Between 2024 and 2026, several communities in Indiana have opened, or plan to open, new meeting and event venues, with top-notch services and multiuse spaces, that will rival anything that the nearby urban centers have to offer. Here’s a look at five new meeting facilities around the Hoosier State.
The Arena at Innovation Mile
Noblesville
The Arena at Innovation Mile is a publicly owned, multisport arena that is currently under construction in Noblesville, about 30 minutes north of Indianapolis. It is expected to be completed by June 1, with programming beginning August 1. The arena will have 3,500 fixed seats, most of which are retractable, and will be home to the recently rebranded Noblesville Boom — formerly known as the Mad Ants — the Indiana Pacers’ G-League affiliate, as well as hosting live music and entertainment, community events, and conferences.
The 120,000-square-foot arena can hold up to 4,500 people for a concert. The facility has panoramic windows and is easily accessible off Interstate 69. It is close to Hamilton Town Center and Ruoff Music Center, putting it in a strategic location to attract new businesses to the Innovation Mile. There is an in-house concessionaire that provides food for events and a full-service kitchen for catering purposes.
In addition to the arena floor, groups can rent out the Grand Hall, the grand entryway with large staircases as groups enter the building. The space works well for speaker engagements, cocktail parties or events tied into sporting events held at the arena. Corporate-bonding or team-building events on the court can pair cocktail parties with a game of horse or a three-point contest among attendees, or groups can host a speaker series along with dinner.
Pearl Street Arts Center
Fort Wayne
Opened in October 2024 at the east end of the historic Perfection Bakeries building on Main Street in Fort Wayne, Pearl Street Arts Center is a state-of-the-art community arts hub and off-site meeting venue in downtown. Operated by nonprofit Pearl Arts, the venue created a pedestrian district along Pearl Street connecting to The Pearl event center. It is just four blocks from the Grand Wayne Convention Center and across the street from The Bradley Hotel, The Landing Fort Wayne and Promenade Park.
Pearl Street Arts Center offers music lessons and entrepreneur programs, along with hosting performances and productions in its 400-seat auditorium.
Groups can rent the auditorium and two fully accessible classrooms, as well as public and performer amenities. Spaces are equipped with the latest audiovisual equipment, and there is a warming kitchen backstage for catered dinners and events. Meeting planners can choose from a preferred caterer list for their food and beverage offerings.
Pearl Street Arts Center has showers, a family restroom and dressing rooms available. The rentable spaces are all on one floor and easy to navigate via ramps, special needs parking spaces and wide doorways.
Groups under 100 can rent out the community hub and boardroom in back, and the auditorium can be used for catered dinners for up to 350 at round tables. There is commissioned artwork throughout the facility.
Kokomo Conference Center and Hilton Garden Inn
Kokomo
Kokomo is in north-central Indiana, north of Indianapolis. The city has a variety of hotels, restaurants, events and attractions, but it did not have a large meeting facility attached to a hotel, limiting the city’s ability to host state, regional and professional meetings and conferences.
That will change with the debut of the Kokomo Conference Center in summer 2026. The idea for a large conference center and hotel was first envisioned in 2013. Over the past decade, the Greater Kokomo Visitors Bureau and Greater Kokomo Economic Development Alliance led the effort to bring this facility to fruition. The project broke ground in August 2024 in the heart of downtown Kokomo, within walking distance of restaurants, shops, attractions, trails and public art.
Additional hotels are located within a five- to 10-minute drive of the facility. The 55,000-square-foot conference center will be able to accommodate events for more than 1,000 guests. The ballroom, which will be divisible into six smaller spaces using partitions, will be able to host 672 for a banquet and 1,080 theater style. There will also be six breakout rooms and a lower-level space available for events.
On the bottom level of the conference center, the Kokomo Automotive Museum will highlight Kokomo-built Haynes and Apperson automobiles. A 108-room Hilton Garden Inn will connect to the conference center via a pedestrian bridge and will feature an indoor pool, fitness center, restaurant and lounge.
Fishers Event Center
Fishers
The Fishers Event Center opened to the public in November 2024. Announced in 2022, the 202,310-square-foot project anchors a nearly $550 million expansion of the Fishers District lifestyle and entertainment destination. It features a 65,000-square-foot plaza that can be used for company picnics, pre-function gatherings, movie nights, sports watch parties or art festivals for up to 6,000.
The event center is the home of the Indy Fuel minor league ice hockey team, Fishers Freight professional indoor football team and Indy Ignite professional women’s volleyball team. It can accommodate 7,500 guests for a concert or sporting event. The 17,000-square-foot event floor can seat 300 to 2,000 for conferences, banquets or exhibitions. The south concourse on the second level can host up to 250 guests and features a built-in bar, a food service area, flexible space and great views of the event center.
The North Club on the second-level concourse also boasts a built-in bar, a food service area, high-top tables and great views of the event center. It can accommodate 175 guests. The Loge Club is 1,000 square feet and can hold 140 people. The Premium Club can host 100, while the group suites can host smaller groups of up to 45.
The event center is the largest midsize event facility in the region. The Fishers District has several restaurants, and the event center is close to the Smithsonian-affiliated Conner Prairie museum, Geist Waterfront Park and Topgolf.
French Lick Resort
French Lick
Since the mid-1990s, French Lick Resort has undergone hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations to turn two run-down historic hotels into a luxury destination. The latest upgrades to the resort include turning a historic barn into a meeting venue for larger groups.
The barn was built near Springville, Indiana, in the mid-1800s, around the same time French Lick Springs Hotel and West Baden Springs Hotel got their start. It was moved from that property 40 miles away to a location next to the resort’s existing horse barn and the outdoor Stables Pavilion.
The Event Barn at the Stables was completely refurbished and painted white, and a wraparound deck was added to the outside. The facility can host groups of up to 250 for lunches, dinners, receptions, meetings and group events.
The resort is also refurbishing the Billiard and Bowling Pavilion at West Baden Springs Hotel. The hall first opened in 1917 but sat vacant and unused for at least 50 years. The facility includes a six-lane bowling alley and pool tables, as well as a pizzeria and a bar.
French Lick Resort has also added a nine-hole short course for all levels of golf. The Sand Creek Course is a true short course, with holes ranging from 35 to 90 yards that can be played in 75 minutes.
