Fortune (10/1): Victory Lake private resort in GA
World Waterpark (Sept): Valleyfair (MN); Royal Caribbean adding "waterparks" to cruise ships; Sunway Lagoon (Kuala Lumpus); Sea Life Park (Puerto Vallarta)
Shopping Centers Today (Sept): outlet retail in Italy; infrastructure impacts on retail; retai in Africa; U.S. Virgin Islands' retail
Builder and Developer (sept): feature on Tucson, AZ
Tradeshow Week (9/24): expansions planned for Chicago's McCormick Place and the Las Vegas Convention Center
M&C (Sept): Guatemala; Oslo; St. Lucia; Santa Fe; New England; NC; SC; Orange County, CA
Journal of Sports Economics (Oct): private financing and franchise value; revenue sharing
Sunday, September 30, 2007
regional business news
Indian Country Today (9/26): Seminole museum (FL)
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (9/17): Santa Clarita Wine Fest
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (9/17): Santa Clarita Wine Fest
Friday, September 28, 2007
economic impact of waterfront/marina redevelopment in Scotland (incl. attendance at the Falkirk Wheel)
from yesterday's Scotsman newsfeed --
Ribbon of renaissance which links east and west
SHÂN ROSS (sross@scotsman.com)
"NOT so very long ago, a walk along much of what was left of the canal network linking Edinburgh and Glasgow was a pitiful experience. Supermarket trolleys and old mattresses lay dumped in the murky water, overgrown tow paths were a haunt for vandals and wildlife was disappearing.
Now, thanks to a remarkable transformation that has taken place in less than a decade, the entire 68-mile stretch is undergoing a renaissance.
There is a buzz about the place: the previously rundown canal area of Edinburgh's Fountainbridge now has trendy restaurant barges and is referred to as "Little Venice"; couples are getting married on the Falkirk Wheel and holiday cruisers are sailing the canals, mooring at custom-built marinas along the way.
The latest figures on the £84.5 million Millennium Link - which reconnected the Union Canal in the east and the Forth and Clyde Canal in the west - back up the "feel-good" factor.
New research reveals that the largest canal restoration project in Europe has helped attract more than £178 million of investment across the Central Belt and brought 4,000 much-needed jobs to the area in the past five years.
More than 1,000 homes have been built along the canals and 93,000 square metres of commercial floorspace have been created since the ambitious "Peoples' Project" began in 1999.
The figures - in a report compiled by the independent economic consultant Roger Tym & Partners - are ahead of the original forecasts, which predicted £100 million of investment and the creation of 3,420 jobs by this stage.
Projections also show the restoration of the canals has the potential to generate £1.5 billion of investment and more than 12,500 jobs by 2015." ....
for the complete story see:
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1549512007
A refresher on the Falkirk Wheel and its impact-- also from the Scotsman
21 Feb 2007
Healthy turnover at Falkirk Wheel as visits rise faster than any other UK attraction
STEPHEN MCGINTY
"THE Falkirk Wheel has enjoyed the largest rise in visitors of any British tourist attraction, figures released yesterday show.
The wheel, which transfers boats between the Union canal and the Forth and Clyde canal, showed a rise of 48 per cent, a larger percentage increase than Kensington Palace in London, which enjoyed the second largest percentage rise, a boost of 45 per cent.
The Scottish attraction last year welcomed 437,388 visitors, up from 296,000 in 2005. Visitors to the Falkirk Wheel were drawn by a combination of the warm weather last year and enterprising attractions such as the Winter Wonderland, created in the run up to Christmas.
The figures, published by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions, show that Edinburgh Castle remained the most popular site in Scotland with 1,213,907 visitors, a rise of two per cent on 2005." ...
"The largest drop in visitor numbers was recorded by the National Museum of Flight, where attendance dropped by 31 per cent. However, a spokesman for the museum said: "At the National Museum of Flight attendance has simply levelled off following the peak year of visits after the opening of The Concorde Experience in 2005."
The most popular visitor attraction in Britain remained Blackpool pleasure beach, with 5,730,000 visitors, while the least popular was the National Museum of Costume, based at Shabellie House in Dumfriesshire, which recorded a drop of 18 per cent to 10,717 visitors."
for complete story see:
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=541&id=277272007
Ribbon of renaissance which links east and west
SHÂN ROSS (sross@scotsman.com)
"NOT so very long ago, a walk along much of what was left of the canal network linking Edinburgh and Glasgow was a pitiful experience. Supermarket trolleys and old mattresses lay dumped in the murky water, overgrown tow paths were a haunt for vandals and wildlife was disappearing.
Now, thanks to a remarkable transformation that has taken place in less than a decade, the entire 68-mile stretch is undergoing a renaissance.
There is a buzz about the place: the previously rundown canal area of Edinburgh's Fountainbridge now has trendy restaurant barges and is referred to as "Little Venice"; couples are getting married on the Falkirk Wheel and holiday cruisers are sailing the canals, mooring at custom-built marinas along the way.
The latest figures on the £84.5 million Millennium Link - which reconnected the Union Canal in the east and the Forth and Clyde Canal in the west - back up the "feel-good" factor.
New research reveals that the largest canal restoration project in Europe has helped attract more than £178 million of investment across the Central Belt and brought 4,000 much-needed jobs to the area in the past five years.
More than 1,000 homes have been built along the canals and 93,000 square metres of commercial floorspace have been created since the ambitious "Peoples' Project" began in 1999.
The figures - in a report compiled by the independent economic consultant Roger Tym & Partners - are ahead of the original forecasts, which predicted £100 million of investment and the creation of 3,420 jobs by this stage.
Projections also show the restoration of the canals has the potential to generate £1.5 billion of investment and more than 12,500 jobs by 2015." ....
for the complete story see:
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1549512007
A refresher on the Falkirk Wheel and its impact-- also from the Scotsman
21 Feb 2007
Healthy turnover at Falkirk Wheel as visits rise faster than any other UK attraction
STEPHEN MCGINTY
"THE Falkirk Wheel has enjoyed the largest rise in visitors of any British tourist attraction, figures released yesterday show.
The wheel, which transfers boats between the Union canal and the Forth and Clyde canal, showed a rise of 48 per cent, a larger percentage increase than Kensington Palace in London, which enjoyed the second largest percentage rise, a boost of 45 per cent.
The Scottish attraction last year welcomed 437,388 visitors, up from 296,000 in 2005. Visitors to the Falkirk Wheel were drawn by a combination of the warm weather last year and enterprising attractions such as the Winter Wonderland, created in the run up to Christmas.
The figures, published by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions, show that Edinburgh Castle remained the most popular site in Scotland with 1,213,907 visitors, a rise of two per cent on 2005." ...
"The largest drop in visitor numbers was recorded by the National Museum of Flight, where attendance dropped by 31 per cent. However, a spokesman for the museum said: "At the National Museum of Flight attendance has simply levelled off following the peak year of visits after the opening of The Concorde Experience in 2005."
The most popular visitor attraction in Britain remained Blackpool pleasure beach, with 5,730,000 visitors, while the least popular was the National Museum of Costume, based at Shabellie House in Dumfriesshire, which recorded a drop of 18 per cent to 10,717 visitors."
for complete story see:
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=541&id=277272007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Dubai World's MGM offer
from Wednesday's GlobeSt --
Dubai World Extends MGM Mirage Tender Offer
By Brian K. Miller
"LAS VEGAS-Dubai World on Tuesday extended its tender offer for up to 14.2 million shares of MGM Mirage at $84 per share to Oct. 5 from Sept. 24. To date, only about 730,000 shares have been tendered in response to the offering. The announcement, combined with an analyst’s suggestion that the offer price may increase in the coming weeks, pushed MGM’s share price to a new 52-week high." ...
"Dubai World announced in mid-August that it would make the tender offer as part of a $5-billion investment agreement that also included Dubai World acquiring 14.2 million shares of newly issued stock and making a $2.7-billion investment in MGM’s CityCenter project on the Las Vegas Strip, making it a 50% partner in the $5.4-billion development. If it acquires all the shares it has agreed to attempt to acquire, Dubai World would have an approximate 9.5% share of MGM Mirage.
MGM Mirage owns and operates 17 properties located in Nevada, Mississippi and Michigan, and has investments in three other properties in Nevada, New Jersey and Illinois. In addition, the company has major new developments under construction in Nevada, Michigan and Macau S.A.R."
for complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1000_1000/lasvegas/164329-1.html
Dubai World Extends MGM Mirage Tender Offer
By Brian K. Miller
"LAS VEGAS-Dubai World on Tuesday extended its tender offer for up to 14.2 million shares of MGM Mirage at $84 per share to Oct. 5 from Sept. 24. To date, only about 730,000 shares have been tendered in response to the offering. The announcement, combined with an analyst’s suggestion that the offer price may increase in the coming weeks, pushed MGM’s share price to a new 52-week high." ...
"Dubai World announced in mid-August that it would make the tender offer as part of a $5-billion investment agreement that also included Dubai World acquiring 14.2 million shares of newly issued stock and making a $2.7-billion investment in MGM’s CityCenter project on the Las Vegas Strip, making it a 50% partner in the $5.4-billion development. If it acquires all the shares it has agreed to attempt to acquire, Dubai World would have an approximate 9.5% share of MGM Mirage.
MGM Mirage owns and operates 17 properties located in Nevada, Mississippi and Michigan, and has investments in three other properties in Nevada, New Jersey and Illinois. In addition, the company has major new developments under construction in Nevada, Michigan and Macau S.A.R."
for complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1000_1000/lasvegas/164329-1.html
Port of Oakland BRAC development problems
from yesterday's GlobeSt --
Port Muddies Plans for Army Base Redevelopment
By Brian K. Miller
OAKLAND, CA-Plans for the mixed-use redevelopment of 70 acres of former Oakland Army Base waterfront have hit a wall.
"Shortly after a joint venture of Hollywood’s Wayans brothers and Los Angeles-based Pacifica Capital Group signed an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement with the city for the acquisition and development of the site, the Port of Oakland, its next door neighbor, revealed plans to fill 42 acres of the Bay and erect a container wall that would block dramatic views of the Bay, the Bay Bridge and Downtown San Francisco from a significant portion of the site.
The JV’s ENA does not allow for such changes to the development program or plan, however, so the ENA is no longer in effect, Britten Shuford of Pacifica tells GlobeSt.com. The JV is nonetheless moving ahead with a modification of its plans with hope the city is still on board." ...
"The Port’s planned expansion would block views from the site’s westernmost 50 acres, which was slated for the first phase of development. Plans called for Wayans Brothers’ Destination Oakland, a 917,000-sf mixed-use project that includes a 435,000-sf film production studio and creative office center, as well as 480,000 sf of retail, entertainment and educational offerings.
“We go from having amazing views to having a wall of containers to look at; any suggestion that we don’t need to modify our development plans would be outrageous,” Shuford says. “With containers on two sides, there would be no compelling reason why a creative company would want to come here from Emeryville, San Francisco, L.A. or anywhere else.”
Shuford says all the uses can still be fit onto the site but must be rearranged if the city is not successful in working out a compromise with the Port, which local sources say doesn’t appear likely. There is no quick fix, however, because the easternmost 17 acres of the site is leased through 2013 to the California Department of Transportation for use as staging for bridge repairs. Shuford says new layout for the development will be ready in a few weeks and will be presented to the City Council before being released to the public." ....
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1000_1000/sanfrancisco/164330-1.html
Port Muddies Plans for Army Base Redevelopment
By Brian K. Miller
OAKLAND, CA-Plans for the mixed-use redevelopment of 70 acres of former Oakland Army Base waterfront have hit a wall.
"Shortly after a joint venture of Hollywood’s Wayans brothers and Los Angeles-based Pacifica Capital Group signed an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement with the city for the acquisition and development of the site, the Port of Oakland, its next door neighbor, revealed plans to fill 42 acres of the Bay and erect a container wall that would block dramatic views of the Bay, the Bay Bridge and Downtown San Francisco from a significant portion of the site.
The JV’s ENA does not allow for such changes to the development program or plan, however, so the ENA is no longer in effect, Britten Shuford of Pacifica tells GlobeSt.com. The JV is nonetheless moving ahead with a modification of its plans with hope the city is still on board." ...
"The Port’s planned expansion would block views from the site’s westernmost 50 acres, which was slated for the first phase of development. Plans called for Wayans Brothers’ Destination Oakland, a 917,000-sf mixed-use project that includes a 435,000-sf film production studio and creative office center, as well as 480,000 sf of retail, entertainment and educational offerings.
“We go from having amazing views to having a wall of containers to look at; any suggestion that we don’t need to modify our development plans would be outrageous,” Shuford says. “With containers on two sides, there would be no compelling reason why a creative company would want to come here from Emeryville, San Francisco, L.A. or anywhere else.”
Shuford says all the uses can still be fit onto the site but must be rearranged if the city is not successful in working out a compromise with the Port, which local sources say doesn’t appear likely. There is no quick fix, however, because the easternmost 17 acres of the site is leased through 2013 to the California Department of Transportation for use as staging for bridge repairs. Shuford says new layout for the development will be ready in a few weeks and will be presented to the City Council before being released to the public." ....
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1000_1000/sanfrancisco/164330-1.html
I guess it had to happen -- Diseny-branded homes
from yesterday's Los Angeles Business Journal enews --
KB, Disney Team up on Branded Homes
By ALLEN P. ROBERTS Jr. - 9/26/2007
"KB Home has enlisted the help of Mickey Mouse to sell homes.
Amid what is shaping up to be the worst housing downturn since the early 1990s, Los Angeles-based KB said Wednesday that it would begin to offer homes customized with Walt Disney Co. characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Captain Jack Sparrow.
Starting sometime next year, buyers will be able to specify flooring, window coverings and lighting inspired by the popular Disney characters. “Almost 60 percent of KB Home home buyers are families with children,” KB spokeswoman Wendy Marlett said in a statement.
KB has a similar agreement with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in which the domestic maven designs and decorates homes sold in nine KB communities in six states across the country, including two in California. " ...
for the complete story see:
http://labusinessjournal.com/enews_article.asp?aID=06833766.636
1308.1532050.2253169.3029123.972&aID2=117841&lid=38&sid=&cID=Z
KB, Disney Team up on Branded Homes
By ALLEN P. ROBERTS Jr. - 9/26/2007
"KB Home has enlisted the help of Mickey Mouse to sell homes.
Amid what is shaping up to be the worst housing downturn since the early 1990s, Los Angeles-based KB said Wednesday that it would begin to offer homes customized with Walt Disney Co. characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Captain Jack Sparrow.
Starting sometime next year, buyers will be able to specify flooring, window coverings and lighting inspired by the popular Disney characters. “Almost 60 percent of KB Home home buyers are families with children,” KB spokeswoman Wendy Marlett said in a statement.
KB has a similar agreement with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in which the domestic maven designs and decorates homes sold in nine KB communities in six states across the country, including two in California. " ...
for the complete story see:
http://labusinessjournal.com/enews_article.asp?aID=06833766.636
1308.1532050.2253169.3029123.972&aID2=117841&lid=38&sid=&cID=Z
Las Vegas Hilton upgrades
from the Las Vegas Review-Journal (9/25)
LV Hilton: posh, polished and poised
Off-Strip hotel-casino ready to reveal Resort Club rooms, lounge in continuing renovation
By ARNOLD M. KNIGHTLY
REVIEW-JOURNAL
"The Las Vegas Hilton has quietly undergone $100 million of upgrades and renovations since a private equity partnership bought the property in June 2004.
The latest upgrades, scheduled to be unveiled the first week of October, are 221 Resort Club rooms and a new Resort Club lounge in the north tower.
Over the past three years, the Hilton has remodeled 1,523 of its 3,000 rooms and suites, installed Italian marble floors in the lobby, remodeled the casino and the porte cochere, added a new lounge and expanded the sports book." ...
"The room upgrades include new beds, 37-inch plasma televisions, wireless Internet access and ports for MP3 music players.
The hotel, which is owned and operated separately from the Hilton hotel chain by Colony Resorts, plans to continue the hotel room renovations in 2008. Bill Lerner, a gaming analyst for Deutsche Bank, said the remodeling has made the resort's public areas in the entrance brighter and more comfortable." ...
"Lerner said the demographic for the hotel, which is on 59 acres on Paradise Road north of the Las Vegas Convention Center, are midweek conventioneers and value customers.
The hotel has been running at 90 percent occupancy during the week and slightly higher on weekends, spokesman Ira Sternberg said.
Nearly 40 percent of the occupied rooms during the week are bought by people attending conventions at the hotel's 200,000-square-foot meeting space.
Sternberg said the property also benefits from being near the northern anchor of the Las Vegas Monorail, which averages 19,000 passengers per day, connecting the Hilton to the Strip.
Prieto said redevelopment projects on the Strip's north end should increase foot traffic to the property in the next few years.
Prieto cited the $2.9 billion Fontainebleau project, the $4.8 billion Echelon project, the possible sale of the Riviera and new ownership of the Sahara as signs that the neighborhood is undergoing a rebirth.
Also, two Turnberry residential projects near the hotel have added 1,096 condominium units to the area with another 318 planned for 2008.
Licensing agreements for use of the Hilton name and the Hilton's reservation system are set to expire in 2008." ....
"The property was opened as the International in 1969 by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian. It was bought by Colony Resorts LVH Acquisitions in 2004 for $280 million from Caesars Entertainment.
The limited liability company is a joint-venture partnership between Los Angeles-based real estate investment trust Colony Capital and New York-based Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, a Goldman Sachs affiliate."
for the complete article see:
http://www.lvrj.com/business/9975296.html
LV Hilton: posh, polished and poised
Off-Strip hotel-casino ready to reveal Resort Club rooms, lounge in continuing renovation
By ARNOLD M. KNIGHTLY
REVIEW-JOURNAL
"The Las Vegas Hilton has quietly undergone $100 million of upgrades and renovations since a private equity partnership bought the property in June 2004.
The latest upgrades, scheduled to be unveiled the first week of October, are 221 Resort Club rooms and a new Resort Club lounge in the north tower.
Over the past three years, the Hilton has remodeled 1,523 of its 3,000 rooms and suites, installed Italian marble floors in the lobby, remodeled the casino and the porte cochere, added a new lounge and expanded the sports book." ...
"The room upgrades include new beds, 37-inch plasma televisions, wireless Internet access and ports for MP3 music players.
The hotel, which is owned and operated separately from the Hilton hotel chain by Colony Resorts, plans to continue the hotel room renovations in 2008. Bill Lerner, a gaming analyst for Deutsche Bank, said the remodeling has made the resort's public areas in the entrance brighter and more comfortable." ...
"Lerner said the demographic for the hotel, which is on 59 acres on Paradise Road north of the Las Vegas Convention Center, are midweek conventioneers and value customers.
The hotel has been running at 90 percent occupancy during the week and slightly higher on weekends, spokesman Ira Sternberg said.
Nearly 40 percent of the occupied rooms during the week are bought by people attending conventions at the hotel's 200,000-square-foot meeting space.
Sternberg said the property also benefits from being near the northern anchor of the Las Vegas Monorail, which averages 19,000 passengers per day, connecting the Hilton to the Strip.
Prieto said redevelopment projects on the Strip's north end should increase foot traffic to the property in the next few years.
Prieto cited the $2.9 billion Fontainebleau project, the $4.8 billion Echelon project, the possible sale of the Riviera and new ownership of the Sahara as signs that the neighborhood is undergoing a rebirth.
Also, two Turnberry residential projects near the hotel have added 1,096 condominium units to the area with another 318 planned for 2008.
Licensing agreements for use of the Hilton name and the Hilton's reservation system are set to expire in 2008." ....
"The property was opened as the International in 1969 by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian. It was bought by Colony Resorts LVH Acquisitions in 2004 for $280 million from Caesars Entertainment.
The limited liability company is a joint-venture partnership between Los Angeles-based real estate investment trust Colony Capital and New York-based Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, a Goldman Sachs affiliate."
for the complete article see:
http://www.lvrj.com/business/9975296.html
downtown Kansas City, KS Casino plans
from this morning's GlobeSt
New Casino Proposals Run From $300M to $600M
By Robert Carr
"KANSAS CITY, KS-Five developers have filed proposals with the Unified Government of Kansas City to build one casino Downtown. The government, which oversees Kansas City and Wyandotte County, wants to have a new, Las Vegas-style casino with an investment of at least $225 million, though it’s expected all the projects will at least hit $300 million.
Voters in the area this summer approved a proposal for one resort-style casino, thanks to a new law that allows casinos to be built in Wyandotte, Cherokee, Ford and Sedgwick counties. Five companies responded with six projects to Unified’s request for proposals. Unified also includes the communities of Bonner Springs and Edwardsville, which are expected to submit their own casino proposals, a Unified spokesman tells GlobeSt.com." ...
"The casino is expected to match any resort found in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, according to Unified’s criteria. The proposals so far submitted are:
Sands Kansas LLC is a division of Las Vegas Sands Corp., owner of the Venetian chains in Nevada. In its proposal, principal Diana Rael said the plan submitted matches the Venetian charm. The company has proposed a 300-key hotel with phased-in expansion capabilities of up to 1,000 rooms, a 120,000-sf conferencing and trade show facility that can be converted to a 4,000-seat arena, a 206,000-sf retail facility, 70,000 sf of restaurant space and a gaming floor with capacity for 5,000 slots and 200 tables. This project would be built at 107th and Leavenworth Road, and reportedly would cost $500 million to build.
The Kickapoo/Sac and Fox tribe, formed as KS&F Dev. Co. LLC, want to build on 77 acres at 118th Street and State Avenue. Unified did not have a project summary with KS&F’s proposal.
Legends Sun, made up of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, Olympia Gaming LLC and RED Development LLC, has proposed a 750,000-sf resort/casino with two 12-story hotel towers, 200,000 sf of mixed-use retail and residential development with 250 units, coupled with an 18-hole, semi-private golf course. This project would cover 275 acres near The Legends Shopping Center along 110th Street, between State and Parallel.
The Cordish Co. has joined with the Kansas Speedway to propose a project adjacent to the southeast corner of the track, at 109th Street and Village West Parkway. The development, at a reported $600-million price tag, would include 1.5 million sf, with a casino, convention center and 165,000 sf of retail, along with a gaming area for 3,000 slot machines and 100 tables. The site would include two hotels totaling 212,500 sf and a 535,000-sf parking garage.
Pinnacle Entertainment submitted the final two proposals, though both would incorporate a 100,000-sf casino and a 500-room hotel, along with a 100,000-sf convention center, a 50,000-sf concert venue and assorted retail. One plan is to build on 60 acres on the southeast corner of I-435 and Parallel Parkway, adjacent to the planned Schlitterbahn water park and retail mall, which is costing a reported $750 million. The other Pinnacle plan is to integrate with the 600-acre Donahoo development, right at a new interchange with I-435. The company has purchased options on both sites, said Dan Lee, Pinnacle’s chairman and CEO, in a press release. The company said in the release that it plans to invest “substantially in excess” of the $300-million expectation.
In 1996, 82% of Kansas City voters favored a new casino, says the Unified spokesman, but plans were bogged down in bureaucracy. Since then, the residents have watched neighboring Kansas City, MO bring in their own gaming facilities." ...
"Under the law, the Kansas Lottery Commission has until March 5, 2008 to negotiate contracts for casinos in all four counties, and then forward them to the state’s Lottery Gaming Review Board. The board then has until May 4, 2008 to name casino developers/managers."
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1001_1001/kansascity/164380-1.html
New Casino Proposals Run From $300M to $600M
By Robert Carr
"KANSAS CITY, KS-Five developers have filed proposals with the Unified Government of Kansas City to build one casino Downtown. The government, which oversees Kansas City and Wyandotte County, wants to have a new, Las Vegas-style casino with an investment of at least $225 million, though it’s expected all the projects will at least hit $300 million.
Voters in the area this summer approved a proposal for one resort-style casino, thanks to a new law that allows casinos to be built in Wyandotte, Cherokee, Ford and Sedgwick counties. Five companies responded with six projects to Unified’s request for proposals. Unified also includes the communities of Bonner Springs and Edwardsville, which are expected to submit their own casino proposals, a Unified spokesman tells GlobeSt.com." ...
"The casino is expected to match any resort found in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, according to Unified’s criteria. The proposals so far submitted are:
Sands Kansas LLC is a division of Las Vegas Sands Corp., owner of the Venetian chains in Nevada. In its proposal, principal Diana Rael said the plan submitted matches the Venetian charm. The company has proposed a 300-key hotel with phased-in expansion capabilities of up to 1,000 rooms, a 120,000-sf conferencing and trade show facility that can be converted to a 4,000-seat arena, a 206,000-sf retail facility, 70,000 sf of restaurant space and a gaming floor with capacity for 5,000 slots and 200 tables. This project would be built at 107th and Leavenworth Road, and reportedly would cost $500 million to build.
The Kickapoo/Sac and Fox tribe, formed as KS&F Dev. Co. LLC, want to build on 77 acres at 118th Street and State Avenue. Unified did not have a project summary with KS&F’s proposal.
Legends Sun, made up of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, Olympia Gaming LLC and RED Development LLC, has proposed a 750,000-sf resort/casino with two 12-story hotel towers, 200,000 sf of mixed-use retail and residential development with 250 units, coupled with an 18-hole, semi-private golf course. This project would cover 275 acres near The Legends Shopping Center along 110th Street, between State and Parallel.
The Cordish Co. has joined with the Kansas Speedway to propose a project adjacent to the southeast corner of the track, at 109th Street and Village West Parkway. The development, at a reported $600-million price tag, would include 1.5 million sf, with a casino, convention center and 165,000 sf of retail, along with a gaming area for 3,000 slot machines and 100 tables. The site would include two hotels totaling 212,500 sf and a 535,000-sf parking garage.
Pinnacle Entertainment submitted the final two proposals, though both would incorporate a 100,000-sf casino and a 500-room hotel, along with a 100,000-sf convention center, a 50,000-sf concert venue and assorted retail. One plan is to build on 60 acres on the southeast corner of I-435 and Parallel Parkway, adjacent to the planned Schlitterbahn water park and retail mall, which is costing a reported $750 million. The other Pinnacle plan is to integrate with the 600-acre Donahoo development, right at a new interchange with I-435. The company has purchased options on both sites, said Dan Lee, Pinnacle’s chairman and CEO, in a press release. The company said in the release that it plans to invest “substantially in excess” of the $300-million expectation.
In 1996, 82% of Kansas City voters favored a new casino, says the Unified spokesman, but plans were bogged down in bureaucracy. Since then, the residents have watched neighboring Kansas City, MO bring in their own gaming facilities." ...
"Under the law, the Kansas Lottery Commission has until March 5, 2008 to negotiate contracts for casinos in all four counties, and then forward them to the state’s Lottery Gaming Review Board. The board then has until May 4, 2008 to name casino developers/managers."
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1001_1001/kansascity/164380-1.html
Boston pier development begins
from this morning's GlobeSt --
$3B Fan Pier Under Way After 20-Year Delay
By Joe Clements
"BOSTON-The human mannequins posing as prospective future occupants proved that no expense was spared for yesterday’s Fan Pier complex groundbreaking here on the city’s waterfront, and few of the dozen or so speakers held back, either. Mayor Thomas Menino declared the three-million-sf project “the most exciting thing that will happen in Boston in our lifetime,” as he joined others lionizing veteran developer Joseph Fallon for getting the mixed-use venture under way after two decades of frustrating setbacks." ...
"The site does have one building open, with the Institute for Contemporary Art a beneficiary of the master-planned development’s civic benefits package. Now, however, Fallon is moving ahead on such elements as 1.5 million sf of office space; a five-star, 175-room hotel; high-end retail and luxury condominiums that some observers predict will set new pricing records for the market." ...
"As with the other structures, the inaugural office building known as One Fan Pier Blvd. will have new millennium technology and other forward-thinking features, said Lynch, while the entire development aims to gain LEED certification. That, according to Fallon, will make Fan Pier the largest mixed-use development in the country seeking such a distinction. “Fan Pier will truly have something for everyone,” Fallon told the audience in his speech, with four acres of open space and a 96-slip marina that will be able to accommodate mega-yachts." ...
"Besides a labyrinth of regulatory approvals mandated as part of the state’s Chapter 91 law regarding waterfront development, Fallon also had to steer through neighborhood and environmental concerns, plus the expensive prospect of developing a site that has been in disrepair for decades. While the first effort in the mid-1980s to create Fan Pier fell apart as a result of lawsuits between the original partners, the costly renovation and a series of regional economic downturns have subsequently kept the likes of Pritzker Corp. from pulling off Fallon’s feat." ....
for complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1001_1001/boston/164367-1.html
$3B Fan Pier Under Way After 20-Year Delay
By Joe Clements
"BOSTON-The human mannequins posing as prospective future occupants proved that no expense was spared for yesterday’s Fan Pier complex groundbreaking here on the city’s waterfront, and few of the dozen or so speakers held back, either. Mayor Thomas Menino declared the three-million-sf project “the most exciting thing that will happen in Boston in our lifetime,” as he joined others lionizing veteran developer Joseph Fallon for getting the mixed-use venture under way after two decades of frustrating setbacks." ...
"The site does have one building open, with the Institute for Contemporary Art a beneficiary of the master-planned development’s civic benefits package. Now, however, Fallon is moving ahead on such elements as 1.5 million sf of office space; a five-star, 175-room hotel; high-end retail and luxury condominiums that some observers predict will set new pricing records for the market." ...
"As with the other structures, the inaugural office building known as One Fan Pier Blvd. will have new millennium technology and other forward-thinking features, said Lynch, while the entire development aims to gain LEED certification. That, according to Fallon, will make Fan Pier the largest mixed-use development in the country seeking such a distinction. “Fan Pier will truly have something for everyone,” Fallon told the audience in his speech, with four acres of open space and a 96-slip marina that will be able to accommodate mega-yachts." ...
"Besides a labyrinth of regulatory approvals mandated as part of the state’s Chapter 91 law regarding waterfront development, Fallon also had to steer through neighborhood and environmental concerns, plus the expensive prospect of developing a site that has been in disrepair for decades. While the first effort in the mid-1980s to create Fan Pier fell apart as a result of lawsuits between the original partners, the costly renovation and a series of regional economic downturns have subsequently kept the likes of Pritzker Corp. from pulling off Fallon’s feat." ....
for complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/1001_1001/boston/164367-1.html
AR gaming
from this morning's Arkansas Business enews --
Supreme Court Upholds Law Adding Games to Race Tracks
By Arkansas Business Staff - 9/27/2007 11:15:01 AM
"The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a state law that allowed voters in Hot Springs and West Memphis to add electronic gaming at Oaklawn and Southland Greyhound Park." ...
"In a 6-1 decision, the court said there "was nothing irrational or arbitrary about the Legislature's decision to authorize wagering on electronic games of skill at the state's establishments, which were already engaged in pari-mutuel wagering, which were subject to a competitive disadvantage by their counterparts in other states and most importantly which are considered to be vital to the state and local economies."....
"The plaintiffs filed the complaint after Oaklawn racetrack used Act 1151, which authorizes cities or counties in which franchised racetracks are located to call local elections to authorize more electronic games of skill, to put on the local ballot an initiative to add electronic gaming to the Hot Springs thoroughbred track. Hot Springs residents approved the measure during an election in November." ...
for the complete story see:
http://arkansasbusiness.com/article.aspx?lID=84&sID=85&ms=86&c
ID=Z&aID=99861.69158.111987
Supreme Court Upholds Law Adding Games to Race Tracks
By Arkansas Business Staff - 9/27/2007 11:15:01 AM
"The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a state law that allowed voters in Hot Springs and West Memphis to add electronic gaming at Oaklawn and Southland Greyhound Park." ...
"In a 6-1 decision, the court said there "was nothing irrational or arbitrary about the Legislature's decision to authorize wagering on electronic games of skill at the state's establishments, which were already engaged in pari-mutuel wagering, which were subject to a competitive disadvantage by their counterparts in other states and most importantly which are considered to be vital to the state and local economies."....
"The plaintiffs filed the complaint after Oaklawn racetrack used Act 1151, which authorizes cities or counties in which franchised racetracks are located to call local elections to authorize more electronic games of skill, to put on the local ballot an initiative to add electronic gaming to the Hot Springs thoroughbred track. Hot Springs residents approved the measure during an election in November." ...
for the complete story see:
http://arkansasbusiness.com/article.aspx?lID=84&sID=85&ms=86&c
ID=Z&aID=99861.69158.111987
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Hotel building boom-- is it wise?
from USA Today (9/17)
If you build it, they will check in
By Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY
"Hundreds of new hotels are rising across the USA as the lodging industry seeks to cash in on rising room rates and strong demand from travelers.
The number of hotel rooms under construction in July jumped 20% from a year earlier, a report from industry tracker Smith Travel Research shows. More than 196,000 rooms — more than 2,000 hotels — will open within two years. That's the highest number of new rooms in the pipeline in more than seven years.
For travelers, the boom will provide more lodging selections in many markets. In some places, including San Antonio and Phoenix, the buildup of hotel rooms could possibly push down rates, says Jan Freitag, Smith vice president. But in the two markets with the most rooms under construction — Las Vegas and New York — traveler demand is so strong that room rates should continue increasing, Freitag says.
Industry consultant Mark Woodworth of PKF Consulting sees no threat to the building boom from tight credit. The credit crunch will likely weed out only some future projects that weren't strong contenders to begin with, he says." ...
"In the Chicago area, hotel developer Peter Dumon's firm is halfway through building an upscale, full-service InterContinental hotel near O'Hare airport. His firm, The Harp Group, is also building an upscale, limited-service hotel in downtown Chicago within blocks of the Sears Tower.
The credit crunch has caused Dumon to finance his projects differently, but financing is available at around the same rate as last year, when lenders were more liberal. Developers with less hotel experience could see their financing fall through, says Dumon, whose company is based in Oak Brook, Ill." ...
"Times have been good for the hotel industry. It finished 2006 with a U.S. occupancy rate of 63.4%, the highest since 1998, says industry consultant Bjorn Hanson at PricewaterhouseCoopers. This quarter, the average nightly rate is expected to reach a record $103, vs. $83 five years ago, according to PKF Consulting. The surge in construction should continue through at least next year, though probably not at the current fast pace, Hanson says.
Hotel construction came nearly to a halt after recession and terrorism in 2001. Although travel started to rebound strongly by 2004, the hotel industry was slow to add properties, concentrating instead on expansions and upgrades. But now, that's changed.
For now, developers mostly are opting to build hotels that will charge midrange rates, the Smith report shows. Holiday Inn Express is building the most rooms, followed by the Hampton Inn chain and Hilton Garden Inn.
Holiday Inn Express, the midprice, limited-service chain, is taking advantage of New York's high rates. The chain opened its first New York hotel in October 2005 and already plans to grow to seven, says John Merkin, the chain's top U.S. executive.
In some markets, downtown revivals are spurring activity.
With the doubling of the Indianapolis convention center underway, local government is subsidizing the construction of a Marriott hotel complex that features an upscale 1,000-room J.W. Marriott and three less-pricey Marriotts. More hotels are being pitched as the city nears completion of the 63,000-seat Lucas Oil Stadium, the Indianapolis Colts' new home." ...
"San Antonio will add the equivalent of nearly 13% of existing hotel rooms in the next two years, the Smith report says.
Optimism reigns
One of those projects will give the city its second 1,000-room hotel: The Grand Hyatt. It's rising on the River Walk, the city's main tourist destination and adjacent to its convention center.
Industry executives, for now, remain optimistic about filling future rooms. The Grand Hyatt's sales and marketing director, Scott Lane, says his hotel's already booked more than 500,000 room nights, with an additional 350,000 pending. Those figures rank it as the best opening in Hyatt's history, he says. The hotel opens in February." ...
For the complete story see:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2007-09-1
7-newhotels_N.htm
If you build it, they will check in
By Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY
"Hundreds of new hotels are rising across the USA as the lodging industry seeks to cash in on rising room rates and strong demand from travelers.
The number of hotel rooms under construction in July jumped 20% from a year earlier, a report from industry tracker Smith Travel Research shows. More than 196,000 rooms — more than 2,000 hotels — will open within two years. That's the highest number of new rooms in the pipeline in more than seven years.
For travelers, the boom will provide more lodging selections in many markets. In some places, including San Antonio and Phoenix, the buildup of hotel rooms could possibly push down rates, says Jan Freitag, Smith vice president. But in the two markets with the most rooms under construction — Las Vegas and New York — traveler demand is so strong that room rates should continue increasing, Freitag says.
Industry consultant Mark Woodworth of PKF Consulting sees no threat to the building boom from tight credit. The credit crunch will likely weed out only some future projects that weren't strong contenders to begin with, he says." ...
"In the Chicago area, hotel developer Peter Dumon's firm is halfway through building an upscale, full-service InterContinental hotel near O'Hare airport. His firm, The Harp Group, is also building an upscale, limited-service hotel in downtown Chicago within blocks of the Sears Tower.
The credit crunch has caused Dumon to finance his projects differently, but financing is available at around the same rate as last year, when lenders were more liberal. Developers with less hotel experience could see their financing fall through, says Dumon, whose company is based in Oak Brook, Ill." ...
"Times have been good for the hotel industry. It finished 2006 with a U.S. occupancy rate of 63.4%, the highest since 1998, says industry consultant Bjorn Hanson at PricewaterhouseCoopers. This quarter, the average nightly rate is expected to reach a record $103, vs. $83 five years ago, according to PKF Consulting. The surge in construction should continue through at least next year, though probably not at the current fast pace, Hanson says.
Hotel construction came nearly to a halt after recession and terrorism in 2001. Although travel started to rebound strongly by 2004, the hotel industry was slow to add properties, concentrating instead on expansions and upgrades. But now, that's changed.
For now, developers mostly are opting to build hotels that will charge midrange rates, the Smith report shows. Holiday Inn Express is building the most rooms, followed by the Hampton Inn chain and Hilton Garden Inn.
Holiday Inn Express, the midprice, limited-service chain, is taking advantage of New York's high rates. The chain opened its first New York hotel in October 2005 and already plans to grow to seven, says John Merkin, the chain's top U.S. executive.
In some markets, downtown revivals are spurring activity.
With the doubling of the Indianapolis convention center underway, local government is subsidizing the construction of a Marriott hotel complex that features an upscale 1,000-room J.W. Marriott and three less-pricey Marriotts. More hotels are being pitched as the city nears completion of the 63,000-seat Lucas Oil Stadium, the Indianapolis Colts' new home." ...
"San Antonio will add the equivalent of nearly 13% of existing hotel rooms in the next two years, the Smith report says.
Optimism reigns
One of those projects will give the city its second 1,000-room hotel: The Grand Hyatt. It's rising on the River Walk, the city's main tourist destination and adjacent to its convention center.
Industry executives, for now, remain optimistic about filling future rooms. The Grand Hyatt's sales and marketing director, Scott Lane, says his hotel's already booked more than 500,000 room nights, with an additional 350,000 pending. Those figures rank it as the best opening in Hyatt's history, he says. The hotel opens in February." ...
For the complete story see:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2007-09-1
7-newhotels_N.htm
PWC on Scottish football
For PWC's annual financial review of Scottish Football see:
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/5A5DFED
AB5D0B733802573520050CF87
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/5A5DFED
AB5D0B733802573520050CF87
PricewaterhouseCoopers reports on sports/hotels, European luxury hotels, and UK hotel industry
For access to the PWC PDFs of thier UK hotel forecast, European trends in luxury hotels and the development of the HNW market, and sports venues with associated hotels see:
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/6D6C311D
8FD1F01380257359003BC7EF
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/6D6C311D
8FD1F01380257359003BC7EF
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Vail Resorts mega-, mixed-use, green resort plans announced
from yesterday's GlobeSt. --
Vail Resorts Details Green Aspects of Ever Vail
By Brian K. Miller
"BROOMFIELD, CO-Six months after announcing the project, Vail Resorts Inc. is revealing more detailed plans for the $1-billion Ever Vail project, believed to be the largest LEED-certified, multi-use resort development project in the nation. The locally based public company plans to convert its 9.5-acre West Lionshead brownfield site into a ski resort.
The property currently houses Vail Mountain's vehicle maintenance shop yard and warehouse, a gas station, and a retail and office complex. The new resort is slated to include 150 to 250 whole ownership condominium units, 75 to 125 fractional ownership condos, a 100,000-sf hotel, a 100,000-sf mountain operations facility, and 100,000 sf to 150,000 sf of retail, office, and restaurant space.
The project will also feature a public parking garage, a new gondola, a related skier portal and public park, and affordable housing. In total the new resort will encompass approximately one million sf and include between 600,000 sf and 700,000 sf of saleable residential and commercial space.
First announced in March, the project was accepted into the pilot program for LEED's new "Neighborhood Development" certification program in June, putting it on the path to becoming the largest LEED-certified project for resort use in the nation. Vail Resorts anticipates that the sales aspect of the project won’t begin until at least 2009 because plans must still be approved by the Town of Vail." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/999_999/denver/164292-1.html
Vail Resorts Details Green Aspects of Ever Vail
By Brian K. Miller
"BROOMFIELD, CO-Six months after announcing the project, Vail Resorts Inc. is revealing more detailed plans for the $1-billion Ever Vail project, believed to be the largest LEED-certified, multi-use resort development project in the nation. The locally based public company plans to convert its 9.5-acre West Lionshead brownfield site into a ski resort.
The property currently houses Vail Mountain's vehicle maintenance shop yard and warehouse, a gas station, and a retail and office complex. The new resort is slated to include 150 to 250 whole ownership condominium units, 75 to 125 fractional ownership condos, a 100,000-sf hotel, a 100,000-sf mountain operations facility, and 100,000 sf to 150,000 sf of retail, office, and restaurant space.
The project will also feature a public parking garage, a new gondola, a related skier portal and public park, and affordable housing. In total the new resort will encompass approximately one million sf and include between 600,000 sf and 700,000 sf of saleable residential and commercial space.
First announced in March, the project was accepted into the pilot program for LEED's new "Neighborhood Development" certification program in June, putting it on the path to becoming the largest LEED-certified project for resort use in the nation. Vail Resorts anticipates that the sales aspect of the project won’t begin until at least 2009 because plans must still be approved by the Town of Vail." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/999_999/denver/164292-1.html
Montreal rail station area development plans
from yesterday's GlobeSt --
$355M Secures Montreal Rail Station Agreement
By Joe Clements
"MONTREAL-In the latest example of private infrastructure investment, the Canadian National Railway Co. has agreed to a $355 million sale/leaseback of this city’s Central Station transit terminal and ancillary facilities. The deal includes CNR’s 17-story corporate headquarters and the railway passenger facilities, around which new owner Homburg Invest envisions upwards of one million sf of new mixed-use development." ....
"The sale/leaseback does require federal government approval of an initiative to protect the historical features of the station, a goal that Homburg insists his firm is eager to achieve for a facility now approaching its 65th anniversary. Should the proposal pass muster on that matter and the normal regulatory clearance, both sides say they anticipate closing on the deal by year’s end. "
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/999_999/canada/164283-1.html
$355M Secures Montreal Rail Station Agreement
By Joe Clements
"MONTREAL-In the latest example of private infrastructure investment, the Canadian National Railway Co. has agreed to a $355 million sale/leaseback of this city’s Central Station transit terminal and ancillary facilities. The deal includes CNR’s 17-story corporate headquarters and the railway passenger facilities, around which new owner Homburg Invest envisions upwards of one million sf of new mixed-use development." ....
"The sale/leaseback does require federal government approval of an initiative to protect the historical features of the station, a goal that Homburg insists his firm is eager to achieve for a facility now approaching its 65th anniversary. Should the proposal pass muster on that matter and the normal regulatory clearance, both sides say they anticipate closing on the deal by year’s end. "
for the complete story see:
http://www.globest.com/news/999_999/canada/164283-1.html
Monday, September 24, 2007
Chicago Children's Museum news
From today's Crain's Chicago Business
More than kids behind proposed museum move
By Gregory Meyer
Sept. 24, 2007
"The Chicago Children's Museum, at the center of a political firestorm, stands to get more than $1 million a year in taxpayer money by moving to Grant Park.
As part of a move from Navy Pier, museum officials would apply for membership in Museums in the Park, the coalition of 10 city cultural institutions that annually share millions in operating aid from the Chicago Park District. The subsidy would be a significant boost to the 25-year-old Children's Museum, which had $8.8 million in revenue last year, and a clear motivation for relocating.
The museum's proposal to move touched off a rhetorical inferno last week after Alderman Brendan Reilly (42nd) came out against it. Mayor Richard M. Daley said Mr. Reilly was pandering to white residents near the park who want to keep out minority children who would visit the museum. Unmentioned was the annual subsidy paid to museums on Park District acreage — a property-tax assist the Children's Museum doesn't get at its Navy Pier location. The museums will share $33.8 million this year." ....
"The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority charges the museum $1 a year to rent 57,000 square feet on the west end of Navy Pier but does not subsidize operations.
Park District proceeds are largely allocated by museum attendance and budget and require institutions to be free at least 52 days a year (and free year-round for children on class trips). The Children's Museum draws 500,000 visitors a year. Mr. Law says he hopes the number visiting a Grant Park location will be greater.
As part of Museums in the Park, the largest institutions this year receive $6.7 million, while the smallest get around $1 million. The current funding levels are subject to budget cuts and have been reduced in recent years.
The tax levy is an important part of the financial support for the museums, providing smaller ones with a significant portion of their operating budgets, says Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation, a non-profit tax watchdog that has no position on the Children's Museum relocation.
The Children's Museum did not provide projections of what it would receive from the Park District.
Mr. Law says the chief reason for the Grant Park move is to imbue the museum with a "cultural identity" apart from Navy Pier in a larger, centrally located facility with easy parking. The museum would sit beside Daley Bicentennial Plaza, a location that Mr. Reilly, who didn't return a call for comment, has said should remain open space."
for the complete story and tables see:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=26461&seenIt=1
From the article you can link to a series of articles on the continuing saga of the move.
More than kids behind proposed museum move
By Gregory Meyer
Sept. 24, 2007
"The Chicago Children's Museum, at the center of a political firestorm, stands to get more than $1 million a year in taxpayer money by moving to Grant Park.
As part of a move from Navy Pier, museum officials would apply for membership in Museums in the Park, the coalition of 10 city cultural institutions that annually share millions in operating aid from the Chicago Park District. The subsidy would be a significant boost to the 25-year-old Children's Museum, which had $8.8 million in revenue last year, and a clear motivation for relocating.
The museum's proposal to move touched off a rhetorical inferno last week after Alderman Brendan Reilly (42nd) came out against it. Mayor Richard M. Daley said Mr. Reilly was pandering to white residents near the park who want to keep out minority children who would visit the museum. Unmentioned was the annual subsidy paid to museums on Park District acreage — a property-tax assist the Children's Museum doesn't get at its Navy Pier location. The museums will share $33.8 million this year." ....
"The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority charges the museum $1 a year to rent 57,000 square feet on the west end of Navy Pier but does not subsidize operations.
Park District proceeds are largely allocated by museum attendance and budget and require institutions to be free at least 52 days a year (and free year-round for children on class trips). The Children's Museum draws 500,000 visitors a year. Mr. Law says he hopes the number visiting a Grant Park location will be greater.
As part of Museums in the Park, the largest institutions this year receive $6.7 million, while the smallest get around $1 million. The current funding levels are subject to budget cuts and have been reduced in recent years.
The tax levy is an important part of the financial support for the museums, providing smaller ones with a significant portion of their operating budgets, says Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation, a non-profit tax watchdog that has no position on the Children's Museum relocation.
The Children's Museum did not provide projections of what it would receive from the Park District.
Mr. Law says the chief reason for the Grant Park move is to imbue the museum with a "cultural identity" apart from Navy Pier in a larger, centrally located facility with easy parking. The museum would sit beside Daley Bicentennial Plaza, a location that Mr. Reilly, who didn't return a call for comment, has said should remain open space."
for the complete story and tables see:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=26461&seenIt=1
From the article you can link to a series of articles on the continuing saga of the move.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
misc news
California Real Estate Journal (9/17): second big development planned for Sacramento; Angel Stadium vs affordable housing; special section on retail
Tradeshow Week (9/3): Chicago plans for expansion; Nashville Opryland expansion plans; bargain convention locales (Shreveport-Bossier City, Branson, off-strip Las Vegas); area review -- New England
Tradeshow Week (9/17): Detroit center expanding; New Orleans CC cancels expansion plan
National Real Estate Investor (Sep): city review of Phoenix; overbuilding in hotel sector; international emerging markets (India, China); senior housing
American Indian Report (Sep): economic progress
Tradeshow Week (9/3): Chicago plans for expansion; Nashville Opryland expansion plans; bargain convention locales (Shreveport-Bossier City, Branson, off-strip Las Vegas); area review -- New England
Tradeshow Week (9/17): Detroit center expanding; New Orleans CC cancels expansion plan
National Real Estate Investor (Sep): city review of Phoenix; overbuilding in hotel sector; international emerging markets (India, China); senior housing
American Indian Report (Sep): economic progress
Friday, September 21, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Disney resorts expanding
from Hotels enews 9/18:
Disneyland Resort Expanding Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa;
First West Coast Disney vacation villas planned
"Responding to a growing demand for guest accommodations in Anaheim, the Disneyland Resort today celebrated an expansion of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa that will increase accommodations by more than 30 percent and will include the first Disney Vacation Club villas in Anaheim.
This expansion, scheduled for completion in late 2009, will involve 300 union construction jobs and result in 100 new hotel jobs. It underscores Disney's long-term commitment to growing and investing in Anaheim. The expansion also marks the latest in a series of major additions to the Resort that include the newly launched Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage at Disneyland and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney's California Adventure. " ...
"The 2.5-acre expansion on the hotel's south side will add more than 200 new hotel rooms and 50 two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas. Those vacation villas, to include kitchens, living and dining areas and other home-like amenities, will mark the West Coast debut of Disney Vacation Club, Disney's innovative vacation-ownership program." ....
"Other elements planned for the project include a rooftop deck for viewing fireworks, a new swimming pool and about 300 underground parking spaces. Peter Dominick of 4240, architect for Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa as well as Disney's Wilderness Lodge and Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida is designing the ambitious expansion. It will reflect the same California Arts & Crafts architecture of the existing hotel, which immerses guests in a turn-of-the-20th-century California experience.
Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa currently features 745 guest rooms, including 44 suites. Upon completion of the expansion project, the hotel will feature 945 guest rooms, including 44 guest suites, and 50 Disney Vacation Club two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas." .....
"One of three hotels at the Disneyland Resort (others include Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel and the Disneyland Hotel), Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is home to the nationally renowned and award-winning Napa Rose restaurant, where Wine Country cuisine tempts taste buds and expert sommeliers help guests make selections from one of the world's finest collections of California wines. The nearby Storytellers Cafe lets kids and adults alike enjoy a dining experience that only Disney can do, complete with an array of popular Disney characters.
These dining experiences, coupled with a luxury spa, onsite shopping and other amenities, helped the hotel earn the No. 3 spot on Travel & Leisure Family magazine's list of the top family-friendly resort destinations." ....
"The development of 50 two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa represents the first dedicated Disney Vacation Club accommodations on the West Coast. Disney Vacation Club is a vacation-ownership program that helps families enjoy flexibility and savings on vacations for decades to come. By purchasing a real estate interest in a Disney Vacation Club resort, families enjoy flexible vacations at Disney destinations worldwide as well as more than 500 other popular Member Getaways vacation locations around the globe.
Disney Vacation Club, currently celebrating its milestone 15th anniversary, has grown to serve more than 350,000 individual members from more than 100 countries and all 50 U.S. states." ...
"The expansion project marks the latest growth for Disney Vacation Club, which recently opened the first phases of Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. The new Disney Vacation Club resort, located at the popular Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, is scheduled to open in phases through early 2009.
Construction is already underway on the new Kidani Village building and amenities, with completion scheduled for late 2009.
About the Disneyland Resort:
Located on approximately 500 acres in Anaheim, Calif., the Disneyland Resort includes the Disneyland (R) and Disney's California Adventure (R) Parks, three hotels with a total of 2,224 rooms and the 310,000 square foot retail, restaurant and entertainment Downtown Disney (R) District. With 20,000 employees, the Disneyland Resort is Orange County's largest single-site employer and a $3.6 billion annual contributor to the local economy. In January 2004, the Resort welcomed its 500 millionth guest since opening on July 17, 1955.
About Disney Vacation Club:
The Disney Vacation Club family of resorts also includes five other Walt Disney World properties as well as resorts in Vero Beach, Fla., and Hilton Head Island, S.C. Disney Vacation Club has sold out of inventory at its first six resorts, and sales remain ahead of schedule at its seventh property, Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa, which opened in May 2004 near the Downtown Disney area at the Walt Disney World Resort, as well as at the aforementioned Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas. "
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:671382382&start=4&nid=3457
Disneyland Resort Expanding Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa;
First West Coast Disney vacation villas planned
"Responding to a growing demand for guest accommodations in Anaheim, the Disneyland Resort today celebrated an expansion of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa that will increase accommodations by more than 30 percent and will include the first Disney Vacation Club villas in Anaheim.
This expansion, scheduled for completion in late 2009, will involve 300 union construction jobs and result in 100 new hotel jobs. It underscores Disney's long-term commitment to growing and investing in Anaheim. The expansion also marks the latest in a series of major additions to the Resort that include the newly launched Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage at Disneyland and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney's California Adventure. " ...
"The 2.5-acre expansion on the hotel's south side will add more than 200 new hotel rooms and 50 two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas. Those vacation villas, to include kitchens, living and dining areas and other home-like amenities, will mark the West Coast debut of Disney Vacation Club, Disney's innovative vacation-ownership program." ....
"Other elements planned for the project include a rooftop deck for viewing fireworks, a new swimming pool and about 300 underground parking spaces. Peter Dominick of 4240, architect for Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa as well as Disney's Wilderness Lodge and Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida is designing the ambitious expansion. It will reflect the same California Arts & Crafts architecture of the existing hotel, which immerses guests in a turn-of-the-20th-century California experience.
Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa currently features 745 guest rooms, including 44 suites. Upon completion of the expansion project, the hotel will feature 945 guest rooms, including 44 guest suites, and 50 Disney Vacation Club two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas." .....
"One of three hotels at the Disneyland Resort (others include Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel and the Disneyland Hotel), Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is home to the nationally renowned and award-winning Napa Rose restaurant, where Wine Country cuisine tempts taste buds and expert sommeliers help guests make selections from one of the world's finest collections of California wines. The nearby Storytellers Cafe lets kids and adults alike enjoy a dining experience that only Disney can do, complete with an array of popular Disney characters.
These dining experiences, coupled with a luxury spa, onsite shopping and other amenities, helped the hotel earn the No. 3 spot on Travel & Leisure Family magazine's list of the top family-friendly resort destinations." ....
"The development of 50 two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa represents the first dedicated Disney Vacation Club accommodations on the West Coast. Disney Vacation Club is a vacation-ownership program that helps families enjoy flexibility and savings on vacations for decades to come. By purchasing a real estate interest in a Disney Vacation Club resort, families enjoy flexible vacations at Disney destinations worldwide as well as more than 500 other popular Member Getaways vacation locations around the globe.
Disney Vacation Club, currently celebrating its milestone 15th anniversary, has grown to serve more than 350,000 individual members from more than 100 countries and all 50 U.S. states." ...
"The expansion project marks the latest growth for Disney Vacation Club, which recently opened the first phases of Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. The new Disney Vacation Club resort, located at the popular Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, is scheduled to open in phases through early 2009.
Construction is already underway on the new Kidani Village building and amenities, with completion scheduled for late 2009.
About the Disneyland Resort:
Located on approximately 500 acres in Anaheim, Calif., the Disneyland Resort includes the Disneyland (R) and Disney's California Adventure (R) Parks, three hotels with a total of 2,224 rooms and the 310,000 square foot retail, restaurant and entertainment Downtown Disney (R) District. With 20,000 employees, the Disneyland Resort is Orange County's largest single-site employer and a $3.6 billion annual contributor to the local economy. In January 2004, the Resort welcomed its 500 millionth guest since opening on July 17, 1955.
About Disney Vacation Club:
The Disney Vacation Club family of resorts also includes five other Walt Disney World properties as well as resorts in Vero Beach, Fla., and Hilton Head Island, S.C. Disney Vacation Club has sold out of inventory at its first six resorts, and sales remain ahead of schedule at its seventh property, Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa, which opened in May 2004 near the Downtown Disney area at the Walt Disney World Resort, as well as at the aforementioned Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas. "
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:671382382&start=4&nid=3457
Another mega resort casino hotel plan for Macau
from the South China Morning Post via Hotels newsline(9/17):
South China Morning Post
September 18, 2007 Tuesday
Galaxy Entertainment raises stakes in Macau;
US$3b mega project on Cotai Strip to challenge the Venetian
Neil Gough
"Galaxy Entertainment Group yesterday unveiled plans for 12 casino hotels and serviced apartment blocks totalling 8,500 rooms on Macau's Cotai Strip, a project expected to cost more than US$3 billion.
Galaxy said its 4.7 million square foot plot next to Las Vegas Sands Corp's newly opened Venetian complex would be developed to include 1.4 million sqft of retail space - twice the size of Pacific Place - and 750,000 sqft of convention and meeting space, equal to the total rentable area of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
The company's planned 700,000 sqft of total casino space on Cotai compares with the Venetian's 546,000 sqft gaming floor, the world's largest single casino.
Las Vegas Sands is developing an additional 13 hotels on Cotai, where its own projects will total 20,000 hotel rooms, three million sqft of retail and three million sqft of convention space and cost between US$11 billion and US$14 billion.
The first section of Galaxy's four-phase Cotai project was set to open in stages from 2008-09 and was budgeted at US$1.1 billion including land costs, executives said yesterday.
Named GalaxyWorld Resort, it will initially include three hotels with 2,500 rooms, 420 gaming tables and 1,200 slot machines.
Based on GalaxyWorld's cost per square foot of floor area, the company's investment on Cotai is likely to exceed US$3 billion." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:671327758&start=1&nid=3457
South China Morning Post
September 18, 2007 Tuesday
Galaxy Entertainment raises stakes in Macau;
US$3b mega project on Cotai Strip to challenge the Venetian
Neil Gough
"Galaxy Entertainment Group yesterday unveiled plans for 12 casino hotels and serviced apartment blocks totalling 8,500 rooms on Macau's Cotai Strip, a project expected to cost more than US$3 billion.
Galaxy said its 4.7 million square foot plot next to Las Vegas Sands Corp's newly opened Venetian complex would be developed to include 1.4 million sqft of retail space - twice the size of Pacific Place - and 750,000 sqft of convention and meeting space, equal to the total rentable area of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
The company's planned 700,000 sqft of total casino space on Cotai compares with the Venetian's 546,000 sqft gaming floor, the world's largest single casino.
Las Vegas Sands is developing an additional 13 hotels on Cotai, where its own projects will total 20,000 hotel rooms, three million sqft of retail and three million sqft of convention space and cost between US$11 billion and US$14 billion.
The first section of Galaxy's four-phase Cotai project was set to open in stages from 2008-09 and was budgeted at US$1.1 billion including land costs, executives said yesterday.
Named GalaxyWorld Resort, it will initially include three hotels with 2,500 rooms, 420 gaming tables and 1,200 slot machines.
Based on GalaxyWorld's cost per square foot of floor area, the company's investment on Cotai is likely to exceed US$3 billion." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:671327758&start=1&nid=3457
Friday, September 14, 2007
regional business journal news
Crain's Chicago Business (9/3): art colony preservation development planned
Orange County Business Journal (8/20): Vault 28-- Disney's urban marketing platform kicks off in Anaheim; Orange County meetings market; Disney Institute
California Real Estate Journal (9/4): high-speed rail developments; San Diego redevelops public sites; Concord Navy Yard reuse; Sacramento K Street redevelopment problems; Sacramento airport and hotels and developing hospitality market
New Orleans City Business (8/27): construction boom; tourism infrastructure
Los Angeles Business Journal (9/3): L.A. building boom; L.A. Live's impact on the area's older arenas; mixed-use retail/residential hot property
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (9/3): team-building event venues
San Diego Business Journal (9/10): Chargers north and south county stadium developments; Red Bull air race in San Diego
San Diego Business Journal (9/3): Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay plan expanded gaming in new hotel-casino conplex
Orange County Business Journal (8/20): Vault 28-- Disney's urban marketing platform kicks off in Anaheim; Orange County meetings market; Disney Institute
California Real Estate Journal (9/4): high-speed rail developments; San Diego redevelops public sites; Concord Navy Yard reuse; Sacramento K Street redevelopment problems; Sacramento airport and hotels and developing hospitality market
New Orleans City Business (8/27): construction boom; tourism infrastructure
Los Angeles Business Journal (9/3): L.A. building boom; L.A. Live's impact on the area's older arenas; mixed-use retail/residential hot property
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (9/3): team-building event venues
San Diego Business Journal (9/10): Chargers north and south county stadium developments; Red Bull air race in San Diego
San Diego Business Journal (9/3): Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay plan expanded gaming in new hotel-casino conplex
misc news
Shopping Center Business (Sep): remote-control car racing at malls; Tustin Legacy retail development aa part of Marine Corps Air Station, Tustin BRAC; CA retail rising; mixed-use trends; Queensridge mixed-use in Las Vegas
Forbes Life (Sep): luxury golf courses
Urban Land (Aug): TOD without transit; Toronto and green waterfront development; mixed use; university campus and mixed-use development; Charleston, SC expansion; China's second-tier cities; senior living in Europe; mixed-use financing; regional spotlights on NY and Boston
Nation's Restaurant News (9/3): NY Yankee's ballpark concessions
Forbes Life (Sep): luxury golf courses
Urban Land (Aug): TOD without transit; Toronto and green waterfront development; mixed use; university campus and mixed-use development; Charleston, SC expansion; China's second-tier cities; senior living in Europe; mixed-use financing; regional spotlights on NY and Boston
Nation's Restaurant News (9/3): NY Yankee's ballpark concessions
news from Indian Country
Native American Casino (Sep): casino profiles of Seneca Allegany and Paragon
Indian Country Today (9/12): Santa Ana Pueblo (NM) resort; Pueblo of Pojoaque (NM) resort; WI tribes collaborate in tourism initiative; Kah-Nee-Ta resort (OR); Gabrielino-Tongva Tribe proposes casino near Disneyland; tribal coalition opening new hotel in Sacramento; CT casinos expansion; Pauma Band and Mashantucket Pequots in joint venture for resort casino in San Diego County; NM racino regulation
Indian Country Today (9/12): Santa Ana Pueblo (NM) resort; Pueblo of Pojoaque (NM) resort; WI tribes collaborate in tourism initiative; Kah-Nee-Ta resort (OR); Gabrielino-Tongva Tribe proposes casino near Disneyland; tribal coalition opening new hotel in Sacramento; CT casinos expansion; Pauma Band and Mashantucket Pequots in joint venture for resort casino in San Diego County; NM racino regulation
Vietnam resort planned
from yesterday's Hotel online newsfeed
Life Resorts Signs Contract for a Mountain Resort in Sapa
The Life Resorts Management Co.
September 13, 2007
"The Life Resorts Management Company has signed a joint venture agreement to build a 110-unit Life Heritage Resort in Sapa, a picturesque market town nestled high in the mountains of northwestern Vietnam.
The Sept. 11 signing event formalized the partnership between the Life Resorts Company, the Son Kim Development Company and the Vietnam Investment and Project Development Group (VIPD)." ...
"Scheduled to open in early 2009, the resort’s design will marry the aesthetics of colonial French villas with elements of the highlanders’s traditional stone buildings." ...."the accommodation, the spa, heated pool and restaurant, all of which will be built on the resort’s 15 hectares of hills, valleys and plateaus." ...
"The resort will feature 110 rooms and suites located in a mix of free-standing bungalows and two-storey lodges. Each of the resort’s French villa suites will encompass 45 square meters, as well as a six square-meter terrace that provides stunning valley views. In the deluxe hillside chalets, the rooms take in 60 square meters, including living area, with a 10 square-meter terrace. The four two-storey mountain lodges are 90 square meters each, with fireplaces, panoramic views and private terraces."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:669042808&start=1&nid=3457
Life Resorts Signs Contract for a Mountain Resort in Sapa
The Life Resorts Management Co.
September 13, 2007
"The Life Resorts Management Company has signed a joint venture agreement to build a 110-unit Life Heritage Resort in Sapa, a picturesque market town nestled high in the mountains of northwestern Vietnam.
The Sept. 11 signing event formalized the partnership between the Life Resorts Company, the Son Kim Development Company and the Vietnam Investment and Project Development Group (VIPD)." ...
"Scheduled to open in early 2009, the resort’s design will marry the aesthetics of colonial French villas with elements of the highlanders’s traditional stone buildings." ...."the accommodation, the spa, heated pool and restaurant, all of which will be built on the resort’s 15 hectares of hills, valleys and plateaus." ...
"The resort will feature 110 rooms and suites located in a mix of free-standing bungalows and two-storey lodges. Each of the resort’s French villa suites will encompass 45 square meters, as well as a six square-meter terrace that provides stunning valley views. In the deluxe hillside chalets, the rooms take in 60 square meters, including living area, with a 10 square-meter terrace. The four two-storey mountain lodges are 90 square meters each, with fireplaces, panoramic views and private terraces."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:669042808&start=1&nid=3457
Harrah's new Macau golf propoerty
From yesterday's Hotels online newsfeed
September 13, 2007 Thursday
Harrah's gains Macau play with golf course
Neil Gough
South China Morning Post
"Harrah's Entertainment, the world's largest casino company by revenue, has acquired the Orient Golf Course on Macau's Cotai Strip casino-development zone, according to a source.
If approved for casino-resort development, the site could be worth HK$21 billion to well over HK$30 billion based on recent Cotai casino-land deals.
The Orient Golf purchase gives Harrah's its first footprint in Asia after failed bids for gaming licences in Macau in 2002 and Singapore last year. It also instantly delivers the 70-year-old Las Vegas-based company the second-biggest plot of land among all casino developers in the world's largest gaming market.
At about 7.6 million square feet, the site is second only to the neighbouring 8.7 million square foot parcel claimed by Las Vegas Sands Corp, which recently opened the Venetian casino resort and is building a total of 14 hotels on Cotai at a cost of US$11 billion to US$14 billion." ....
"Two other substantial Cotai sites are understood to have been earmarked by the government for development by both Wynn Resorts and a joint venture between MGM Mirage and Pansy Ho Chiu-king." .....
"It remains unclear what price Harrah's is paying for Orient Golf, which was privately controlled by a Taiwanese investor and a Macau partner. While the Las Vegas firm does not have a Macau gaming licence, analysts and industry observers have speculated it may target licence-holders Galaxy or Melco PBL in a revenue-sharing deal to co-operate on the operation of casinos." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:669071489&start=7&nid=3457
September 13, 2007 Thursday
Harrah's gains Macau play with golf course
Neil Gough
South China Morning Post
"Harrah's Entertainment, the world's largest casino company by revenue, has acquired the Orient Golf Course on Macau's Cotai Strip casino-development zone, according to a source.
If approved for casino-resort development, the site could be worth HK$21 billion to well over HK$30 billion based on recent Cotai casino-land deals.
The Orient Golf purchase gives Harrah's its first footprint in Asia after failed bids for gaming licences in Macau in 2002 and Singapore last year. It also instantly delivers the 70-year-old Las Vegas-based company the second-biggest plot of land among all casino developers in the world's largest gaming market.
At about 7.6 million square feet, the site is second only to the neighbouring 8.7 million square foot parcel claimed by Las Vegas Sands Corp, which recently opened the Venetian casino resort and is building a total of 14 hotels on Cotai at a cost of US$11 billion to US$14 billion." ....
"Two other substantial Cotai sites are understood to have been earmarked by the government for development by both Wynn Resorts and a joint venture between MGM Mirage and Pansy Ho Chiu-king." .....
"It remains unclear what price Harrah's is paying for Orient Golf, which was privately controlled by a Taiwanese investor and a Macau partner. While the Las Vegas firm does not have a Macau gaming licence, analysts and industry observers have speculated it may target licence-holders Galaxy or Melco PBL in a revenue-sharing deal to co-operate on the operation of casinos." ...
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:669071489&start=7&nid=3457
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Convention Centers as Art Museums
from Successful Meetings (9/2007):
State of the "Art" Convention Centers
September 12, 2007
By Kinley Levack
"Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon meandered through the exhibit, taking in photographs of The Beatles by acclaimed lensman Harry Benson. But it wasn't at a trendy gallery, or a downtown museum, it was at the Hot Springs Convention Center in Arkansas." ...
"Convention centers around the country are incorporating gallery spaces in an effort to introduce meeting attendees to art from the area, encourage locals to visit the center, and beautify a space generally considered bland and unappealing.
Keep It Clean
At its core, all art is an attempt to come to terms with life's mysteries. With as many solutions to those questions as there are human beings, art is subjective and can be controversial, so centers have also found themselves in the awkward position of having to track down pieces that are compelling without being offensive." ...
The Hot Springs Convention Center is home to both a permanent collection and rotating exhibits, which have included Woodstock Vision: The Spirit of a Generation, by Elliot Landy, the official photographer of Woodstock; Portrait of an Era, Robert Altman's 1960s-era photography; and the current exhibit called The American Soldier, curated by Cyma Rubin, which displays more than 100 photographs of men and women in the armed forces, in images dating from the advent of photography." ...
A to Z in WA
"In Washington, planners tend to be unaware of the art prior to seeing the convention center. "When the meeting planners come for site visits early on, they are most often surprised to see the gallery spaces here," says Linda Willanger, director of corporate development for the Washington State Convention & Trade Center, in Seattle.
"We have had some groups ask for guided tours, which we can do easily," she says, although the center also makes a detailed self-guided walking tour brochure available to lead visitors through the six floors of permanent and rotating works. "We're not trying to be a museum; we just want to be a showcase for what visitors can see while they are here. We're kind of a sampling of Northwest art," says Willanger, who specifies that the convention center represents all of Washington, not just the Seattle area.
Apples to Zinfandel — Aberdeen to Zillah, the juried exhibit currently on display, is designed to drive home that point. The convention center partnered with the department of agriculture to highlight Washington's diverse agriculture and "to remind our citizens of the beauty across the entire state," says Willanger. "The rotating exhibits are fun, because they change every three months, and we can do about 125 works on our second level and we can actually do two shows simultaneously."
The permanent collection includes the Washington State Centennial Bell Garden, by David Mahler, comprising a bell from each of the state's 39 counties. A Jackie Ferrara, three-dimensional design called Meeting Place on the second floor combines a red, green, and black slate floor with steel and concrete benches and a platform. One of the convention center's most prominent pieces is Lebeg, by Ann Gardner, a hanging glass piece suspended four stories above the center's atrium floor that rotates slowly. The atrium is often used by groups for receptions and events, and various other gallery spaces around the facility accommodate groups of up to 500 for coffee breaks, receptions, or networking." ...
"A Cultural Connection
Under Hawaii's Art in Public Places program, established in 1967, one percent of the construction cost of new public buildings must go toward procuring commissioned or purchased art. So for the Hawaii Convention Center, the decision was not whether to include art, but how best to display the pieces and to select works of significance from a cultural perspective. "We use the term 'a Hawaiian sense of place,' " explains Tanaka. The center's pieces were all commissioned for the building, and "all of the artists had some grounding in the state of Hawaii, whether through education in Hawaii, having lived here," or some other connection, he says." ...
"If These Walls Could Talk
In Hartford, CT, it was a museum that made the first move when the Wadsworth Atheneum—the country's oldest public art museum—contacted the Connecticut Convention Center about incorporating a display. The display highlights the history of the Hartford area, and comes primarily from Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, who amassed a personal collection of over 600 pieces, all of which she bequeathed to the Wadsworth Atheneum upon her death in 1905; pieces at the center include a portrait of her husband, Samuel Colt, who is best known for Colt firearms.
"It was hard for us, because our art is very expensive, but we wanted to do it," says Lee Oliver, group visit coordinator at the Wadsworth Atheneum, which is located about a block from the center. "We tried to pick works that are not easily damaged, and also some pieces that would allow people to see what we have to offer."
The resulting display, which is lit to the specifications of the Wadsworth, has been embraced by both incoming groups and area residents. "It was kind of a dead-end spot on the exhibition level, and this provided us an opportunity to do something interesting in it," says Katie Blint, communications director for the convention center. "When people come to events, they're looking for places to relax, and this is a quick getaway from the business at hand. It's refreshing to be surrounded by beautiful art in a small space within a larger building. And when there are no groups in, people come in with their newspapers and their coffee and just enjoy it."
The relationship between meeting attendees and the museum extends beyond the convention center's gallery, as Oliver reaches out to incoming groups with whom she foresees a fit. Oliver creates tours of displayed pieces that would be of particular interest to a visiting group, and is sometimes able to bring pieces out of storage to display, if she thinks a group might appreciate viewing the work. "We try to be proactive and be a good partner based on those things; it's about playing nicely with your neighbors," Oliver says." ...
"Midwestern Masterpiece
Art has been an important part of the Overland Park Convention Center since its construction, which was completed in 2002. The center now boasts a permanent collection of 100 pieces as well as a rotating gallery collection that generally includes on an annual basis one juried show, one purchased show, one show of artwork from schools, and two to three exhibits decided by the local Friends of the Arts. "We consider it an integral part of what we do here. Sometimes I refer to us as a museum," says Nadine Guest, general manager of the convention center.
The gallery corridor is used on occasion for receptions—"I'm kind of surprised it doesn't happen more often," says Guest—and the pre-function space that can accommodate a couple of hundred attendees includes a number of pieces as well. "You don't have to be in the corridor to appreciate the art," explains Guest.
Local artist and gallery owner Paul Dorrell was selected to consult on the project from the beginning. "Paul is a well-published art advocate who is always interested in seeing vibrant environments. He was the perfect person to oversee the installation," says Guest. "His concept was to use regional artists; he wanted to create a world-class-caliber collection, featuring Midwestern artists." ...
for the complete story see: http://www.mimegasite.com/mimegasite/articles/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003632735
State of the "Art" Convention Centers
September 12, 2007
By Kinley Levack
"Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon meandered through the exhibit, taking in photographs of The Beatles by acclaimed lensman Harry Benson. But it wasn't at a trendy gallery, or a downtown museum, it was at the Hot Springs Convention Center in Arkansas." ...
"Convention centers around the country are incorporating gallery spaces in an effort to introduce meeting attendees to art from the area, encourage locals to visit the center, and beautify a space generally considered bland and unappealing.
Keep It Clean
At its core, all art is an attempt to come to terms with life's mysteries. With as many solutions to those questions as there are human beings, art is subjective and can be controversial, so centers have also found themselves in the awkward position of having to track down pieces that are compelling without being offensive." ...
The Hot Springs Convention Center is home to both a permanent collection and rotating exhibits, which have included Woodstock Vision: The Spirit of a Generation, by Elliot Landy, the official photographer of Woodstock; Portrait of an Era, Robert Altman's 1960s-era photography; and the current exhibit called The American Soldier, curated by Cyma Rubin, which displays more than 100 photographs of men and women in the armed forces, in images dating from the advent of photography." ...
A to Z in WA
"In Washington, planners tend to be unaware of the art prior to seeing the convention center. "When the meeting planners come for site visits early on, they are most often surprised to see the gallery spaces here," says Linda Willanger, director of corporate development for the Washington State Convention & Trade Center, in Seattle.
"We have had some groups ask for guided tours, which we can do easily," she says, although the center also makes a detailed self-guided walking tour brochure available to lead visitors through the six floors of permanent and rotating works. "We're not trying to be a museum; we just want to be a showcase for what visitors can see while they are here. We're kind of a sampling of Northwest art," says Willanger, who specifies that the convention center represents all of Washington, not just the Seattle area.
Apples to Zinfandel — Aberdeen to Zillah, the juried exhibit currently on display, is designed to drive home that point. The convention center partnered with the department of agriculture to highlight Washington's diverse agriculture and "to remind our citizens of the beauty across the entire state," says Willanger. "The rotating exhibits are fun, because they change every three months, and we can do about 125 works on our second level and we can actually do two shows simultaneously."
The permanent collection includes the Washington State Centennial Bell Garden, by David Mahler, comprising a bell from each of the state's 39 counties. A Jackie Ferrara, three-dimensional design called Meeting Place on the second floor combines a red, green, and black slate floor with steel and concrete benches and a platform. One of the convention center's most prominent pieces is Lebeg, by Ann Gardner, a hanging glass piece suspended four stories above the center's atrium floor that rotates slowly. The atrium is often used by groups for receptions and events, and various other gallery spaces around the facility accommodate groups of up to 500 for coffee breaks, receptions, or networking." ...
"A Cultural Connection
Under Hawaii's Art in Public Places program, established in 1967, one percent of the construction cost of new public buildings must go toward procuring commissioned or purchased art. So for the Hawaii Convention Center, the decision was not whether to include art, but how best to display the pieces and to select works of significance from a cultural perspective. "We use the term 'a Hawaiian sense of place,' " explains Tanaka. The center's pieces were all commissioned for the building, and "all of the artists had some grounding in the state of Hawaii, whether through education in Hawaii, having lived here," or some other connection, he says." ...
"If These Walls Could Talk
In Hartford, CT, it was a museum that made the first move when the Wadsworth Atheneum—the country's oldest public art museum—contacted the Connecticut Convention Center about incorporating a display. The display highlights the history of the Hartford area, and comes primarily from Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, who amassed a personal collection of over 600 pieces, all of which she bequeathed to the Wadsworth Atheneum upon her death in 1905; pieces at the center include a portrait of her husband, Samuel Colt, who is best known for Colt firearms.
"It was hard for us, because our art is very expensive, but we wanted to do it," says Lee Oliver, group visit coordinator at the Wadsworth Atheneum, which is located about a block from the center. "We tried to pick works that are not easily damaged, and also some pieces that would allow people to see what we have to offer."
The resulting display, which is lit to the specifications of the Wadsworth, has been embraced by both incoming groups and area residents. "It was kind of a dead-end spot on the exhibition level, and this provided us an opportunity to do something interesting in it," says Katie Blint, communications director for the convention center. "When people come to events, they're looking for places to relax, and this is a quick getaway from the business at hand. It's refreshing to be surrounded by beautiful art in a small space within a larger building. And when there are no groups in, people come in with their newspapers and their coffee and just enjoy it."
The relationship between meeting attendees and the museum extends beyond the convention center's gallery, as Oliver reaches out to incoming groups with whom she foresees a fit. Oliver creates tours of displayed pieces that would be of particular interest to a visiting group, and is sometimes able to bring pieces out of storage to display, if she thinks a group might appreciate viewing the work. "We try to be proactive and be a good partner based on those things; it's about playing nicely with your neighbors," Oliver says." ...
"Midwestern Masterpiece
Art has been an important part of the Overland Park Convention Center since its construction, which was completed in 2002. The center now boasts a permanent collection of 100 pieces as well as a rotating gallery collection that generally includes on an annual basis one juried show, one purchased show, one show of artwork from schools, and two to three exhibits decided by the local Friends of the Arts. "We consider it an integral part of what we do here. Sometimes I refer to us as a museum," says Nadine Guest, general manager of the convention center.
The gallery corridor is used on occasion for receptions—"I'm kind of surprised it doesn't happen more often," says Guest—and the pre-function space that can accommodate a couple of hundred attendees includes a number of pieces as well. "You don't have to be in the corridor to appreciate the art," explains Guest.
Local artist and gallery owner Paul Dorrell was selected to consult on the project from the beginning. "Paul is a well-published art advocate who is always interested in seeing vibrant environments. He was the perfect person to oversee the installation," says Guest. "His concept was to use regional artists; he wanted to create a world-class-caliber collection, featuring Midwestern artists." ...
for the complete story see: http://www.mimegasite.com/mimegasite/articles/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003632735
Quirky hotels
from the Meetingsnet blog 9/10/2007 --
TripAdvisor Names 10 Quirkiest Hotels for 2007
From Alaska to Australia, quirky hotels abound, according to TripAdvisor.com.
Their top 10 list of 2007’s quirkiest hotels are:
1. Forget-Me-Not-Lodge The Aurora Express, Fairbanks, Alaska, where the rooms are old railroad cars. Sounds a little like a place my dad and I once stayed in Pennsylvania, which was duded up like a cross between a railroad car and a bordello. Wish I could remember the name of the place…
2. Icehotel, Marknadsvagen, Sweden, where the surroundings may be chilly, but the hospitality is warm.
3. Malmaison Oxford Castle, Oxford, England, “where lifelong dreams of becoming institutionalized come true.”
4. Dog Bark Park Inn, Cottonwood, Idaho, for those whose trips have gone to the dogs.
5. McMenamin’s Kennedy School, Portland, Oregon, a converted schoolhouse where you will never have to wear the dunce cap.
6. Gamirasu Cave Hotel: Ayvali koyu, Urgup, Turkey, a restored eighteen-room troglodyte cave house where you can cater to your inner caveman.
7. King Pacific Lodge, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for those who always wanted to have their own barge party on a floating hotel.
8. Fur N’ Feathers Rainforest Tree Houses, Tarzali, Queensland, Australia, where you can share your tree house accommodations with parrots and platypus.
9. Wigwam Motel, Holbrook, Arizona, for some kitchy chic fun on Rt. 66.
10. The Witchery by the Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland, which is described as “an historic 15th century building that is only a stone’s throw from famous Edinburgh Castle, [where] visitors will enjoy an amazing array of antiques, and amorous ambiance.”
see: http://blog.meetingsnet.com/face2face/2007/09/10/tripadvisor-names-10-quirkiest-hotels-for-2007/
TripAdvisor Names 10 Quirkiest Hotels for 2007
From Alaska to Australia, quirky hotels abound, according to TripAdvisor.com.
Their top 10 list of 2007’s quirkiest hotels are:
1. Forget-Me-Not-Lodge The Aurora Express, Fairbanks, Alaska, where the rooms are old railroad cars. Sounds a little like a place my dad and I once stayed in Pennsylvania, which was duded up like a cross between a railroad car and a bordello. Wish I could remember the name of the place…
2. Icehotel, Marknadsvagen, Sweden, where the surroundings may be chilly, but the hospitality is warm.
3. Malmaison Oxford Castle, Oxford, England, “where lifelong dreams of becoming institutionalized come true.”
4. Dog Bark Park Inn, Cottonwood, Idaho, for those whose trips have gone to the dogs.
5. McMenamin’s Kennedy School, Portland, Oregon, a converted schoolhouse where you will never have to wear the dunce cap.
6. Gamirasu Cave Hotel: Ayvali koyu, Urgup, Turkey, a restored eighteen-room troglodyte cave house where you can cater to your inner caveman.
7. King Pacific Lodge, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for those who always wanted to have their own barge party on a floating hotel.
8. Fur N’ Feathers Rainforest Tree Houses, Tarzali, Queensland, Australia, where you can share your tree house accommodations with parrots and platypus.
9. Wigwam Motel, Holbrook, Arizona, for some kitchy chic fun on Rt. 66.
10. The Witchery by the Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland, which is described as “an historic 15th century building that is only a stone’s throw from famous Edinburgh Castle, [where] visitors will enjoy an amazing array of antiques, and amorous ambiance.”
see: http://blog.meetingsnet.com/face2face/2007/09/10/tripadvisor-names-10-quirkiest-hotels-for-2007/
"Art Walks" as San Diego market incentive and cultural feature
from yesterday's San Diego Business Journal:
Art Walks Draw Crowds Looking for Culture and Entertainment
By PAT BRODERICK - 9/10/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff
"Jae Kim opened CJ Art Gallery more than three years ago in the Gaslamp Quarter to take advantage of what was then the beginnings of a revitalized downtown.
“I saw the change and I decided to come downtown,” said Kim, who owns the gallery with her husband, Chang Kim. “We get a lot of tourists, conventioneers and San Diego residents.”
She continues to run Artworks Inc. at the Grossmont Center shopping mall in La Mesa, a 30-year-old business that attracts a completely different market, said Kim." ...
"Cultivating Collectors
Art walks that combine culture with food, drink and socializing are one way that galleries have been trying to stimulate business. Venues such as North Park’s Ray at Night, and Little Italy’s Kettner Nights, as well as the Thursday Night Thing — TNT — hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, are all designed to draw out a younger crowd.
Hugh M. Davies, the David C. Copley director of MCASD, considers these venues to be a boon to the art scene.
“I love it,” he said. “Building new and younger audiences is absolutely vital to the growth and survival of cultural organizations, and I pity the arts organizations that don’t have that.”
The museum’s TNT program is good business, said Davies.
“We are investing a lot in that audience with the hope that they will generate loyalty,” he said.
Davies acknowledges that, with the smaller, independent dealers, it can be a pricey investment.
“If I was a private art dealer, and I had an opening celebration for my artist’s show, and 100 people show up to drink my wine and socialize, but only 10 are serious clients, it would be hard to subsidize that as a private owner. But as a nonprofit, it is our mandate. I like to think that we are helping private galleries by growing clients for them.”
Davies was a pioneer in finding ways to cultivate new collectors in the community.
“Now, almost 25 years later, we are starting to reap some of the benefits of that activity,” he said. “Seventy-five percent of works come to museums by gifts, not purchases. If you don’t have great artworks in your community, it won’t trickle up to the museums.”
Ray Of Hope
A moving force behind the six-year-old Ray at Night is Gustaf Rooth, who owns Planet Rooth Studios, where he designs and builds high-end furniture.
“For local artists it has been a huge plus,” he said. “It motivates them to produce more work and get more professional.”
According to North Park Main Street’s Web site, Ray at Night, held the second Saturday of every month, draws more than 1,500 people, showcases everything from paintings, sculptures and ceramics, to blown glass and jewelry, and taps into two dozen businesses.
Hillcrest-based art appraiser Joan Seifried said that she has observed “a terrific change” in San Diego’s gallery scene in the past five years, and credits efforts such as these. But, she cautions, “It can be a double-edged sword. There is a fine line between a party and an actual art-buying excursion, and it’s kind of a challenge for all the galleries involved.” .....
"While selling art for $100 to $200 is a fairly easy sale in San Diego, she observed, “You can’t make a living selling those price points of art.”
“The hopes are that people who start out paying $200 will keep the interest in these artists and purchase works for them in the thousands,” said Seifried. “You start off with a lesser work and move up to a greater work. As a rule, a collector has to start somewhere, and usually they start with not a lot of money.”
for the complete story see:
http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=525772302.6770541.1525225.6369706.7146795.667&aID2=117316&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z
Art Walks Draw Crowds Looking for Culture and Entertainment
By PAT BRODERICK - 9/10/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff
"Jae Kim opened CJ Art Gallery more than three years ago in the Gaslamp Quarter to take advantage of what was then the beginnings of a revitalized downtown.
“I saw the change and I decided to come downtown,” said Kim, who owns the gallery with her husband, Chang Kim. “We get a lot of tourists, conventioneers and San Diego residents.”
She continues to run Artworks Inc. at the Grossmont Center shopping mall in La Mesa, a 30-year-old business that attracts a completely different market, said Kim." ...
"Cultivating Collectors
Art walks that combine culture with food, drink and socializing are one way that galleries have been trying to stimulate business. Venues such as North Park’s Ray at Night, and Little Italy’s Kettner Nights, as well as the Thursday Night Thing — TNT — hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, are all designed to draw out a younger crowd.
Hugh M. Davies, the David C. Copley director of MCASD, considers these venues to be a boon to the art scene.
“I love it,” he said. “Building new and younger audiences is absolutely vital to the growth and survival of cultural organizations, and I pity the arts organizations that don’t have that.”
The museum’s TNT program is good business, said Davies.
“We are investing a lot in that audience with the hope that they will generate loyalty,” he said.
Davies acknowledges that, with the smaller, independent dealers, it can be a pricey investment.
“If I was a private art dealer, and I had an opening celebration for my artist’s show, and 100 people show up to drink my wine and socialize, but only 10 are serious clients, it would be hard to subsidize that as a private owner. But as a nonprofit, it is our mandate. I like to think that we are helping private galleries by growing clients for them.”
Davies was a pioneer in finding ways to cultivate new collectors in the community.
“Now, almost 25 years later, we are starting to reap some of the benefits of that activity,” he said. “Seventy-five percent of works come to museums by gifts, not purchases. If you don’t have great artworks in your community, it won’t trickle up to the museums.”
Ray Of Hope
A moving force behind the six-year-old Ray at Night is Gustaf Rooth, who owns Planet Rooth Studios, where he designs and builds high-end furniture.
“For local artists it has been a huge plus,” he said. “It motivates them to produce more work and get more professional.”
According to North Park Main Street’s Web site, Ray at Night, held the second Saturday of every month, draws more than 1,500 people, showcases everything from paintings, sculptures and ceramics, to blown glass and jewelry, and taps into two dozen businesses.
Hillcrest-based art appraiser Joan Seifried said that she has observed “a terrific change” in San Diego’s gallery scene in the past five years, and credits efforts such as these. But, she cautions, “It can be a double-edged sword. There is a fine line between a party and an actual art-buying excursion, and it’s kind of a challenge for all the galleries involved.” .....
"While selling art for $100 to $200 is a fairly easy sale in San Diego, she observed, “You can’t make a living selling those price points of art.”
“The hopes are that people who start out paying $200 will keep the interest in these artists and purchase works for them in the thousands,” said Seifried. “You start off with a lesser work and move up to a greater work. As a rule, a collector has to start somewhere, and usually they start with not a lot of money.”
for the complete story see:
http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=525772302.6770541.1525225.6369706.7146795.667&aID2=117316&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z
Dubai World and Comoros Island resort
from yesterday's Hotel online news
Dubai World to invest US$70 million In Comoros Island Beach Development and Resort
Dubai World
September 11, 2007
"Dubai World, which is wholly-owned by the Government of Dubai, today announced it would be investing US$ 70 million in a luxury hotel and residential development in Comoros, in the Indian Ocean.
Dubai World inked a deal yesterday with senior representatives of the Comoros Government. The deal saw the formation of a company established specifically for the acquisition, Dubai World Comoros Limited, in which the Comoros Government is a shareholder.
The partnership will see the redevelopment and refurbishment of the country’s leading hotel, the 150-room Le Galawa beach resort and spa. In addition, 22.5 hectares of adjacent prime beachfront will be developed, with 100 new residential villas and townhouses, a spa, restaurants, and beach and kids club. A watersports centre with a boat club, diving centre, marina watervillas and a residents’ club will also play an integral role in the upscaling and expansion of the resort development." ....
"The Le Galawa resort was formerly owned by Sun International and built by Sol Kerzner. Interest in the project was built following a visit by Dubai World executives to Comoros in July 2007, where they met with representatives of the country’s government, including the president of Comoros, Ahmed Abdullah Sambi.
Idi Nadhoim ,Vice President of the Union of Comoros, said: “The tourism potential of Comoros is clear to all visitors but has been largely untapped until now. Having Dubai World on board as partners in this major redevelopment of the country’s leading hotel, and subsequent master-planning for additional island developments, will enable us to maximise that potential." ...
"Khaled Al Kamda, Vice Chairman of Istithmar, said: “This is an important strategic deal for Istithmar. Comoros has tremendous potential for growth, and this development offers both partners significant opportunity. Construction on the development will commence in October 2007, with a view to reopening the hotel, resort and residences in early 2009.”
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:667903611&start=12&nid=3457
Dubai World to invest US$70 million In Comoros Island Beach Development and Resort
Dubai World
September 11, 2007
"Dubai World, which is wholly-owned by the Government of Dubai, today announced it would be investing US$ 70 million in a luxury hotel and residential development in Comoros, in the Indian Ocean.
Dubai World inked a deal yesterday with senior representatives of the Comoros Government. The deal saw the formation of a company established specifically for the acquisition, Dubai World Comoros Limited, in which the Comoros Government is a shareholder.
The partnership will see the redevelopment and refurbishment of the country’s leading hotel, the 150-room Le Galawa beach resort and spa. In addition, 22.5 hectares of adjacent prime beachfront will be developed, with 100 new residential villas and townhouses, a spa, restaurants, and beach and kids club. A watersports centre with a boat club, diving centre, marina watervillas and a residents’ club will also play an integral role in the upscaling and expansion of the resort development." ....
"The Le Galawa resort was formerly owned by Sun International and built by Sol Kerzner. Interest in the project was built following a visit by Dubai World executives to Comoros in July 2007, where they met with representatives of the country’s government, including the president of Comoros, Ahmed Abdullah Sambi.
Idi Nadhoim ,Vice President of the Union of Comoros, said: “The tourism potential of Comoros is clear to all visitors but has been largely untapped until now. Having Dubai World on board as partners in this major redevelopment of the country’s leading hotel, and subsequent master-planning for additional island developments, will enable us to maximise that potential." ...
"Khaled Al Kamda, Vice Chairman of Istithmar, said: “This is an important strategic deal for Istithmar. Comoros has tremendous potential for growth, and this development offers both partners significant opportunity. Construction on the development will commence in October 2007, with a view to reopening the hotel, resort and residences in early 2009.”
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:667903611&start=12&nid=3457
Ecotourism in Libya
from yesterday's Hotel online news
New Eco-Tourism Venture Unveiled by Libya
Sara Hassan
"Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam, yesterday unveiled an ambitious new eco-tourism project near the ancient city of Cyrene on the north-east of coast of Libya. The plan is to build a tourism complex, which is to include over 20 luxury hotels, near the city's archaeological ruins, with the initial stages of the project set to cost US$3 billion. As a result of its long period of international isolation, Libya has so far escaped the mass tourism invasion of neighbouring Egypt and Tunisia, and much of its landscape remains unspoilt. Further details about the project and a proposed timescale have yet to be unveiled." ......
"The project has received strong backing from the UNESCO (UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Centre."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:667960762&start=3&nid=3457
New Eco-Tourism Venture Unveiled by Libya
Sara Hassan
"Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam, yesterday unveiled an ambitious new eco-tourism project near the ancient city of Cyrene on the north-east of coast of Libya. The plan is to build a tourism complex, which is to include over 20 luxury hotels, near the city's archaeological ruins, with the initial stages of the project set to cost US$3 billion. As a result of its long period of international isolation, Libya has so far escaped the mass tourism invasion of neighbouring Egypt and Tunisia, and much of its landscape remains unspoilt. Further details about the project and a proposed timescale have yet to be unveiled." ......
"The project has received strong backing from the UNESCO (UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Centre."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:667960762&start=3&nid=3457
Pandas and zoo attendance
from the L.A. Times 9/7/2007
In U.S. zoos, pandas have universal appeal
Los Angeles Times
September 9, 2007
The giant pandas of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. - and those of the San Diego Zoo - are hot tickets. The endangered bears, indigenous to China, have become so admired by Americans that there are fan clubs, panda cams enabling viewers to watch them remotely, and hundreds of products featuring pandas, such as T-shirts, clocks, mugs and mouse pads.
At the National Zoo, the roly-poly mammals have been one of the capital's biggest tourist draws since two pandas took up residence in 2000. After the birth of cub Tai Shan in 2005, interest mushroomed. Now, the three are spending their first summer in an expanded habitat.
On the West Coast, the San Diego Zoo's pandas recently welcomed a baby born Aug. 3. And in Atlanta, the zoo is getting ready for a big celebration to mark cub Mei Lan's first birthday on Sept. 6. But the news from the zoo in Memphis, Tenn., is not happy: Ya Ya didn't carry her baby to term.
To panda fans, it's all part of the day-to-day drama. "We relate to them because in some ways, they're very much like humans," said Maryland resident Frances Nguyen, who founded Pandas Unlimited, an international group that celebrates the bears at flickr.com /groups/pandasunlimited. The expanded panda home at the National Zoo is part of an exhibit, the Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat & Asia Trail, opened late last year. Nearly 6 acres, it is the first major project completed in a 10-year revitalization plan. Visitors wander the perimeter of the habitat, where they're likely to catch the creatures munching bamboo or sleeping in a tree.
The pandas helped design the habitat themselves, say zookeepers, who kept a list of the things the animals liked best in their original home - places they enjoyed playing, eating, sleeping and cooling off.
Water ranked high, so their new home includes a waterfall, pools and a shallow stream.
The San Diego Zoo has been a center of panda-mania since China allowed two to visit in 1987. After years of red tape, a new exhibit area was built, and has since been expanded and renovated and is called the Giant Panda Research Station. One of the original pandas, Bai Yun, has been busy since coming to the San Diego Zoo; the new cub is her fourth, all born there.
Another one of Bai Yun's cubs, Mei Sheng, born in 2003, is expected to be sent to China in October as part of an international collaboration to save the species, which numbers about 1,600 worldwide.
The U.S. pandas are of such great interest to Pandas Unlimited that members keep track of them through blogs and panda cams. At the National Zoo, they take turns standing watch during zoo hours.
"It's a peaceful, beautiful place," said Nguyen. "Pandas are so cute. They always make you laugh."
IF YOU GO
Zoo Atlanta, 800 Cherokee Ave. SE, Atlanta, GA 30315; 404-624-9453; panda cam: zooatlanta.org /animals_panda_cam.php4. Open daily except Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission: $12.99 to $17.99.The zoo has three pandas.
Memphis Zoo, 2000 Prentiss Place, Memphis, TN 38112; 901-276-9453; panda cam: memphiszoo.org /pandacam.aspx. Open daily except Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Admission: $8 to $13. The zoo has two pandas.
San Diego Zoo, 2920 Zoo Dr., San Diego, CA 92101; 619-234-3153; panda cam: sandiegozoo.org /zoo/ex_panda_station.html. Open daily. Admission: $15.50 to $22.75. Four grown pandas and a newborn cub live at the zoo.
Smithsonian National Zoological Park, 301 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20008; 202- 633-4800; panda cam: nationalzoo.si.edu/animals /giantpandas/default.cfm. Open daily except Christmas. Admission free. Three pandas live at the zoo.
In U.S. zoos, pandas have universal appeal
Los Angeles Times
September 9, 2007
The giant pandas of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. - and those of the San Diego Zoo - are hot tickets. The endangered bears, indigenous to China, have become so admired by Americans that there are fan clubs, panda cams enabling viewers to watch them remotely, and hundreds of products featuring pandas, such as T-shirts, clocks, mugs and mouse pads.
At the National Zoo, the roly-poly mammals have been one of the capital's biggest tourist draws since two pandas took up residence in 2000. After the birth of cub Tai Shan in 2005, interest mushroomed. Now, the three are spending their first summer in an expanded habitat.
On the West Coast, the San Diego Zoo's pandas recently welcomed a baby born Aug. 3. And in Atlanta, the zoo is getting ready for a big celebration to mark cub Mei Lan's first birthday on Sept. 6. But the news from the zoo in Memphis, Tenn., is not happy: Ya Ya didn't carry her baby to term.
To panda fans, it's all part of the day-to-day drama. "We relate to them because in some ways, they're very much like humans," said Maryland resident Frances Nguyen, who founded Pandas Unlimited, an international group that celebrates the bears at flickr.com /groups/pandasunlimited. The expanded panda home at the National Zoo is part of an exhibit, the Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat & Asia Trail, opened late last year. Nearly 6 acres, it is the first major project completed in a 10-year revitalization plan. Visitors wander the perimeter of the habitat, where they're likely to catch the creatures munching bamboo or sleeping in a tree.
The pandas helped design the habitat themselves, say zookeepers, who kept a list of the things the animals liked best in their original home - places they enjoyed playing, eating, sleeping and cooling off.
Water ranked high, so their new home includes a waterfall, pools and a shallow stream.
The San Diego Zoo has been a center of panda-mania since China allowed two to visit in 1987. After years of red tape, a new exhibit area was built, and has since been expanded and renovated and is called the Giant Panda Research Station. One of the original pandas, Bai Yun, has been busy since coming to the San Diego Zoo; the new cub is her fourth, all born there.
Another one of Bai Yun's cubs, Mei Sheng, born in 2003, is expected to be sent to China in October as part of an international collaboration to save the species, which numbers about 1,600 worldwide.
The U.S. pandas are of such great interest to Pandas Unlimited that members keep track of them through blogs and panda cams. At the National Zoo, they take turns standing watch during zoo hours.
"It's a peaceful, beautiful place," said Nguyen. "Pandas are so cute. They always make you laugh."
IF YOU GO
Zoo Atlanta, 800 Cherokee Ave. SE, Atlanta, GA 30315; 404-624-9453; panda cam: zooatlanta.org /animals_panda_cam.php4. Open daily except Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission: $12.99 to $17.99.The zoo has three pandas.
Memphis Zoo, 2000 Prentiss Place, Memphis, TN 38112; 901-276-9453; panda cam: memphiszoo.org /pandacam.aspx. Open daily except Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Admission: $8 to $13. The zoo has two pandas.
San Diego Zoo, 2920 Zoo Dr., San Diego, CA 92101; 619-234-3153; panda cam: sandiegozoo.org /zoo/ex_panda_station.html. Open daily. Admission: $15.50 to $22.75. Four grown pandas and a newborn cub live at the zoo.
Smithsonian National Zoological Park, 301 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20008; 202- 633-4800; panda cam: nationalzoo.si.edu/animals /giantpandas/default.cfm. Open daily except Christmas. Admission free. Three pandas live at the zoo.
Macau Studio City gets W hotel
from yesterday's Hotel news online
JLL Brings Ritz-Carlton, Marriott and 'W' hotels to ‘Las Vegas of Asia’
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels
September 11, 2007
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels (the “Firm”) is pleased to have advised the investors in Macao Studio City in the selection and negotiations with world-class hotel brands namely, the Ritz-Carlton, Marriott and ‘W’ to operate three hotels with an approximate total of 1,800 rooms in the integrated development. Mr Mark Brannigan, Senior Vice President, Asset Management of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels in Asia, spearheaded the selection and negotiations of the management contracts for the three hotels.
“Leveraging our understanding of the global hotel market as well as hotel brands and operators, we were able to bring to Macao Studio City high profile international hotel management companies that will add to the level of luxury and splendour that matches our client’s grand vision. This case is a prime example of how proactive asset management could help to maximise the competitive positioning and long-term growth potential of a real estate asset,” said Mr Brannigan." ...
Currently, the Firm is negotiating hotel operating agreements in China, Japan, India, Thailand and Macao. Late in 2006, the Firm advised All Nippon Airways Co. Ltd (ANA) and its subsidiary ANA Hotels and Resorts in the joint venture with InterContinental Hotels Group which resulted in the formation of the largest international hotel group in Japan, IHG ANA Hotels Group Japan. The Firm was also the exclusive advisor to Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts in negotiating a management lease agreement with Mori Trust last year that brings the luxury hotel brand to Tokyo in 2008.
Located strategically on the Cotai strip – Asia’s equivalent of the world-renown Las Vegas strip – Macao Studio City is Asia’s first leisure resort to integrate television and film production facilities with retail, entertainment and world class hotels. All three hotels – the 965-room The Macao Studio City Marriott Hotel, 563-room W Macao Studio City and 256-room Ritz-Carlton, Macao Studio City – will make their debut in 2009."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:667903419&start=1&nid=3457
JLL Brings Ritz-Carlton, Marriott and 'W' hotels to ‘Las Vegas of Asia’
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels
September 11, 2007
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels (the “Firm”) is pleased to have advised the investors in Macao Studio City in the selection and negotiations with world-class hotel brands namely, the Ritz-Carlton, Marriott and ‘W’ to operate three hotels with an approximate total of 1,800 rooms in the integrated development. Mr Mark Brannigan, Senior Vice President, Asset Management of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels in Asia, spearheaded the selection and negotiations of the management contracts for the three hotels.
“Leveraging our understanding of the global hotel market as well as hotel brands and operators, we were able to bring to Macao Studio City high profile international hotel management companies that will add to the level of luxury and splendour that matches our client’s grand vision. This case is a prime example of how proactive asset management could help to maximise the competitive positioning and long-term growth potential of a real estate asset,” said Mr Brannigan." ...
Currently, the Firm is negotiating hotel operating agreements in China, Japan, India, Thailand and Macao. Late in 2006, the Firm advised All Nippon Airways Co. Ltd (ANA) and its subsidiary ANA Hotels and Resorts in the joint venture with InterContinental Hotels Group which resulted in the formation of the largest international hotel group in Japan, IHG ANA Hotels Group Japan. The Firm was also the exclusive advisor to Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts in negotiating a management lease agreement with Mori Trust last year that brings the luxury hotel brand to Tokyo in 2008.
Located strategically on the Cotai strip – Asia’s equivalent of the world-renown Las Vegas strip – Macao Studio City is Asia’s first leisure resort to integrate television and film production facilities with retail, entertainment and world class hotels. All three hotels – the 965-room The Macao Studio City Marriott Hotel, 563-room W Macao Studio City and 256-room Ritz-Carlton, Macao Studio City – will make their debut in 2009."
for the complete story see:
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:667903419&start=1&nid=3457
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Corporate Contest
I'll have some sort of prize for the person with the best explanation for why someone at ERA thought this box should be shipped to me.
The following photos show very clearly that the box is addressed to me at the library and chronicles exactly the revelatory process.



Yup. That says "wet-dry vac." See...

And, no, the actual vacuum was not included in the shipment. Just a big box with a hose, skweegy, and instructions.
The following photos show very clearly that the box is addressed to me at the library and chronicles exactly the revelatory process.
Yup. That says "wet-dry vac." See...
And, no, the actual vacuum was not included in the shipment. Just a big box with a hose, skweegy, and instructions.
misc news
Indian Country Today (8/22); ME tribes in dispute over water regulation
Indian Country Today (8/29): MA gaming study; Gun Lake compact
Nation's Restaurant News (8/27): New Orleans restaurant slump continues
Indian Country Today (8/29): MA gaming study; Gun Lake compact
Nation's Restaurant News (8/27): New Orleans restaurant slump continues
business news
Business Week (9/10): luxury hotels trying to go hip; cable TV and the rise of niche sports
Business Week (9/3); feature on the economy of the Ukraine
Fortune (9/3): for the sports inclined -- Rawlings has released the world's most expensive baseball glove made of the finest of Italian leather for a mere $400.
Business Week (9/3); feature on the economy of the Ukraine
Fortune (9/3): for the sports inclined -- Rawlings has released the world's most expensive baseball glove made of the finest of Italian leather for a mere $400.
real estate journals
San Diego Business Journal (8/27): STR ranking puts San Diego at #1 in hotel occupancy
Los Angeles Business Journal (8/27): South Broadway high-rent retail may be pushed out for lower-rent, national chains as high-end residential reuse takes over the upper stories of historic buildings; L.A. Mayor planning to lure more big box retail
Crain's Chicago Business (8/20): lifestyle center tenancy; residential sales; Rosemont waterpark plans
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (8/20): film equipment firms opening offices in NC and SC
California Real Estate Journal (8/27): San Diego housing state of emergency; City of San Diego offering land for city hall development
Los Angeles Business Journal (8/27): South Broadway high-rent retail may be pushed out for lower-rent, national chains as high-end residential reuse takes over the upper stories of historic buildings; L.A. Mayor planning to lure more big box retail
Crain's Chicago Business (8/20): lifestyle center tenancy; residential sales; Rosemont waterpark plans
San Fernando Valley Business Journal (8/20): film equipment firms opening offices in NC and SC
California Real Estate Journal (8/27): San Diego housing state of emergency; City of San Diego offering land for city hall development
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