There’s something apropos about MPI planning its World Education Congress (WEC) 2020 in Grapevine, Texas.
Back around the mid 1840s—for you non-Texans, this would be about seven years after the Battle of the Alamo—Sam Houston, president of the Republic of Texas, sent word to the American Indian nations in North Texas that he wanted to meet to propose a treaty of “peace, friendship and commerce” and to cease fighting between the Texas settlers and the tribes.
Houston and his fellow Texans gathered at Tah-Wah-Karro Creek, also known as Grape Vine Springs. Representatives from the Delaware, Chickasaw, Waco, Tawakoni, Keechie, Caddo, Anadarko, Ionie (or Hasinai), Biloxi and Cherokee nations joined, and the meeting concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Birds Fort.
“Grapevine, you see, has always been a meeting ground, a place where people come together, a place where people meet,” says Grapevine Mayor William D. Tate.
Grapevine, and the Gaylord Texan Resort, is again a face-to-face epicenter Nov. 3-6 for WEC Grapevine.
Grape Vine Springs, named for the wild grapes that grew in the area, would become Grapevine in 1907, and the city has since built a legacy as a meetings and leisure destination. Nestled between Dallas and Fort Worth, Grapevine is quintessential Texas, with a thriving main street and a growing meetings sector, all at the northern doorstop of one of the largest airports in the world, Dallas Fort Worth International.
“People come to Grapevine because they want to see Texas,” Tate says. “Main streets are dying all across America, but ours is thriving. People love coming to see a piece of Americana and that’s what we have, and it’s real, it’s authentic.”
“People come to Grapevine because they want to see Texas,” Tate says. “Main streets are dying all across America, but ours is thriving. People love coming to see a piece of Americana and that’s what we have, and it’s real, it’s authentic.”
Tate knows a thing or two about Grapevine. His grandfather was the town’s first night watchman and his father served as mayor. Tate, still spry at 77, followed his father’s footsteps and is now one of the longest serving mayors in Texas—he was first elected in 1973 and has served in the office for 43 years.
Under his leadership, and in conjunction with the Grapevine CVB, Grapevine is all about meetings and events. The city—the self-proclaimed “Christmas Capital of Texas”—is the site of the Grapevine Vintage Railroad, the city’s Glockenspiel, 80 boutique shops, an urban wine trail, restaurants and artisans. It is also home to GrapeFest, the largest wine festival in the southwest U.S.
“A great place to visit must first be a great place to live,” says transplanted Australian Paul W. McCallum, executive director of the Grapevine CVB. “Meetings is our business. It’s the No. 1 revenue generator and the No. 1 employer. It is our business, and to that end, we really put a full citywide focus on it. Everyone in the city knows it and embraces it, not because they have to, but because they want to.”
The Gaylord Texan, situated on 125 acres at the southern tip of Lake Grapevine, has 1,814 guest rooms and nearly 500,000 square feet of flexible pre-function, meeting and exhibit space. The property has four ballrooms and 100 meeting and breakout rooms. The Gaylord recently completed a $120 million expansion, adding 300 guest rooms and 86,000 square feet of meeting space. The live-music venue the Glass Cactus, which overlooks Lake Grapevine, will be the site of the MPI Foundation’s Rendezvous event on Nov. 5.
With the Gaylord, the city has more than 1 million square feet of meeting space supported by 20 hotels.
