City of Tyler to see economic growth with opening of W.T. Brookshire Conference Center

Published 5:45 am Friday, April 14, 2023

People can hold conferences, rent and begin to see the economic impacts of improvements at the Rose Complex in Tyler following Thursday’s grand opening of the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center.

“(Tyler) is becoming a destination. People want to come here, not only to vacation but come and have conferences,” Mayor Dan Warren said. “We want this to be an attraction.”

The W.T. Brookshire Conference Center isn’t only for conferences but is conveniently located to enjoy the Rose Garden, which is the area’s crown jewel.

“(The city) is growing and is becoming better and better every year,” he said.

It is surrounded by cultural attractions and features a modern layout, upgraded design amenities, a state-of-the-art lighting and sound system, catering kitchen and multiple conference rooms.

The project cost about $28 million and was made possible through hotel occupancy tax funds, bonds, cash payments, private donations and half-cent sales tax funds.

Deputy City Manager Stephanie Franklin said the conference center primarily impacts the city’s economy through hotel/motel occupancy tax funds and local merchants and shops.

“You see not only people staying in hotels, but eating dinner, having drinks, going to movies, buying retail and spending time at all of our small businesses,” Franklin said. “The economic impact trickles in through all of these different means.”

Major regional and local conferences will be held at the center, and people can rent the facilities for private events, City of Tyler Public Information Officer Adriana Rodriguez said. The center is partially available to book on a “priority scale,” she said.

“Major conferences will have Priority 1, which means that they can rent up to five years in advance and get the pick of the dates,” Rodriguez said. “Private rentals like weddings and parties would have Priority 3, which means the lowest priority.”

Low-priority rental can book a year out and choose from available dates.

Many large conferences have already been scheduled up to three years in advance. In the next few years, people will start to see bigger bookings from medical, legal and corporate groups that haven’t been held in the past.

The Women’s Symphony League of Texas will kick off the facility’s bookings with its East Texas Symphony Ball on April 22.

The regular rate to rent the entire facility is $7,000, and nonprofit organizations receive 30% off through January 2025. Rental prices include tables and chairs from 8 a.m. to midnight.

After this period, nonprofit organizations will receive 10% off building rental fees.

Breakout rooms, a dance floor or catering service, and the entire Rose Complex, including the Rose Garden Center and Mayfair in various configurations, can be rented. People can view the facility rental prices on the Rose Complex Master Plan available at cityoftyler.org.

“It’s going to help the city itself, the locals. It will be so nice to have a venue like this that we can use for all kinds of events,” Tyler resident Jill Hale said. “We lacked a nice place. Harvey Hall was great in its day but needed to be changed.”

City officials believe the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center will become a main attraction for visitors.

Due to weather challenges, a few features are still left to finish, such as the 3.5-acre Rose Garden Community Park for outdoor events. People can host conferences and indoor/outdoor events or enjoy the water feature between sessions.

All the final details are expected to be complete within 30 days.

“It’s nice that it’s finally opening, it’s taken some time,” Franklin said. “We’re excited to finally be able to see this through and actually start having events here.”