HICKORY AND ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — Piedmont Center Associates, under a license agreement with Atlanta-based InterContinental Hotels Group, has re-opened a Holiday Inn Select as a Crowne Plaza, after a $2.5 million renovation. The 200-room hotel, located at 1385 Lenoir Rhyne Blvd. in Hickory, features a restaurant and lounge, an indoor pool and fitness and business centers. The renovations included adding a bar to the lobby and outfitting guest bathrooms with wider showerheads and roomier showers. As part of the renovation, many of the hotel’s furnishings were purchased from local manufacturers, and a modern art sculpture will be commissioned for the lobby. In Rocky Mount, The Generation Cos., under a lease agreement with InterContinental, has opened an 83-room, environmentally-friendly Candlewood Suites, located 688 English Rd. Green amenities include low-flow shower heads and toilets, compact fluorescent lighting and sodium vapor fixtures. The hotel also includes free high-speed Internet and a 24-hour fitness center. The opening marked the opening of the brand’s 200th hotel.
LAS VEGAS — InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has opened a $45 million StayBridge Suites in Las Vegas. Located at 5735 Dean Martin Dr., the five-story, 118-room property features a complimentary breakfast buffet, complimentary guest laundry and workout facilities, a complimentary 24-hour business center, a guest library with books and games, and BridgeMart®, the hotel’s 24-hour convenience store. Additionally, the property features the brand’s new Outdoor Living Room concept, which offers a place where guests can relax and interact alfresco with a variety of amenities, including all-weather furniture, three pool-side cabanas, a fire pit, grills, music and desert landscaping. The hotel also offers meeting spaces for business functions and special events. The hotel is owned by Gary Tharaldson and managed by Tharaldson Property Management, under a license agreement with a company in the InterContinental Hotels Group.
CANONSBURG, PA. — Canonsburg-based Horizon Properties Group has broken ground for the development of a Southpointe II Hilton Homewood Suites, a 113-room, extended-stay hotel located in Canonsburg. Scheduled to open in 2009, the hotel will feature studio, one- and two-bedroom suites with fully appointed kitchens and living rooms. Hotel amenities will include a 24-hour business center and a fitness center. The hotel will be managed by Buffalo Lodging Associates.
ANKENY, IOWA — North Liberty, Iowa-based Kinseth Hospitality Cos. has completed its new Courtyard by Marriott located within the Metro North Business Park in Southeast Ankeny. The hotel features 119 guest rooms and suites, as well as more than 6,000 square feet of flexible meeting and banquet space, which includes a state-of-the-art audiovisual system. Amenities at the property include an indoor swimming pool, a fitness center and a business library. The cost of completion was not disclosed. A grand opening ceremony was held at the hotel on October 2.
NEW HAVEN, CONN. — This month, the grand opening will be held for The Study at Yale, a redeveloped hotel located at 1157 Chapel St. on the campus of Yale University in New Haven. Owner Hospitality 3 acquired the hotel, formerly known as the Colony Inn, last year, and set about redeveloping it into a luxury hotel to serve the Yale community. The multi-million dollar renovation will add two floors to the five-story building, expanding its capacity from 86 rooms to 125 rooms. The redesigned interior will include 3,000 square feet of meeting space, a private lounge area in the penthouse, and a full-service restaurant with a private dining room and banquet facilities. Individual rooms will include leather chairs, ottomans, special work areas and state-of-the-art technology amenities. Toronto-based Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects served as project architect and interior designer.
DENVER — Hodges Ward Elliot (HWE) has completed a $55 million mortgage loan for the Ritz-Carlton Denver. Located at 1881 Curtis St. in downtown Denver, the luxury hotel features 202 rooms, a signature restaurant, Elway’s, and 13,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. HWE represented the owner, CJS Hotel LLC, in the transaction.
MIDDLETOWN, R.I. — Silver Springs, Md.-based Choice Hotels International has announced the construction of a new Cambria Suites in Middletown. Located at 240 Aquidneck Ave., the hotel will feature 129 suites. Amenities include a two-story lobby with a large-screen television, a casual dining area, a fitness center, a 24-hour convenience store, more than 1,000 square feet of meeting space, and wired and wireless Internet access throughout the hotel. The dining area will feature a coffee bar with Wolfgang Puck coffees and desserts from The Cheesecake Factory. Individual suites feature two flat-screen televisions and media hub technology. The project is owned by Newport, R.I.-based developer Seaview Inn LLC. A total of 63 Cambria Suites were under contract in the United States and Canada as of June 30.
BOLTON LANDING, N.Y. — The Plasencia Group (TPG) has negotiated the sale of the historic Sagamore Resort, located in Bolton Landing, for approximately $88 million. Constructed in 1883 on the shores of Lake George, Sagamore Resort is a 70-acre resort that features a hotel, condominiums, an 18-hole golf course designed by Donald Ross, conference facilities, a marina, a sailing school, a spa, and multiple food and beverage outlets. Stephen Kindl of TPG’s Capital Markets Group represented the seller, Green Island Associates. The property was purchased by Sagbolt LLC, an affiliate of Ocean Properties Limited Hotels & Resorts.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Silver Springs, Md.-based Choice Hotels International is partnering with Keller, Texas-based Ridgeline Hospitality for the construction of a Cambria Suites in Fort Worth. Located at the intersection of Interstate 35W and Fossil Bluff Drive, the hotel will feature 118 suites. Amenities include a two-story lobby with a large-screen television, a casual dining area with a coffee bar, a fitness center, a 24-hour convenience store, more than 1,000 square feet of meeting space, and wired and wireless Internet access throughout the hotel. Individual suites feature two flat-screen televisions and media hub technology. The construction timetable was not released.
ADDISON, ILL. — Chicago-based Paramount Lodging Advisors has arranged the sale of the recently renovated 153-room Hilton Garden Inn, which is located at 551 N. Swift Rd. in Addison. Infinity Hospitality Services has acquired the property for $13.4 million. Adam Montufar of Paramount Lodging Advisors facilitated the transaction through a collaborative effort with Robert Chvalovsky of W-W Real Estate, who represented the seller.