8 Best Places to Reserve Conference Rooms in Birmingham

8 Best Places to Reserve Conference Rooms in Birmingham

Forge News and Updates | 1 comment

Looking for a place to meet in Birmingham? Move your team to a conference room for your next off-site meeting. A change of scenery could help generate your next big idea. Maybe you need space for a board of directors or meet up group- look at this list we’ve compiled! Check out our list of the best conference rooms in Birmingham (in no specific order)!

 

Forge

 

Sitting at the heart of downtown Birmingham, Forge offers three beautifully designed conference rooms available for both members and visitors. At Forge, you have options of a smaller 4-person meeting room, a corner conference room, or a rooftop Penthouse conference room. Forge’s rooms have lots of natural light, audio and visual capabilities, and great views overlooking the Birmingham skyline. Book your meeting room today!

 

 

 

 

 

Forge Birmingham Conference Room

Forge Birmingham Conference Room

 

Forge’s soundproofed Podcast Room

Social Venture

 

Located in Woodlawn, Social Venture has four conference rooms available. Anyone can rent for 4-hour blocks or an all day rate. These four rooms can be broken down to fit smaller groups, or used to full capacity (holding up to 125 people!), perfect for workshops or training sessions for your team.

 

 

The Hub

 

The Hub is a collaborative coworking space located in Homewood. Whether you’re an entrepreneur eager to take your start-up to the next level, an established company seeking a vibrant work space for your remote employees, The Hub could be the perfect spot for you. They has meeting space for up to 15 people. The room is complete with a 40” HDMI Chromecast enabled screen, WIFI, lounge, greenspace and Seeds Coffee available upon request.

 

 

 

Birmingham Museum of Art

 

Looking to meet in a space with lots of culture, years of history, and a great location? The Birmingham Museum of Art has two meeting spaces available in 4-hour blocks. The museum has one boardroom style room and another meeting room that can be configured to fit many different layouts. The smallest of the two can hold up to 12 people, and the larger can fit up to 45.

 

With AV capabilities and lots of great spaces to take a break, the Birmingham Museum of Art is a great place to hold your business meetings.

 

 

 

Grand Bohemian Hotel Mountain Brook

 

Located in the heart of Mountain Brook, this beautiful 5-star hotel offers more than just a place to stay. The 400-person ballroom can be split up into three sections, each holding around 100 people. On the second floor, smaller rooms of 10, 20, and 30-35 people are available for anyone to rent. Call ahead to customize and book your space.

 

 

 

 

Worx BHM

 

Worx BHM is a sophisticated community with luxury private office suites and coworking space. With two different locations, they have great options for your group! One location is right off Lakeshore Blvd and the other is off Columbiana. Worx has two conference rooms available to book- one holds 16-20 and the other holds 12-16! People can email info@worxbhm.com or call 205-379-6023 to reserve a time slot.

 

 

 

Elyton Hotel

 

Located all the way up on the 16th floor, three rooms can be used separately or joined to form one larger meeting room. 1500 square feet make up the Empire room, made to hold up to 125 guests. This room can be split up and configured to accommodate smaller groups. A smaller pre-function area makes this space perfect for larger events and receptions.

 

If you’re looking for a spot to hold bigger board meetings, the Forge room is the perfect answer. Made to fit around 10-30 people, this room can be set up to fit any preference. Call ahead to reserve your room today! Check it out online here. 

 

 

 

The Edge of Chaos

 

The Edge of Chaos is another great option for smaller groups. Right in downtown Birmingham, these two conference rooms are located in a perfect spot for business meetings. The smaller of the two is designed to seat 6, and the bigger can hold up to 12 people. With smartboard capabilities and affordable prices, The Edge of Chaos may be perfect for your business!

 

 

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What Forge’s 2nd Birthday Means to Founder, Kim Lee

What Forge’s 2nd Birthday Means to Founder, Kim Lee

Forge News and Updates | 3 comments

 

We make a big deal out of celebrating birthdays at our house.  In our family, we celebrate not just the day but the whole month.  During your birthday month you get a lot of very special privileges: sitting in the favorite seat at the dinner table, first to get dessert, random singing of happy birthday… We make an extra effort to make the birthday boy or girl feel loved and appreciated as we reflect on the very special role they play in our family.  Birthdays always lead me to reflect on just how quickly times passes and that I am thankful for each and every day with my family.

 

As we come to the end of Forge’s birthday month, I have gone through a lot of the same reflections and thankfulness of this journey that we are on together. I underestimated both the difficulty of opening a business and growing it to a thriving community, as well as the joy it brings.  I love seeing Forge filled with people who have a place that they are proud to work as they are drawn out of isolation at home and now have thriving businesses because they are surrounded by people who push themselves to grow.  It is truly a privilege to serve so many amazing companies every day.  I am humbled and thankful for the members of Forge who choose us as their place to work.

 

 

Over the past two years (and really the two years before that as I was building Forge) I have seen tremendous support from the Birmingham community.  One of the magical things happening now in our Magic City is the championing of new businesses.  At Forge, we love being a part of helping businesses start and grow. As a business owner I have also experienced the same support and encouragement from both our members and other business owners and leaders in Birmingham. We are part of an amazing business-building ecosystem that I do not take for granted!

 

I am also extremely grateful for the team at Forge who make the vision a reality. Over the past two years we have had one full time staff person (we all love Kelsey!), several part-time staff members, and four interns.  Each and every team member tirelessly serves the members of Forge. Because I underestimated how much I needed to grow as leader before I opened Forge I am that much more thankful for the team that has walked this journey with me, patiently helped me become a better leader and ultimately made Forge a special place for our members.

 

Birthdays are special and they are worth celebrating.  We are thankful to be celebrating with you!

Forge Turned 2 Years Old!

Forge Turned 2 Years Old!

Forge News and Updates | 0 comments

We combined our 2nd Birthday with Member Appreciation Week! Without our loyal members there would be no anniversary to celebrate.  Food, drink, champagne and massages were all involved in the celebration. We planned something special for each day of the week to show our members how much we care for them!

Tuesday: breakfast from Magic Muffin

Magic Muffin has always been a Forge family favorite. Muffins, scones and fruit to get the week started right!

 

 

Wednesday: Massages from Adrian Ward of Relaxation Room

Free ten minute massages from Massage Therapist Adrian Ward for our members! Adrian visits Forge monthly and schedules massages for the Forge community. She is an amazing massage therapist and our members certainly love having her around!

 

Thursday: Cake + Champagne + Birthday Surprise

We surprised our members with Forge t-shirts for everyone!

 

 

Friday: Lunch Sponsored by Pies & Pints

Huge thanks to Pie & Pints for sponsoring a huge lunch for our members! Pizza and salad all around! It was a great time for members to relax and get connect with one another.

 

 

We take pride in the Forge community and want to share some of our favorite aspects of Forge with you:

OVER 130 FORGE MEMBERS IN OUR WORKSPACE

 

WE ARE A LOCAL COMPANY IN THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN

 

EDUCATIONAL AND NETWORKING EVENTS EACH MONTH (most of which are open to the public!)

 

CONFERENCE ROOMS THAT ARE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

 

 

Do you work from a home office or coffee shops? Do you want to increase your productivity? If you’d like to schedule a tour of our space, email us at info@workatforge.com. We’d love to answer any of your questions about memberships or meeting spaces. Join the Forge community today!

Lincoln Theatre undergoes restoration in Bessemer. Learn about the revitalization of this “arts desert” and the women behind it.

Lincoln Theatre undergoes restoration in Bessemer. Learn about the revitalization of this “arts desert” and the women behind it.

Forge News and Updates | 0 comments

Downtown Bessemer’s Lincoln Theatre is getting a facelift! Being restored to help revitalize the arts within the community, the Lincoln Theatre is a historic African American theatre in downtown Bessemer. Keep reading for more info on the project and the two inspiring women behind it—Glenny Brock and Mary Holland.

Brock is a project consultant and currently works with the Alabama and Lyric theatres. Holland is the mother of actor Andre Holland and one of the founding members of the Holland Project.

Established in 2018 and spearheaded by Andre Holland, the Holland Project will own and operate the Lincoln Theatre when its restoration is complete. Holland’s goal is to provide access to the arts for Bessemer and surrounding areas.

 

The History

The Lincoln Theatre was built in 1948 as an African American movie theatre and closed in the 1970s. Many historic theatres, including the Lincoln, have been used for other purposes since their closing, or even completely demolished.

 

Holland has many memories of visiting the theatre when she was young, stating that at the time, it was considered to be the “African American entertainment district” in downtown Bessemer.

Brock and Holland hope to restore and revitalize as much of the original structure as possible while also creating a modern community space. The original marquee is still intact and will remain on the building to signify its history.

 

Big Plans

Brock and Holland hope the theatre will be completed by the end of 2020/2021. In June of this year, they received a $21,000 design grant from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. This grant will be used for signage and the marquee in order to make it more visible to the community. The Lincoln also has a commitment for a historic facade grant of $100,000 from the city of Bessemer.

 

The women described Bessemer as an “arts desert.” They want to allow everyone in the Bessemer area, especially children, to have access to the arts and entertainment.

“There is not much access to the arts…I want to expose all kids to a wide range of activities. Children should be exposed to the arts without having to travel outside of their city.”

Mary Holland

The Lincoln has also hosted its first volunteer clean up day in July. People from the Bessemer Historic Society, community members, friends and relatives came out to help.

 

Working at Forge

Although the hands-on work gets done at the theatre, Brock and Holland say that they enjoy working at Forge for all of their paperwork, applications, meetings and more.

Bham Now: Why do you like working at Forge?

Holland: The thing I like most about working at Forge is the atmosphere and the energy that is generated by everyone there. I feel that I’m surrounded by a diverse group of people who are there to bring about positive change for our community.  It’s contagious and makes me want to do more!

Brock: That grant that we won, we wrote the application at Forge. In the middle of the night. Then we did a second Lincoln grant, quite a lot. Then we met with Sidewalk here. We got a lot done here. It’s a great place to come and get good work done.

 

 

Want to follow the renovation process? Follow @bamalincolnon Instagram to stay updated!

4 Reasons Why It’s Way Better to Book a Conference Room in a Coworking Space

4 Reasons Why It’s Way Better to Book a Conference Room in a Coworking Space

Forge News and Updates | 0 comments

Looking for a board meeting or offsite meeting for your group can be tricky. Most people will call a hotel to book a meeting room but there are several reasons why scheduling your meeting in a coworking space is much easier. Coworking spaces can usually accommodate a wide range of group sizes- from very small to large. For conference rooms, meeting space and event space, a shared workspace offers a superior experience compared to hotels for a few reasons.

4 Reasons Why Booking a Conference Room at a Coworking Space is Better:

1. Extraordinary Service

Hotels are primarily focused on renting rooms and larger event space. But coworking spaces concentrate on creating a great experience in their meeting space for both the host and visitors. Coworking spaces have dedicated staff to plan and execute your meeting well. At Forge, our staff is available to help connect your device to our TV, make coffee, provide drinks and snacks and much more. 

2. Easy Reservations

When booking a meeting space at a hotel, usually there will be multiple people you will be contacting. Coworking spaces make the booking process as easy as possible. Through the Forge website you can directly book a conference room and see the availability for each room on the synced calendar. Nonmembers and visitors can seamlessly book a conference room by the hour through the website.

3. Better Accomodations

Coworking spaces have innovative space and their staff thinks through each detail of what is required for a smooth meeting. At Forge, all of our meeting spaces are equipped with a TV (connectivity with Apple TV, HDMI cords and bluetooth) , whiteboards, and includes wi-fi. And the best part about it, you are not charged extra for the use of these items. If you want, you can easily add snacks, drinks and coffee to your reservation.

 

4. Natural Light

Don’t underestimate the importance of natural light in a workspace or meeting room! Natural light significantly improves productivity and overall mood. The Forge workspace is filled with natural light and we believe its vital. Using a conference room in a hotel room is usually dark with only overhead light and there is a significant difference with a bright, airy space.

Because we often have visitors returning to our conference rooms for offsite meetings or board meetings at Forge, we now offer a package for meeting rooms. By purchasing a package, you’ll get a discount!

 

  • 10 Hour Pass for the Cahaba or Vulcan Room : $280

 

  • 10 Hour Pass for the Penthouse Room : $400

 

  • 5 Hour Pass for Cahaba or Vulcan : $150

If you need meeting space, you can book a room at Forge for group sizes from 4 to 30. We also have event space available for groups of up to 100 people. Book directly here! Or give us a call at 205-870-7558 and we can answer any questions.