Thank goodness I GOT OUT before giving this venue any more money!!! Joanna, the wedding director, was NOT pleasant to work with nor willing to accommodate my wedding reschedule due to COVID.
At the end of March, I requested to change my 202...0 winter wedding due to the ongoing pandemic. Joanna, who is incredibly difficult to reach by phone, stated the following via email: “Reschedules are not being done past 4/12 and there is no reason to think this will still be going on even close to December.“ As a healthcare professional, I understood the magnitude of the pandemic and its potential threat to my guests and loved ones, so I ultimately decided to reschedule my wedding date. Upon rescheduling, Joanna was NOT flexible and offered me only 1-2 wedding date options for 2021 (both were undesirable dates, one being the weekend of Thanksgiving 2021). I even offered to pay more for a better date option. She did not seem to care to be reasonable or accommodate my desires. She already had 20% of the full wedding payment at this point (non-refundable) and did not seem to care about me, my wedding, or my concerns.
In October, I ended up CANCELING the wedding after a lot of thought and consideration. Ultimately, it was Joanna’s LACK of concern and care to accommodate me during unprecedented circumstances that led me to that decision. If she had been more flexible, accommodating, and compassionate, I would have kept it. (I will also add that I made a $4,000 payment one week prior to rescheduling. So it was even more unnerving to me how unwilling she was to work with me just one week after that payment. I would have never authorized the payment if I knew how difficult and passive-aggressive she was going to be with rescheduling.)
Upon cancellation, I also pointed out her inaccurate prediction of events not being affected by COVID “even close to December”. She replied via email, “[My email] is still accurate. All weddings are still going forward as planned...” There is clearly no concern about COVID and weddings being super-spreader events in her smug reply.
Initially, Watersedge was recommended to me by family members in Columbus. When I told them about my poor experience, they were surprised. Unfortunately, I don’t think the owner/investors know how POORLY this venue is being managed.
I would NOT recommend Watersedge to any bride. FIND ANOTHER VENUE where the wedding director is warm, kind, and enjoyable to work with, NOT DISMISSIVE, ARROGANT, and PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE. (Happily, I have found a better venue— a more beautiful and superior venue where the director is kind, flexible, easy to reach, and caring— which is worth every penny.) When it comes to the most important day of your life, book a venue where they actually care about you and don’t look at you like just a number!!! WARNING: PROCEED WITH CAUTION with Watersedge!!!