International Association Moving Headquarters from Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), the largest trade association for the $39 billion worldwide attractions industry, has announced it will relocate its global headquarters office from Alexandria to Orlando, Fla. The move will begin in 2017.

The association owns the building where they are currently headquartered, 1448 Duke St. in Alexandria. The building is listed as having 7,573 square feet and was built in 1982. The total value of the building and land is listed in City records as $2,193,000. The group appears to employ about 40 people at the Alexandria headquarters, according to its Web site staff page. No word on how many of them will make the move to Florida.

The move from Alexandria and convention contract extension are contingent upon support from the state of Florida and Orange County, Fla., the group said. IAAPA has plans to host its annual conference and trade show (IAAPA Attractions Expo) in Orlando at the Orange County Convention Center through 2030.

The IAAPA Board of Directors approved the relocation and convention agreement extension during meetings held this week in Barcelona, Spain in conjunction with the association’s European conference and trade show, Euro Attractions Show 2016.

The IAAPA board of directors concluded the worldwide headquarters for the association should be located in Orlando, the "global epicenter" of the theme park and attractions industry. In addition to theme parks including Legoland Florida, SeaWorld Orlando, Universal Orlando Resort, and Walt Disney World, the region offers Fun Spot, Ripley’s Entertainment, Dave & Buster’s, and other attractions including water parks, family entertainment centers, zoos, aquariums, museums, and natural attractions. Many of the industry’s leading manufacturers and suppliers have a presence in the region as well.

The Central Florida location will make it easier for IAAPA members from around the world to connect with each other and engage with IAAPA’s professional staff when they travel to the region to meet with industry suppliers and to see some of the latest industry innovations at Florida’s attractions, the association noted in its announcement. As IAAPA’s staffing needs grow in the future, the move will also facilitate the association’s ability to recruit candidates with industry experience.

“In an effort to keep up with the rapid growth of the global attractions industry over the past 10 years, we have expanded our regional offices, increased the products and services we offer our members, added staff, expanded our training and professional development programs, and hosted record-breaking trade shows around the world. We have outgrown our headquarters office so now is the time to put infrastructure in place to support the association and the industry for the future,” said IAAPA President and CEO Paul Noland.

Founded in 1918, IAAPA is the largest international trade association for permanently located amusement facilities and attractions and is dedicated to the preservation and prosperity of the attractions industry. The non-profit organization represents more than 5,000 attractions, suppliers, and individual members from 100 countries. Member facilities include amusement/theme parks, water parks, attractions, family entertainment centers, zoos, aquariums, museums, science centers, and resorts.

The association maintains regional offices in Brussels for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa; in Mexico City for Latin America; and in Hong Kong for the Asia-Pacific region. The association has had a small regional office for its North American operations in Orlando for two years. That regional office will now be co-located with IAAPA’s global headquarters in a single location. A portion of the IAAPA headquarters staff will move to Orlando in second quarter of 2017 with the remainder to follow thereafter. IAAPA will maintain a government affairs office in the Washington, D.C. area.

PHOTO of IAAPA headquarters on Duke Street; Google photo