|
People & Places Presented
by Association News (June 2014)
|
Los
Angeles, CA – June 2014 / Newsmaker Alert / Each monthly issue of
Association
News contains information from state and regional associations,
convention bureaus, hotels and hotel chains and other meeting facilities.
CVBs/DMOs
The
Santa Fe (New Mexico) Convention & Visitors Bureau has named Randy
Randall executive director. Randall brings more than 45 years of experience
to his new role, including 10 years as general manager of the Eldorado
Hotel & Spa in Santa Fe.
|
Greg
Ortale, president and CEO of the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors
Bureau, has announced his resignation. Ortale will stay in his current
role until an acting CEO is named and will remain with the bureau until
July 31. He has served in his current position with the Greater Houston
CVB since 2007; before that, he worked as the president and CEO of Meet
Minneapolis.
Skip
Strittmatter has announced plans to retire from the DuPage Convention
& Visitors Bureau in Oak Brook, Illinois, where she has worked as executive
director for 20 years. Strittmatter formerly served as president of the
Illinois Council of Convention & Visitors Bureaus and Chicago Plus.
She has also served as a board member of Visit Illinois.
The
Bermuda Tourism Authority has named Victoria Isley chief sales and
marketing officer. Previously, Isley worked as chief operating officer
for Destination Marketing Association International.
The
Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau has named Sandy Price
vice-president of tourism sales. Price has worked with the bureau since
1987.
Charles
Harris has been named senior vice-president of marketing at the Anaheim/Orange
County (California) Visitor & Convention Bureau. Harris previously
served as vice-president of marketing at Luxe Hotels in Los Angeles.
The
Joplin (Missouri) Convention & Visitors Bureau has hired Erin Slifka
as director of sales. Slifka most recently worked as the sales manager
at the Hilton/ Austin in Texas.
Hospitality
& Suppliers
SMG
has named Marc Mulherin general manager of the Branson Convention
Center in Branson, Missouri. Mulherin most recently worked at the SMG-run
McCormick Place in Chicago as assistant general manager, director of food
and beverage operations and director of capital and special projects for
its catering partner Savor.
The
Sheraton Puerto Rico Hotel & Casino in the capital city of San Juan
has appointed Sam Basu general manager. Most recently, Basu served
as hotel manager of the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort in Río Grande,
Puerto Rico.
The
Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Arizona, has named Derek McCann
general manager and Ryan Bunker director of sales and marketing. Previously,
McCann served as hotel manager of the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention
Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Bunker most recently worked as director
of sales and marketing at the Tucson Marriott University Park.
Barbara
Readey has been appointed general manager of the Vinoy Renaissance
St. Petersburg Resort & Golf Club in St. Petersburg, Florida. Previously,
Readey served as general manager of the Miami Marriott Biscayne Bay in
Florida.
Jay
Campbell has been named general manager of the Hilton/Clearwater Beach
in Clearwater, Florida. Previously, Campbell worked as general manager
of three properties in Branson, Missouri: the Branson Convention Center,
the Hilton/ Branson Convention Center and the Hilton/Promenade at Branson
Landing.
Michael
Walker has been named general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton /
Houston Downtown. Walker most recently served as general manager of the
Hilton /New Orleans Airport.
Marcus
Jackson has been named general manager of the Inn at Palmetto Bluff
in Bluffton, South Carolina. Most recently, Jackson served as general manager
of the Montage/ Deer Valley in Park City, Utah, for nearly six years.
The
Wild Dunes Resort on Isle of Palms, South Carolina, has promoted Jody
Harris to director of sales and marketing. Harris previously worked
as sales manager at the Vail Cascade Resort & Spa in Colorado.
The
Outrigger Enterprises Group has promoted Mary Loy to director of
sales and marketing for the Outrigger/ Waikiki on the Beach in Honolulu
and has named Richard Oshiro director of sales and marketing for
the Outrigger Reef on the Beach, also in Honolulu. Loy has worked as Outrigger’s
regional director of sales since 2002. Oshiro most recently served as executive
assistant manager and director of sales and marketing at the Miramar at
Waikiki Hotel in Honolulu.
The
Four Seasons Resort & Residences in Vail, Colorado, has named Scott
Gubrud director of sales and marketing. Gubrud most recently served
as director of sales and marketing at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort
& Spa in Beaver Creek, Colorado.
The
Waterstone Resort & Marina in Boca Raton, Florida, has named Jennifer
Graham director of sales and marketing. Most recently, Graham worked
as director of sales for the Embassy Suites/Boca Raton.
La
Cantera Hill Country Resort in San Antonio has named Ty Brassie
director of sales and marketing. Previously, Brassie served as director
of sales and marketing at Omni Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa in Rancho
Mirage, California.
Construction
& Expansion
Harrah’s
Resort Southern California in Valley Center has completed a $160 million
multiphase renovation and expansion, bringing its total square footage
to 1.2 million. Formerly Harrah’s Rincon Casino & Resort, the rebranded
property now offers 1,065 guest rooms and 39,000 square feet of meeting
and event space, which includes a 53,221 square-foot convention and entertainment
venue.
Hotel
del Coronado in Coronado, California, has completed a $13 million,
two-year renovation. The hotel features 757 guest rooms and 65,000 square
feet of indoor and outdoor function space.
The
Hyatt
Dulles, located in Herndon, Virginia, just two miles from Dulles International
Airport, has completed a $3.2 million renovation in celebration of its
25th anniversary. The hotel features 316 guest rooms and 29,000 square
feet of meeting space.
The
Radisson
Hotel at Cross Keys in Baltimore has completed a two-year, multimillion-dollar
renovation. Upgrades have been made to its 147 guest rooms, more than 9,000
square feet of event space, business center, fitness centers, lobby and
restaurant.
The
Pan
Pacific/Seattle has completed a $1.7 million renovation that includes
upgrades to the property’s 253 guest rooms and 5,554 square feet of event
space.
The
New York Hilton Midtown in New York City has completed the first phase
of a multimillion-dollar renovation. The hotel offers 1,985 guest rooms
and more than 151,000 square feet of meeting space.
The
Hilton/Burlington
in Vermont has unveiled an executive lounge as part of a multimillion-dollar
renovation project. The lounge offers a daily complimentary breakfast,
fresh fruit and snacks throughout the day and a nightly reception to encourage
business networking. The Hilton/Burlington features 258 guest rooms and
18,000 square feet of meeting space.
The
Westin
/ Wilmington has opened in Wilmington, Delaware, with 180 guest rooms
and 2,100 square feet of meeting space. In addition, the property is connected
to the adjacent Chase Center on the Riverfront, which offers 87,000 square
feet of meeting space.
The
Mandalay
Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas has unveiled plans to expand its
convention center to more than 2 million square feet. Plans include the
addition of 350,000 square feet of exhibit space to the existing 1.7 million-square-foot
Mandalay Bay Convention Center and more carpeted ballroom space. Construction
is scheduled to begin in late fall, and all spaces are expected to be completed
by January 2016.
And
Finally…
Visitors
to Rome can learn about the ancient world of the gladiators with a visit
to the Colosseum, but for a full immersion experience, the Waldorf Astoria
Hotels & Resorts – owned Rome Cavalieri Hotel – in partnership with
the Gruppo Storico Romano – pulls out all the stops. A gladiator-training
program, held on-site and open year-round, encourages groups to don traditional
tunics, sandals and protective gloves and learn firsthand about gladiator
techniques using wooden swords. Groups can train at the hotel’s private
15-acre park, which overlooks Rome’s skyline, at Gruppo Storico’s headquarters
in Via Appia Antica 18, or in the meeting room. On completion, students
are presented with a medal declaring them a “Tiro,” or firstlevel gladiator.
The program is available on request and open to all guests over the age
of 7.
|
What’s
Ahead at Convention Centers for Meeting and Event Planners?
|
Download “Convention
Trends 2014” (PDF
File)
|
|
This
current issue of Association News can be viewed in digital format
online by clicking
here.
Timothy
Schneider is the publisher of Association
News and SportsTravel
magazines, which serve group travel planners responsible for generating
106 million hotel room nights annually. Schneider
Publishing also organizes Meetings
Quest, America's longest-running series of trade shows for meeting
planners, and the TEAMS Conference
& Expo, the world’s largest gathering of sports-event organizers.
TEAMS '14 will be held in Las Vegas, November 10-13, 2014. For further
information on advertising or sponsorship opportunities, please call toll-free
877-577-3700 or 310-577-3700 if calling from outside the United States.
Association
News, SportsTravel and TEAMS are registered trademarks and Meetings
Quest is a trademark of Schneider Publishing Company, Inc.
|
Media
Contact:
Timothy
Schneider
310-577-3700
Schneider
Publishing Company, Inc.
||
| |