Celebrating 10th anniversary Wednesday, Charles Point eyes further expansion

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. — The Charles Point Hospitality Plaza is celebrating ten years in existence this week–and marveling at their growth during that time.

Scott Duarte, the Managing Director for the plaza, GM of Bridgeport Conference Center, and founder of Mia Margherita in the plaza, said that everything started with the Bridgeport Conference Center ten years ago.

“I think what it’s done for Charles Point, as well as the region, is it’s served as an attraction,” Duarte said on Monday’s edition of the MetroNews-affiliated “The Mike Queen Show” on the AJR News Network. “We brought thousands of guests into the conference center over the course of the last ten years. Every time you get that guest to come through the entry, they get to have a taste of Charles Point and see what this master plan community is all about. I think it’s played a pretty key role.”

Duarte said the area, just down the road from United Hospital Center and the FBI complex, was rather undeveloped when they began expanding the plaza.

“Just look back ten years,” he said. “I mean this was the only thing on an exit. It was an exit, a conference center, and a hotel. Now, fast forward ten years, my gosh. When you start things out as the first one or the only one you can either be silly or be a pioneer.”

In addition to a number of restaurants, small businesses, hotels, and the Bridgeport Conference Center, the expansion now includes a Farmer’s Market.

“It’s running close to 60 vendors strong at the beginning of the year,” Duarte said. “It’s been a huge success for the community. I was just there [Sunday]. I had a great time. I think a lot of those things all lend themselves to what it means to build a strong community, and it all works together. It’s been fun.”

Duarte said additional expansion is never very far from the minds of the Plaza’s brain trust.

“Ten years in, fifteen thousand square foot has sufficed, but we’d like to continue that growth toward more tourism to this part of the state,” he said.

The next expansion will build off a plan that was formed in 2011, but never got off the ground.

“That’s what’s helped launch into this current expansion plan that’s going to take place at the market place right across from Mia Margherita and where our Farmer’s Market takes place,” he said. “Our plans are for a 25,000 square foot conference facility, 150 room hotel, and to enable us to even grow our conference footprint to the next level and help attract more visitors to the central part of the state.”

Duarte said it’s nice to be a part of something that can attract people to the area.

“I think it’s been able to add an element of hospitality to the area that’s been well deserved for some time now,” he said.





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