Notes for a McNamara Center wedding

I have performed many wedding ceremonies at the McNamara Center at the U of M and it’s a great site for wedding receptions in Minneapolis, plus they allow wedding ceremonies there. It’s often misspelled as the MacNamara Center of the University of Minnesota. You dont have to be an alumni of the U of M to rent the site for weddings. It’s an unusual spot, which has been declared a masterpiece of modern architecture. It’s beautiful inside with wood everywhere and 4-story high ceilings. The McNamara Alumni Center at the U of M is definitely one of the most unusual, non-traditional wedding sites in Minnesota, but it really works well, since it’s specially built for events. Not only is there plenty of space, but they have dressing rooms, a dance floor, and it’s in a prime location, as it’s right in the heart of the University area, within walking distance of Dinkytown.

Patrick Fitzgerald of D’Amico, who also caters wedding ceremonies for the Mill City museum is the person to contact. Patrick Fitzgerald at 612-238-4012 and his email is pfitzgerald@damico.com According to the McNamara website, site rental of the McNamara Alumni Center for weddings is $3,500, which includes the Johnson Great Room for the wedding ceremony, Memorial Hall for the wedding reception (for up to 7 hours), with access to rooms for photos 3 hours before guest arrival, a one-hour rehearsal (usually the night before, or the Thursday before. You also get the facility to yourselves, a dance floor, the built-in stage, custom set up, tables and chairs, two private dressing rooms for bridal party (one for the men, one for the women), two fireplaces, a University police officer for security, a wireless microphone for the officiant, a CD player for the wedding ceremony, music selections, several on-site event staff, plus the Heritage Gallery will be open.

You can even check their booking calendar online for availability, which is very handy. No other wedding ceremony site in Minnesota has this capability, except for Lake Harriet Spiritual Community church in Minneapolis (they rent out their Minneapolis wedding chapel for wedding ceremonies and receptions). The McNamara Center can also show you a 360 degree view of the interior on their website!

Little-known fact: The MacNamara Alumni Center is not only next door to the Radison Hotel, it’s connected by a tunnel. Perfect for wedding guests who don’t live in Minneapolis or St Paul, or simply don’t want to drive home after the wedding reception.

Having one main hotel right by the wedding can be great because then all the guests get to visit each other all weekend, instead of being isolated at different hotels. You can get special rates if you promise to book a certain number of rooms, plus you can get a special parking rate for your guests to park at the McNamara Center (even if they don’t stay at the hotel).

Below is a map to find this gorgeous (and unusual) wedding reception site in Minnesota:

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