2009 Update

Dear Friends of Farpoint,

Our website has been updated to start our 2009 news and planning.  One big piece of news is up already:

We are excited and pleased to announce that Farpoint 2009 will be held on February 13-15, 2009 at the CROWNE PLAZA hotel in Timonium, MD.  The hotel’s address is 2004 Greenspring Drive, Timonium MD, 21093.  It is located at exit 16A (Timonium Road East) off I-83.  The hotel’s telephone numbers are 1-410-252-7373 (direct) and 1-877-2-CROWNE (1-877-227-6963 for reservations).  You can visit the hotel online at http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/cp/1/en/hotel/BALLT/welcome.  Our room block at the Crowne Plaza will be available for reservations soon.

Why change from our longtime home at Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn?  The reasons are:

1.  Economic.  Both hotels gave us proposals for 2009, and the Crowne Plaza’s was low enough to allow us to keep our 2009 membership rates for fans and dealers at the 2008 levels.  Crowne Plaza’s room rate of $124/night is also less than the rate of $129/night from Hunt Valley Inn.

2.  Amenities.  Both hotels are right off of I-83.  Both hotels have free parking, and both have a nearby light rail station.  Above and beyond this, the newly remodeled Crowne Plaza offered many upgraded and additional amenities that will be of interest to everyone.
a.  Free wi-fi internet access in the public areas and the sleeping rooms.
b.  3 separate elevator banks, which brings more sleeping rooms closer to an elevator.
c.  Multiple street level entrances for loading and unloading.
d.  Hopefully, a brand new indoor swimming pool.   This is hopefully, as construction is slated to start late spring/early summer 2008.
e.  A brand new restaurant and bar, with a variety of menu options and pricing.  And yes, the bar has a blender!

There are many other behind-the-scenes amenities that Crowne Plaza offers that made this choice attractive to us - things that will make our work organizing and running the convention easier, so that we can bring you an even better Farpoint in 2009.

This was not an easy decision, given the long-standing relationship we have with Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn.  They even countered their initial offer with a lower one in an attempt to win the bid over the Crowne Plaza, as HVI really does value our business.  However, HVI’s second bid was still greater than Crowne Plaza’s, making our decision purely an economic one.  This is not to say we will never go back to HVI; the door there is always open for us and we will continue to solicit proposals from them when our venue contract is up for renewal.

While change is never easy, it is definitely exciting.  We are looking forward to next year’s convention already, and we hope to see all of you join us in February 2009!

Sharon Van Blarcom
Sandy Zier-Teitler
Farpoint co-chairs, on behalf of the Farpoint Committee