Meeting News - May 19, 2008 - (Page 46)

Insider Report: Midwest Meetings Doubletree Expects to Grow In Downtown Chicago in June The Chicago City Centre Hotel & Sports Club will complete a $21-million, hotel-wide renovation before being rebranded as the Doubletree Hotel Chicago Magnificent Mile in early June. The property, which sits between Magnificent Mile and Navy Pier, will feature 500 redesigned guest rooms, as well as 17,000 sf of renovated meeting space and refreshed lobby and public spaces. “Doubletree has made a renewed commitment to grow its collection of upscale, full-service hotels in key city center locations around the world,” said Dave Horton, senior VP of brand management for Doubletree Hotels. As with the guest rooms, the hotel’s 17,000 sf of meeting space will be updated to match new decor. The property currently features 11 meeting rooms, including a 6,700-sf ballroom. —PH not been determined—as are the name and flag for the property—but it will fall between 180 and 200. Construction is pegged for a fall start, and the hotel’s launch will occur in summer 2010. “I’ve been planning for the Branson Creek hotel,” said John Hammons, chairman and CEO. “I foresee impressive results with the new $155-million regional airport,” he said, referring to the facility that will open in May 2009. The planned property will be adjacent to the Tom Fazio-conceived Branson Creek Golf Course. The area also features another 18-hole championship course, John Daly’s Murder Rock Golf and Country Club, which opened last year. The hotel will join 13 others that Springfield, MO-based Hammons owns or operates in the state. Hammons considers its 301-room Chateau on the Lake Resort, Spa & Conference Center on Branson’s Table Rock Lake as its flagship in the Ozark region. undertaking by the Marriott since its 2001 launch. The Marriott Downtown is connected to the Indiana Convention Center via an enclosed skybridge. New Hotels Will Welcome Republicans In Minneapolis It will be raining Republicans when some 45,000 delegates descend on the Twin Cities Sept. 1-4 for the GOP’s National Convention, and a good number of them will be staying in new hotels. Upscale hotels are opening throughout downtown Minneapolis leading up the event—and after—including luxury properties in converted landmark buildings. Leading the list is a 229-room W hotel, opening in June in the Art Deco-designed Foshay Tower, and the 225-room Hotel Minneapolis (a Doubletree property), which will open in August in the historic Midland Bank Building. In the same month, a 155-room aloft hotel will open. A Westin hotel that opened in spring 2007 with 214 guest rooms and 8,000 sf of meeting space also is housed in an historic downtown building, the old Farmers and Mechanics building. Also new downtown is the Ivy Tower Hotel, featuring 136 guest rooms, 86 condominium units, a 17,000-sf spa and fitness center, a fine-dining restaurant, and 4,000 sf of meeting space. In July, at the intersection of I-94 and I-494 east of downtown, the 150-room Sheraton Gateway will debut, while September will welcome the 225-room Westin Edina Galleria in the suburb of Edina. Another suburban hotel, the 256-room Hilton Minneapolis/Bloomington, opened in March with 9,200 sf of meeting space. Some of the city’s largest hotels have undertaken renovations, as well, highlighted by the Marriott City Center’s $25-million upgrade last fall. The project refurbished the lobby, 600 guest rooms, and restaurant. The 281-room Marquette Hotel completed a $5-million renovation earlier this year, and the 821-room Hilton Minneapolis continues its multi-year, $15-million upgrade that already has created the new 7,200-sf Symphony Ballroom. In St. Louis, Adam’s Mark Will Become Hyatt Regency Last month, Hyatt Regency St. Louis Riverfront became the official name of the former Adam’s Mark property in the city, and the hotel will undergo a $63-million renovation beginning this fall. The 910-room hotel is located at the base of the Gateway Arch. The renovation, slated for completion by mid-2009, will equip guest rooms with allnew amenities and bathrooms. The hotel’s exterior, three restaurants, meeting spaces, and public spaces also will be upgraded. A highlight of the project will be the creation of a StayFit@Hyatt health club that will be open 24 hours and feature the latest cardio and strengthtraining equipment from LifeFitness. The hotel also will feature public-space Wi-Fi, indoor and outdoor pools, and a business center. Ballrooms of 20,000 and 16,800 sf are among the meeting spaces, as are 18 breakout rooms. The newly flagged property marks the second Hyatt hotel in downtown St. Louis. Hyatt operates the 539-room Hyatt Regency St. Louis at historic Union Station. Indianapolis’ HQ Hotel Perks Up Its Guest Rooms The Indianapolis Marriott Downtown, the city’s convention hotel, recently rolled out a $9.5-million renovation that upped its room count to 622. New room decor draws from the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and aspects of the city’s history for inspiration, culminating into a theme called “Art of the Mix.” The work, began late last November, also revamped public spaces. The hotel’s 40,000 sf of meeting space was not part of the project, which was the first Indianapolis Marriott Downtown reconfigured some hospitality suites into guest rooms. Hammons Hotels to Build Up Branson Creek European-Style John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts will develop a European-style hotel two miles from Branson (MO) Regional Airport, inside the Branson Creek master-planned community. The room count has 46 MeetingNews May 19, 2008 Cincinnati Breaks Ground On Entertainment District After years of planning and preparation, ground was broken earlier this month on the Banks, a sprawling entertainment district along the Ohio River in downtown Cincinnati within walking distance of the city’s convention center and surrounding hotels. continued on page 48 www.meetingnews.com http://www.meetingnews.com

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Meeting News - May 19th, 2008

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