Exhibiting hours & location
Thursday, July 25
8:30am–1:30pm
The Park Event Center
500 Division Street
Waite Park, MN 56387
Booth setup/teardown
Booth setup begins at 7:00am on Thursday, July 25. Vendors will be able to pull up their vehicles and load through the front doors of The Park Event Center. Breakfast and coffee will be available to vendors only in the exhibit hall during the booth setup period.
Each booth will have an 8-foot table with a skirt, two chairs, and a company name sign. Name tags for each person registered will also be at the booth when you arrive.
Booth teardown will begin at 1:45pm. Conference attendees will be participating in tours offsite from 1:30pm to 4:30pm. We ask that all booth teardown is complete by 5:30pm to allow The Park staff to begin setup for the next day’s events.
Exhibitor agenda
Thursday, July 25:
7:00am–Exhibitor check-in and booth set up begins at The Park Event Center
Vendors will be able to pull their vehicles up and load through the front doors of The Park Event Center.
Light breakfast will be provided to exhibitors in the exhibit hall from 7:00am to 8:30am.
8:30am–Exhibit hall open
The exhibit hall will be open from 8:30am to 1:30pm on Thursday, July 25. During that time block there will be several dedicated time slots for exhibitors between conference sessions and meals. Exhibitors are invited to sit in on conference sessions and join attendees for lunch on Thursday.
9:00am – Presentation: Voting and Elections in Greater Minnesota with Secretary Steve Simon
9:45am – Exhibitor break; snack served in exhibit hall
10:15am – Presentation: City Projects & Prevailing Wage
11:00am – Exhibitor break; lunch served in exhibit hall
11:30am – Lunch presentation: Legislative Panel on Housing in Greater Minnesota
12:30pm – Exhibitor break
1:30pm–Booth tear down begins; conference attendees depart for tours
5:30pm–Cocktail reception at The Park Event Center
Exhibitors are encouraged to attend the cocktail reception and Legislative Awards Dinner banquet on Thursday evening for additional opportunities to network with conference attendees.
6:30pm–Legislative Awards Dinner
9pm – Transportation provided to late-night happy hour in St. Joseph
Information for Presenting Sponsors
Vendors at the Presenting Sponsor level are invited to join attendees for dinner and a concert on Wednesday, July 24 (the first day of the conference).
Transportation will be provided to/from dinner and the concert on Wednesday evening. To catch the bus, please make sure you are in the lobby of The Park Event Center (not the hotel lobbies) by 3:45pm. If you have not already checked in and received a name tag at that point, please find a CGMC staff member at the registration table in the lobby. Buses will begin loading at 4pm to depart for Rolling Ridge in St. Joseph, where dinner will be provided courtesy of the cities of St. Joseph and Waite Park. There will be a cash bar where attendees can purchase alcoholic beverages if desired.
At roughly 6pm, buses will begin loading to travel to the concert. Buses will arrive at The Ledge Amphitheater in Waite Park around 6:30pm for a 7pm show. You can read more about the evening’s lineup on The Ledge’s website.
After the show concludes, attendees will load buses to return to The Park Event Center. Buses will also make a stop at Ultimate Sports Bar for those that wish to continue socializing. Attendees are responsible for their own transportation back from Ultimate, which is located less than half a mile away from the Event Center/hotels.
All CGMC conference attendees will be seated together in a VIP seating area at The Ledge, and tickets will be distributed on the buses en route to the concert. We strongly encourage you to take advantage of the transportation provided rather than driving yourself. Parking at The Ledge may be limited and the CGMC will not be able to assist you with parking and entry to The Ledge. If you do choose to drive yourself to dinner and/or The Ledge, please be in touch with me so that we can make our best effort to give you a ticket ahead of time and tell you where to meet the group.
Exhibitor hotel information
The deadline to reserve a room under the CGMC room blocks has passed. There may still be rooms available for booking at the Hilton Garden Inn or the Residence Inn, both of which are attached to The Park Event Center.
Please note that presenting sponsors will have additional opportunities for conference participation on the evening of Wednesday, July 24 and may want to plan their hotel reservations accordingly.
2024 Host Cities: Waite Park and St. Joseph
Conference venue: The Park Event Center (500 Division St., Waite Park, MN 56387)
Conference dates: Wednesday, July 24 through Friday, July 26
The Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities Summer Conference is an annual event that brings city elected officials and staff from throughout Greater Minnesota together with legislators, state leaders, and policy experts to recap the previous legislative session and learn more about the issues that affect their communities. In addition to educational sessions, the conference also features dinner and an activity led by the host city, tours of the host community, social events, and a vendor trade show. One night of the Summer Conference is reserved for the Legislative Awards Dinner, where the Coalition recognizes policymakers, city leaders, and Greater Minnesota allies that have made notable contributions or achievements to Greater Minnesota.
Conference agenda
The posted agenda is subject to change and does not include all agenda details. Items will be added to the agenda as they are confirmed. Please reach out to Emma Nelson at ennelson@flaherty-hood.com with any questions about the conference schedule!
Wednesday, July 24
10am – Registration opens at The Park Event Center
11:30am – Lunch buffet opens at The Park Event Center
12pm – Conference begins with remarks from CGMC President Rick Schultz and CGMC Executive Director Bradley Peterson
12:05pm – Keynote presentation from MnDOT Transportation Commissioner Nancy Daubenberger
1:00pm – Presentation from Dylan Ferguson, Executive Director of the Minnesota Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board
2:00pm – 2024 legislative session review with CGMC Executive Director Bradley Peterson
3:00pm – Break for hotel check-in
4:00pm – Buses load at The Park Event Center for evening activities
4:30pm – Dinner at Rolling Ridge in St. Joseph
6:30pm – Arrive at The Ledge Amphitheater in Waite Park for VIP seats at Legends of Country: Tributes to Garth Brooks and Johnny Cash.
10:30pm – Buses depart from The Ledge to return to The Park Event Center. Buses will also stop at Ultimate Sports Bar and Grill just across the street from the event center so attendees can join the concert afterparty!
Thursday, July 25
7:00am – Vendor check-in opens at The Park Event Center lobby
7:30am – Breakfast with the Mayors! Attendees are invited to join St. Joseph Mayor Rick Schultz at Kay’s Kitchen or Waite Park Mayor Rick Miller at the Park Diner.
8:30am – Exhibit hall opens for Exhibitor Break #1
9:00am – Presentation from Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon
9:45am – Exhibitor break #2, snack provided in exhibit hall
10:15am – Discussion: “City Projects & Prevailing Wage”
11:00am – Exhibitor break #3, lunch service begins in exhibit hall
11:30am – Legislative panel
12:30pm – Exhibitor break #4
1:30pm – Buses load for tours
1:45pm – Exhibit hall closes, vendor booth teardown begins
4:30pm – Tour groups return to The Park
5:30pm – Legislative Awards Dinner Cocktail Reception begins at The Park Event Center
6:30pm – Legislative Awards Dinner begins
Thursday night – Shuttles provided to late-night happy hour spots in St. Joseph
Friday, July 26
8:00am – Breakfast
8:30am – Labor and employment update from Flaherty & Hood attorneys
9:30am – Presentation
10:15am – Break and snack
10:30am – CGMC membership meeting
11:30am – Conference adjourns
Additional sponsorship opportunities
For the first time, the CGMC is offering select additional opportunities for interested vendors to increase their reach to attendees at the Summer Conference. Please reach out to Emma Nelson at ennelson@flaherty-hood.com if you are interested in any of the following, which are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. You must be registered as an exhibitor to take advantage of these opportunities.
CONFERENCE WI-FI SPONSOR – $750 (CLAIMED)
Your company name will be used as the Wi-Fi network name and/or password for the duration of the three-day conference. Character limits apply.
SNACK BREAK SPONSOR -$500 (2 available)
Your company will be recognized as one of two sponsors of the Thursday morning snack break (held in the exhibit hall) on signage and in the conference agenda.
The last day to register as an exhibitor was July 1, 2024. If you have any questions about this deadline, please reach out to Emma Nelson at the contact information listed below.
Contact:
Make sure you don’t miss important updates by subscribing to the CGMC exhibitor email list: