- Aloft Bolingbrook recently debuted with 155 guest rooms and a meeting room featuring a 52-inch flat-screen with a laptop hook-up and DVD player. Guest rooms feature complimentary high-speed Internet access and 42-inch flat-screen televisions. The hotel also offers complimentary wireless high-speed Internet access in public areas. For more information, call 630.410.6367 or visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
Indiana
- The Four Points by Sheraton Indianapolis Carmel recently opened with 171 guest rooms and suites, a 24-hour fitness facility, an indoor heated pool, indoor whirlpool and free high-speed Internet access. The hotel also features approximately 2,500 square feet of flexible meeting space and a 24-hour business center. For more information, call 317.574.4600 or visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
Iowa
- October marked the groundbreaking of the Candlewood Suites Three Rivers Plaza, a 92-unit, four-story hotel in the Three Rivers Plaza mixed-use development just north of downtown La Crosse. The hotel is expected to open in spring 2010 and will serve as an extended stay hotel option. For more information, call 800.225.1237 or visit www.ichotelsgroup.com.
- After closing late last summer, the Howard Johnson Burlington reopened under a new owner in September. The 156-room hotel, which closed with little warning, upgraded its banquet room. The room can be divided into four smaller rooms to have multiple events at the same time. The hotel can hold events from 30 to 450 people. In addition, the guest rooms have been upgraded and the indoor pool, hot tub and sauna were also refurbished. The property offers Wi-Fi access. For more information, call 319.237.8000 or visit www.hojo.com.
Minnesota
- The Holiday Inn Express & Suites Mountain Iron, which opened in June, plans to build an adjoining 10,000-square-foot conference and event center. The developer had planned to include the conference center as part of the hotel’s initial construction but the project was scaled back because of the recession. Plans also call for the new facility to include a prep kitchen and small pub. The convention center is slated for completion by late summer or early fall 2010. For more information, call 906.774.1668 or visit www.ichotelsgroup.com.
- Crescent Hotels & Resorts recently took over management of two hotels in St. Paul—the 470-room Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront and the 249-room Hilton Garden Inn St. Paul City Center. The Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront features complimentary high-speed wireless Internet in all guest rooms and suites. The property’s amenities include a fitness center and indoor pool; 50,000 square feet of meeting space, including the 10,000-square-foot glass-enclosed Great River Ballroom; and three dining options. For meetings, the hotel can utilize additional space at the adjacent St. Paul River City Convention Center. In addition, The Windows Ballroom, located on the top floor of the hotel, can be used for events. The Hilton Garden Inn St. Paul City Center has 249 guest rooms, each offering flat-screen televisions and complimentary high-speed Internet access. There are more than 11,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, which accommodates groups of up to 600 people. The property is near the Minneapolis Convention Center. The hotel offers a fitness center and pool as well as a large glass-ceiling atrium for events. For more information, call the Crowne Plaza at 651.292.1900 or visit www.ichotelsgroup.com, or the Hilton Garden Inn at 651.291.8800 or visit http://hiltongardeninn.hilton.com.
South Dakota
- The Lodge at Deadwood recently debuted in a hilltop meadow off the shoulder of Mount Roosevelt. The property offers 140 guest rooms and suites, many with balconies and patios, as well as conference facilities for groups up to 1,700, including the 13,000-square-foot Pine Crest Ballroom and four adjoining conference rooms. The property also features Deadwood’s only indoor waterpark and a Las Vegas-style casino with 300 gaming tables and machines. There is also complimentary high-speed wireless Internet access. For more information, call 605.584.4800 or visit
www.deadwoodlodge.com.