pennsy Train Depot.
Adams County
Allen County City of Decatur 260-724-7171 decaturin.org PHOTO CONTRIBUTED
County highlights The city of Decatur has embraced its motto – “Artistically Inspired Innovation” – and is promoting its artistic past, present and future. In its fifth year in 2015, the tour has attracted thousands of visitors – locally and nationwide. The success of the tour has aided in revitalizing downtown Decatur, as well as putting Decatur “on the map.” The city also boasts a newly-energized North Adams Arts Council that provides the gamut of art classes – weaving to painting to sculpture to calligraphy – for ages 3 to 103. Wellness also has taken a front seat, with a volunteer committee planning a variety of wellness initiatives, including suggested walking patterns to installing an artistically-inspired bicycle rack in the downtown area. Did you know? Decatur is the hometown of nationally-renowned artists. David Smith is widely heralded as the greatest American metal sculptor of the 20th century. And, Decatur is the hometown of director David Anspaugh, who directed the classic movies “Hoosiers” and “Rudy” as well as the television series “Hill Street Blues.” Where to eat? • Back 40 Junction, 1011 N. 13th St., Decatur, worldfamousback40junction.com (260) 724-3355 • Niblicks Bistro, 208 W. Monroe St., Decatur, niblicksbistro.org (260) 223-8466 • Marko’s on 2nd, 135 S. 2nd St., Decatur,(260) 724-8880 What to do? • Decatur Sculpture Tour • Rivergreenway Trails system • Historic U.S. 27 in downtown Decatur • Coming in 2016 – Pennsy Train Depot Local meeting and event tips: A variety of venues in Decatur are offered at a free or reduced rate for non-profit groups. These include: Page 4
Visit Fort Wayne (800) 767-7752 visitfortwayne.com PHOTO CONTRIBUTED
County highlights As Indiana’s second largest city, Fort Wayne is the home to more than 250,000 people and 5.8 million visitors each year. Annually, Fort Wayne hosts more than 150 meetings, conventions and sports tournaments thanks to first-rate meeting venues, affordable hotels, and first-class entertainment and dining choices. What makes Fort Wayne stand apart? Visitors to our city receive all the big city amenities without paying big city prices. In fact, Fort Wayne is 15 percent more affordable in expenses across the board than you’ll find in other major cities, including hotel, parking, venue and dining costs. Additionally, meeting planners have learned their attendees experience our famous Hoosier hospitality and receive media attention that they don’t receive in other cities. Many groups visit a city only to feel like just another event in town. In Fort Wayne, our hospitality industry professionals and local media ensure guests feel special throughout the duration of their visit. Did you know? The Genealogy Center, located in the Allen County Public Library Main Branch, has one of the largest genealogical collections in the United States. Thousands of genealogists travel to Fort Wayne to spend days researching their family ancestries. The Genealogy Center is open seven days a week, fully staffed with trained genealo-
gists, and free to use. Where to eat? Over the last few years, the following have been popular choices among visitors: • JK O’Donnells, 121 W. Wayne St., jkodonnells.com (260) 420-5563 • Shigs In Pit, 2008 Fairfield Ave.,shigsinpit.com (260) 387-5903 • Club Soda, 235 E. Superior St., clubsodafortwayne.com (260) 426-3442 More recently, the following have become top dining destinations to hungry visitors: • Wine Down, 301 W. Jefferson Blvd., Suite 100, winedownfw.com (260) 755-1019 • Hoppy Gnome, 203 E. Berry St., hoppygnome.com (260) 422-0070 • Hideout 125, 10350 Coldwater Road, hideout125.com (260) 206-6192 What to do? When visitors travel to Fort Wayne, Visit Fort Wayne is ready to share all the fun things to do in town. The Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Parkview Field and Fort Wayne Outfitters are great experiences for outdoor fun, while Science Central, Museum of Art and Genealogy Center are common indoor activities. Local meeting and event tips: Visit Fort Wayne offers several free resources to meeting planners looking to host a conference, convention or sporting tournament. With more 30 years of combined experience, Visit Fort Wayne’s sales team can assist in helping you bid on an event, select a meeting venue and hotel, make a bid presentation, plan off-site activities, and promote your event. Any meeting planner can go to visitfortwayne.com/ meetings to learn new ways on how to plan a meeting or contact a Visit Fort Wayne sale team member. Again, all services are free.
DeKalb County County highlights Auburn is known as “Home of the Classics” due to its automotive heritage, of which began with experimentation of the automobile in 1895. Auburn had several carriage companies which eventually developed into the Auburn Automobile Company. During the early 1920s, the company produced the Auburn, Cord and Duesenberg automobiles which are highly prized today for their design and ingenuity. Over the years, Auburn has preserved its heritage with two world class museums, the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum and National Auto and Truck Museum, both are National Historic Landmarks.
Meeting & Event Guide • 2016 • fwbusiness.com • ©KPC Media Group Inc.