Florida
- Rosen Hotels & Resorts recently announced plans to build a 300- to 500-unit luxury villa addition to Orlando’s Rosen Shingle Creek hotel. The property will be built on a 25-acre parcel next to Shingle Creek Golf Course and will expand the property to close to 2,000 guest rooms. It is also expected to include a restaurant, a pool, a clubhouse, a private registration desk and meeting space. Guests of the new villas will have access to Shingle Creek’s amenities, including the Shingle Creek Golf Club and The Spa at Shingle Creek. All villa rooms will feature views of the golf course. For more information, call 407.996.9939 or visit www.rosenshinglecreek.com.
Georgia
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The 152-room Sheraton Augusta Hotel recently debuted—the first property to open in Augusta in five years. Guest rooms feature high-speed Internet access, while the hotel’s Club Lounge includes complimentary breakfast and afternoon hors d’oeuvres. The property offers 1,450 square feet of meeting space for small groups. Its signature lobby lounge offers complimentary Wi-Fi and Internet-enabled computer stations and video chat capabilities. Other facilities include an indoor and outdoor pool, patio and fitness center. The hotel is situated close to the Augusta National Golf Club and Augusta’s historic downtown district. Other nearby attractions include the Riverwalk, the shops at Surry Center, the Augusta History Museum and Bell Auditorium. For more information, call 706.396.1000 or visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
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The new Richmond Hill City Center is slated to be fully operational in March. The 23,300-square-foot-meeting and event venue in Georgia’s coastal region is the first commercial facility in Bryan County to be LEED certified. The facility can host a variety of event types and sizes including larger conferences with simultaneous breakout sessions. The ballroom, which serves as the main meeting room, features 3,370 square feet of space with a capacity of 495 guests for receptions and 240 for banquets. The room can be divided into six unique configurations that can serve nearly any seating arrangement for meetings or social occasions. The meeting rooms have direct access to a wraparound covered verandah that overlooks the coastal marshlands and nature trails. On the second floor are two smaller meeting rooms and an executive boardroom. For receptions, the dining room can accommodate up to 80 guests. For more information, call 912.445.0043 or visit www.therichmondhillcitycenter.com.
Kentucky
- The 252-room Park Inn Louisville East recently debuted. Guest rooms feature complimentary high-speed Internet access. The property also offers 10,863 square feet of meeting and banquet space as well as a restaurant and bar. Other amenities include a heated swimming pool and whirlpool, new fitness center and a 24-hour business center with complimentary Internet access. For more information, call 502.499.6220 or visit www.parkinn.com.
Mississippi
- Closed and vacant for some 40 years, the historic 1923-era King Edward building in downtown Jackson reopened in December as the 186-room Hilton Garden Inn Jackson Downtown, including 64 apartments on the top floors, representing a total investment of $90 million in Jackson’s downtown. The hotel features a restaurant, bar, fitness center, pool and spa, and is designed to accommodate groups with approximately 5,000 square foot of meeting space, which includes the restoration of the Grand Ballroom. Many of the elements of the hotel have been restored back to their original grandeur, including the rotunda, prefunction spaces and neo-classical exterior. Amenities include a rooftop pool and terrace with a large community room for private functions. For more information, call 601.353.5464 or visit http://hiltongardeninn.hilton.com.
Texas
- The 947-room Hyatt Regency Houston recently added 10 new conference rooms and three boardrooms to its existing selection of meeting space as part of its $50 million transformation. Ten conference rooms can be set up in several different meeting styles, including classroom-, theater- and reception-style for up to 60 attendees. Three new boardrooms are set for eight or 12 guests. All 13 rooms feature 32-inch flat-panel televisions, high-speed Internet access and videoconferencing. The property offers a total of 71,300 square feet of meeting and event space, including a 28,000-square-foot exhibit hall. For more information, call 713.654.1234 or visit http://houstonregency.hyatt.com.