CITY BEAT
Palm Beach, Fla.
Help for Planners
The Palm Beach County Convention & Visitors Bureau has unveiled “With Our Compliments,” a new one-stop complimentary service dedicated to smoothing the meeting planning process, from program development to promotion. On the hotel front, the 270-room Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach, is getting ready to wrap up a $25 million renovation, and the 69-room Colony Club in nearby Delray Beach recently completed an $8 million renovation. On the drawing board for West Palm Beach is City Center, a waterfront park, boardwalk and cultural hub set to open in 2007.
Detroit
Awaiting the Spotlight
The Motor City’s new casinos, highway improvements and urban renewal projects are coming at just the right time: The city is turning itself into a mecca for major sporting events as the host of the 2006 Super Bowl XL, the 2008 PGA Championship, the 2009 NCAA Final Four and the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four.
AZ, Scottsdale
The Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey
Ranch unveiled the $9 million, 21,000-square-foot Spa Avania in
July. The 490-room hotel has 35,000 square feet of meeting space,
including a 14,000-square-foot ballroom.
CA, Coronado
The Hotel del Coronado, immortalized in the 1959 film Some Like It
Hot, recently finished a $10 million renovation of guest rooms in
three of its buildings. The 381-room hotel has 44 meeting rooms,
including a 12,500-square-foot ballroom and a 10,900-square-foot
hall.
CA, Long Beach
The 374-room Renaissance Long Beach Hotel completed a $5.4 million
guest-room renovation in July. The property has 10 meeting rooms,
including a 7,400-square-foot ballroom, and plans to renovate its
meeting space beginning in early 2006.
Shore thing. The Shores Resort and Spa, formerly the
Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort, wrapped up a $33 million
transformation in August. The 212-room property, owned and operated
by Noble House Hotels and Resorts, has seven indoor meeting rooms,
an oceanside terrace and a 6,900-square-foot ballroom. The property
also unveiled a spa and a new restaurant. (386) 767-7350; www.shoresresort.com
FL, Miami
The former Radisson Mart Plaza Hotel and Convention Center has been
redubbed the Sheraton Miami Mart Hotel following an $8 million
renovation. The property has 334 guest rooms and nearly 25,000
square feet of meeting space.
Hawaii, Honolulu
The 1,230-room Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort and Spa wraps up a $16
million guest-room renovation this month. The property offers
10,000 square feet of exhibit space and five meeting rooms.
LA, New Orleans
The 331-room New Orleans Marriott at the Convention Center, opened
in July across from the Morial Convention Center, has 13 meeting
rooms totaling 24,000 square feet.
MO, O’Fallon
Staybridge Suites O’FallonSt. Louis, a 97-room all-suite hotel with
1,000 square feet of meeting space, opened in June. All suites have
ergonomic work stations, high-speed Internet access and
kitchens.
NY, Lake Placid
The former Holiday Inn Lake Placid was revamped and reopened in
July as the 200-room Crowne Plaza Lake Placid Resort, with 1,800
square feet of exhibit space and seven meeting rooms.
VA, South Boston
The former Marriott Inn and Conference Center Berry Hill has been
reflagged as the Berry Hill Plantation Resort under the new
management of Benchmark Hospitality International. The 750-acre
property has 92 guest rooms and 12 meeting and event rooms, as well
as an upscale restaurant and the Blackberry Spa. The resort plans
to add 100 guest rooms, 12,000 square feet of additional meeting
space and a golf course over the next three years.