Meeting News - February 11, 2008 - (Page 32)

Destination Insider: Memphis Edited by Elizabeth West elizabeth.west@nielsen.com Pair of Boutique Hotels Make the Grade Stylish new accommodations are city ﬁrsts, group-friendly, & heritage driven Memphis welcomed its ﬁrst luxury boutique hotel this fall, and a second is on the way. On Oct. 29, the 28-room River Inn of Harbor Town debuted in two buildings at the corner of Harbor Town Square and Harbor Town Circle. The hotel pays tribute to Memphis and Mississippi River Delta history, with such touches as marble from the Shrine Building, an 1800s lobby ﬁreplace that was rescued from New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, and heart-of-pine ﬂoors salvaged from a razed 1800s textile mill in Virginia. Groups can buy out the entire property. A section of the upscale restaurant Currents can be used for meetings or functions of up to 60, a small conference room seats about 10, small libraries grace each ﬂoor, and a rooftop terrace overlooks the river and skyline. Another luxury boutique hotel is slated to come on the scene in March 2009: The 34-room, threestory Grade Hotel opens on Cotton Row, in three circa-1875 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is named after the buildings’ former purpose—a site for merchants to grade cotton. The Grade is near the U.S. Customs House, slated to become the University of Memphis’ new law school in 2009, as well as close to dental, optometry, pharmacy, and medical schools. Plans call for meeting rooms, a restaurant, a bookstore, and a coffee bar. Yearlong Remembrances Honor MLK Milestone o commemorate the 40th anniversary of the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the National Civil Rights Museum has special activities scheduled for the week of April 4th and throughout the rest of the year. Some of the events are a community march, a candlelight vigil, talks by famous guest speakers, ﬁlming of the Tavis Smiley show, and more. From Feb. 2 to April 13, the museum is also hosting “381 Days,” a traveling exhibition about the 1955 bus boycott in Montgomery, AL. Located at the Lorraine Motel, the site of Dr. King’s assassination, the museum was the ﬁrst of its kind, chronicling milestones in the Civil Rights movement. Several museum spaces are available for events, including the 1,930-sf Rose Room, which can accommodate 276 for a reception or 120 for a banquet. T The new River Inn of Harbor Town is said to be intimate and inspired. Back to the Future Holiday Inn gets modern makeover, courtesy of InterContinental Hotels Groundbreaking took place in December for the Holiday Inn & Suites Wolfchase, slated to open in 2009 with 133 guest rooms (including 20 suites) and 1,975 sf of meeting space. The hotel is being developed by Wilson Hotel Management Company, which is run by the three sons of Kemmons Wilson—who created the Holiday Inn brand in Memphis in 1952. It is not a Holiday Inn of decades past. Across the nation, InterContinental Hotels Group is changing the face of the Holiday Inn brand with a new hotel prototype for the 21st century. As such, the new hotel will feature modern designs and such high-tech features as dataports, free high-speed and Wi-Fi Internet access, and VoIP phone systems. But Holiday Inn Wolfchase will pay homage to the iconic Holiday Inn of yore with a lobby display of furnishings from the original 1952 Holiday Inn (on loan from the Pink Palace Museum) and a gift shop featuring unique nostalgic items. 32 MeetingNews February 11, 2008 Hotel Reaches New Heights When the postmodern, 30-story One Beale tops out in 2010, it will be Memphis’ tallest skyscraper. The mixed-use project actually will be two towers, which will house condominiums, office space, restaurants, retail, and, at the base, the $55-million, 240-room Hyatt Regency Memphis Hotel and Spa. The hotel, with a projected groundbreaking of this summer, will feature two restaurants, a cafe, a Hyatt Pure Spa, a Hyatt Stay Fit Gym, and a 10thﬂoor pool and sundeck. The plan also calls for more than 22,500 sf of meeting facilities, including a 7,500-sf ballroom. More than half of the guest rooms will have views of the Mississippi River. New Owners Sprucing Up The Iconic Hilton Memphis Fresh from a $12-million renovation in 2004, the Hilton Memphis is undergoing another $8 million in renovations after its joint acquisition by Davidson Hotel Company and RockBridge Partners last May. Located in the East Memphis business district, the landmark 27-story glass-tower hotel has already undergone such improvements as a new porte cochere, an enhanced ﬁtness center, and ongoing energy-management upgrades, with new air-conditioning due to be in place by March. The 405 guest rooms will soon house ﬂat-panel televisions; they already have new chairs. New seating is planned for the lobby and meeting rooms. Altogether, the hotel has more than 25,000 sf of conference and banquet space. r —Section written by Irene Korn www.meetingnews.com One Beale is changing the city’s skyline. http://www.meetingnews.com

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Meeting News - February 11, 2008

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