Javits center to expand in Manhattan The plan to upgrade, expand and modernize the Jacob J. Javits Center cleared a big hurdle last week when the New York legislature gave the plan the go-ahead. Come 2010, Javits' exhibit space will grow from 760,000 square feet to 1.1 million, a 45 percent increase. Meeting space should increase 600 percent, from 30,000 to 210,000 square feet, and the center will house the city's largest ballroom ...
Hilton, N.Y. union announce pact Hilton Hotels Corp. on Saturday announced a tentative agreement with the New York Hotel and Motel Trades Council on a new contract for the Hilton New York and Waldorf-Astoria Hotels, along with a five-year agreement with labor union Unite Here called "Partnership for Future Growth." Among the terms of that accord, Hilton and Unite Here "will work together toward labor peace in other cities." This development is interesting in light of the union's push over the last year to align contract expiration dates in cities across North America, which would give the union considerable clout in negotiating with multinational hotel chains ...
Riders revealed Singer Michael Bolton demands "real, not faxed menus" from the area's "finest restaurants." He also requires that his clothing be pressed by hand with a covered iron. Rockers the All-American Rejects specify kid-fave Fruity Pebbles cereal. The wacky world of contract riders--the demands that performers place on those who hire them--came to light this summer when the Orange County (Calif.) Fair released its riders. As a state agency, its contracts must be made public. Other perks of the privileged: songbird Linda Ronstadt requires four doctors to be available--a throat specialist, general practitioner, dentist and chiropractor--along with a massage therapist ...
Odd hours, long hours! Event planners can plan on working at least 50 hours a week and on nights and weekends, according to a story last week in the Wall Street Journal. In evaluating the profession as a career, the Journal says that "the client's reaction" is the best part of the job, while "balancing client demands" is the worst part.
