Baltimore Book Festival makes its move from Mount Vernon permanent

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Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts

The Baltimore Book Festival, seen here in 2013, will permanently relocate from Mount Vernon to the Inner Harbor.

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Sarah Meehan

Reporter- Baltimore Business Journal

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After its first run at the Inner Harbor, the Baltimore Book Festival is permanently relocating to the waterfront space.

This fall, the festival moved from its longtime home in Mount Vernon to the Inner Harbor because of construction on the Washington Monument. The Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts decided to keep the event at the Inner Harbor after 2014's annual festival was a success.

The new location allowed the festival to expand its programming and attract more patrons. The 2014 festival drew more than 100,000 visitors — more than double its attendance in previous years.

"Although we have had a very successful 18 years in Mount Vernon, we have outgrown its capacity," Bill Gilmore, executive director of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts, said in a statement. "We are confident the Inner Harbor will allow the Baltimore Festival to expand as it has already proven to attract new audiences and attention for the event. We look forward to growing one of Baltimore's most beloved cultural attractions at its new location."The 20th annual festival will be held Sept. 25-27, 2015, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. The free event showcases more than 200 authors, 150 exhibitors and vendors, panel discussions, poetry readings and live music.

Sarah covers hospitality/tourism, minority business, marketing and new media