The unusual title of this book comes from a fundamental AvroKO design principle, "best ugly," which originated from a trip to China, where the term signifies something that is beautiful and charming in ...
Industry news for the week of February 8, 2010
HIRINGS/PROMOTIONS:
Thierry Kennel has been named general manager of the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences Denver that’s slated to open this fall.
Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. announced the election of Gregory Kozicz to its board of directors. Kozicz is president and ceo of Alberici Corp., a St. Louis-based diversified construction, engineering and steel fabrication company.
OPENINGS/RENOVATIONS/BRAND NEWS:
Hyatt Hotels Corp. and Hotelera Playa Sombrero S.A., a Costa Rican development company, have signed a management agreement for the 150-room Andaz Papagayo. Slated to open in 2013, the new Andaz hotel will be located in the exclusive community of Península Papagayo in Costa Rica. This project represents the first resort location for the Andaz brand as well as its initial foray into Latin America.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. has added the Minneapolis-based Chambers hotel to its Le Méridien hotel brand. Designed by the Rockwell Group and opened in 2006 by prominent art collector Ralph Burnet, the Chambers locale features more than 250 original artworks by such artists as Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Gavin Turk.
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has opened 150-key Crowne Plaza Fort Lauderdale Airport/Cruise in Florida. The property is owned by FLL Hotels Inc. and managed by Luckey’s Management Inc. under a license agreement with IHG.
A 202-key Fairfield Inn & Suites has opened in the Marriott Complex in downtown Indianapolis. The $450 million Marriott development will also house a Courtyard by Marriott and a SpringHill Suites locale (both of which will open later this month), along with a JW Marriott that’s slated to debut in about a year.
BUSINESS BRIEFS:
Wilson Associates has relocated its New York offices to 119 Fifth Ave., 8th Floor, New York, NY 10003. The interior architecture/design firm’s new office is housed in space that once housed the flagship Lord & Taylor department store. Dallas-based Wilson Associates has a New York office since 1981.
AWARDS:
Perkins+Will, an interdisciplinary design firm, announced it will receive a 2010 National Building Museum Honor Award for the company’s commitment to civic innovation in design, construction and education throughout its 75-year history. The announcement marks the first time an architecture firm has been selected as an Honor Award recipient since the program’s inception in 1986.
Randell Smith, ceo and co-founder of Hendersonville, Tenn.-based STR, was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the recent Americas Lodging Investment Summit in San Diego. Smith was recognized for his legacy in pioneering global hotel benchmarking, the foundation of the company he co-founded with his wife, Carolyn Smith.