by Janet Dickelman
The 54th annual ACB convention will be held at the Sheraton Dallas, located at 400 N. Olive St. in downtown Dallas. Pre-registration pickup will be on Thursday evening, July 2nd. Convention activities and tours will be held from Friday, July 3rd through Saturday, July 11th. We are just in the beginning stages of convention planning; however, for those of you who just can’t wait to know about tours, we definitely plan to visit the museum which chronicles the life and legacy of President John F. Kennedy. We’re hoping to take a tour of Cowboy Stadium and perhaps take in a rodeo! Stay tuned for details!
As always, the ACB conference and convention will feature an exhibit hall showcasing vendors from around the country. The exhibit hall will be open from Saturday, July 4th through Wednesday, July 8.
The opening general session will be held Sunday, July 5, with daily sessions Monday through Thursday mornings, and all day Friday. Tech sessions, committee and affiliate programming begin on Saturday and run through Thursday. Convention week culminates with our banquet Friday evening.
Traveling by Air
Dallas is served by two airports, DFW and Love Field. Love Field is serviced by Southwest Airlines and, effective April 2015, by Virgin America. DFW features flights from numerous airlines including American, Delta, Frontier, Jet Blue, Sun Country and United. For a list of airlines serving DFW, visit www.dfwairport.com/airlines/index.php.
Go Yellowchecker shuttle is offering ACB a round-trip fare from either airport of $30. Information regarding booking this service will be available closer to the convention.
You can also take the light rail from both airports. Light rail stops at Terminal One at DFW; from Love Field you would take a shuttle to the light rail station. The Pearl Street light rail station is outside the Sheraton.
Rail and Bus Travel
Amtrak comes to Dallas’ Union Station, approximately 1 mile from the hotel. Union Station is served by the light rail’s red or blue line or a very short cab ride to the hotel.
There is a Megabus stop in Dallas as well as a Greyhound station; both are located within easy traveling distance from the Sheraton. For additional information on Greyhound, visit
www.greyhound.com/en/locations/terminal.aspx?city=680780. Megabus information can be obtained at
https://us.megabus.com/Megabus%20adds%20downtown%20Dallas%20service.aspx.
Hotel Details
Room rates at the Sheraton Dallas are $89 (single, double, triple or quad) plus applicable state and local taxes (currently 13 percent) and tourism district fees (2 percent). To reserve a room, call 1-888-627-8191, and be sure to mention that you are attending the ACB convention. To make reservations online, visit www.acb.org and follow the 2015 convention link.
Convention Contacts
Stay in touch by joining the ACB convention e-mail list. To join the list, send a blank e-mail to
[email protected].
2015 Exhibits: Michael Smitherman, (601) 331-7740, [email protected]
2015 Advertising and Sponsorships: Margarine Beaman, (512) 921-1625, [email protected]
For any other convention-related questions, contact Janet Dickelman, convention chair, at (651) 428-5059, or via e-mail, [email protected].