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Offsite venues in Pennsylvania


Courtesy Lehigh Valley CVB

Fun factories
Pennsylvania’s economy once focused on manufacturing, but that ebbed in the 20th century. Today, former factories and warehouses make for novel meeting spaces. Witness the Reading Art Works in Reading, a brick warehouse-turned-art center with a 6,600-square-foot loft for special events.

The 145,000-square-foot Goggleworks Center for the Arts in downtown Reading opened in 2005 in the former Willson Goggle Factory, which made sunglasses and safety products. The center has galleries, classrooms, dance and music studios, a darkroom, a glassblowing facility, a woodshop, a hot-glass-blowing facility and a 131-seat film theater.

During team-building workshops, participants can sculpt clay to create a collaborative piece or make a fused-glass mural. Blindfolded artists can attempt to paint a portrait based upon co-workers’ instructions. The 4,300-square-foot event space seats about 200, and a downstairs gallery is ideal for cocktails.

Bethlehem, a former steel capital, has turned its old facilities into hot venues. SteelStacks, an old Bethlehem Steel plant, is now a cultural campus that includes the ArtsQuest Center. Its 3,460-square-foot Fowler Blast Furnace Room can be used for workshops, lectures, small concerts and social events. The entire complex is in the shadow of towering metal pipes and scaffolding.

“At night, they’re lit up in different colors,” said Marc Kaminetsky, national sales manager for Discover Lehigh Valley. “It’s amazing to see something so iconic like that.

In Easton, the Crayola Factory is now the Crayola Experience. The facility closed in February for renovations, which should be complete by Memorial Day. New event space includes three small color-themed rooms. After hours, the entire colorful facility can be rented.

Back to nature

In Lancaster County, Ironstone Ranch opened recently. The 100-acre farm dates to 1860, when it was a dairy farm. In 2011, the Abel family restored the ironstone-and-pine barn and brick farmhouse so that the working ranch could host “events with a purpose.”

Groups can hold a hoedown, ride the mechanical bull, learn to line dance or cook hot dogs over a fire. The barn holds 150 with a dance floor.

Along with college football, central Pennsylvania is known for its scenery. For team building, head to Pennsylvania State University’s Stone Valley Recreation Area, 17 miles from the university. Activities include Vertical Adventures, touted as one of the largest challenge courses on the East Coast. Unlike many courses, the events are designed for teams, not just for one or two people.

Staff at Visit Penn State have held retreats at the property’s Experimental Forestry Lodge, a cabin-style structure with indoor seating and outdoor picnic tables. “You’re out in nature, and it’s gorgeous,” said Betsey Howell, executive director of Visit Penn State. “It’s quite interesting.”

Nature Inn at Bald Eagle, tucked in Bald Eagle State Park, is not only surrounded by nature, but it’s also kind to it. The building is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold Certified. The largest meeting room can accommodate 48 guests. There are quiet seating areas for breakouts and a quiet library for  a strategy session. During breaks, attendees can take peaceful walks around the F.J. Sayers Reservoir.