|
People & Places Presented
By Association News (January 2017)
|
Los
Angeles, CA – January 2017 / 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
|
Mary
German has been promoted to chief operating officer of the Arlington
(Texas) Convention & Visitors Bureau. She has been with the Arlington
CVB for 25 years, leading several departments and initiatives including
the Arlington Tourism Public Improvement District.
Angela
Val has been named chief administrative officer of the Philadelphia
Convention & Visitors Bureau, where she will manage the internal dayto-
day operations of the organization. Val most recently served as deputy
executive director of the 2016 Philadelphia Host Committee for the Democratic
National Convention.
Destination
Cleveland has appointed Jennifer Sullivan and Alexis O’Connor
as national sales managers serving the association market in the District
of Columbia. Both Sullivan and O’Connor previously worked at Visit Baltimore,
as senior national sales manager and national sales manager, respectively.
Nick
Arnold has been named senior sales manager of the Athens (Georgia)
Convention & Visitors Bureau. Prior to starting at the bureau, Arnold
spent three years leading sponsorship and in-house advertising sales at
the Classic Center, also located in Athens.
Julie
Stow has been named director of meetings and conventions at Go Cedar
Rapids (Iowa), effective January 3. Stow most recently worked for the Fontanella
Winery in Napa, California, and, prior to that, she worked for the Cedar
Rapids Metro Economic Alliance.
Cheryl
Little has been promoted to director of sales and destination services
at Team San Jose (California). Little has been with Team San Jose for 26
years, serving in various roles, including national sales manager for the
state association market and associate director of sales.
Hosts
& Suppliers
Dean
Dennis has been named general manager of the Atlantic City (New Jersey)
Convention Center. He previously was general manager of the Owensboro (Kentucky)
Convention Center, where he oversaw its opening. Dennis has also served
as general manager of the Pueblo (Colorado) Convention Center.
Mohsen
Khaleghi has been appointed chief business development officer of the
San Diego Convention Center Corporation, where he most recently served
as a member of its board of directors and as chair of the Business Development
Ad Hoc Committee. Khaleghi also previously worked for Hyatt Hotels &
Resorts for more than 30 years.
Neil
Poisson has been appointed general manager of the Fess Parker, a DoubleTree
by Hilton Resort in Santa Barbara, California. Poisson most recently was
general manager of the DoubleTree/San Jose in California, and, prior to
that, he served as executive assistant manager at the Hilton Hawaiian Village
Waikiki Beach Resort in Honolulu.
Gregory
Leinweber has been named general manager of the Kimpton Hotel Monaco/
Washington, D.C. Leinweber most recently serve as area director of sales
and marketing for four of Kimpton’s downtown Washington, D.C. hotels: Hotel
Monaco, The George, the Donovan House and Hotel Helix (now Mason &
Rook).
Jim
Morrissey has been hired as general manager of the Westin La Paloma
Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona. Morrissey has formerly served as general
manager of the Gwen Hotel in Chicago and the Sheraton Music City Hotel
in Nashville, Tennessee.
Heidi
Dennis has been named general manager of the Pelican Grand Beach Resort
in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She most recently served as general manager
of the Atlantic Hotel & Spa, also located in Fort Lauderdale. Prior
to that, Dennis held different roles with hotel franchises including Hyatt,
Sheraton and Marriott.
Heather
Strauss has been named general manager of the Embassy Suites by Hilton
Deerfield Beach Resort & Spa in Deerfield Beach, Florida. Strauss previously
served as general manager of the Embassy Suites by Hilton/Birmingham in
Birmingham, Alabama.
Stefan
Huber has been named managing director and general manager of El San
Juan Resort & Casino in Carolina, Puerto Rico, scheduled to reopen
in early 2017 following a multimillion-dollar renovation. For Huber, it’s
a return to the property; he previously served as its director of housekeeping
from 1985 to 1987. Most recently, he was general manager of the InterContinental/Dallas.
William
Yahr has been appointed hotel general manager of the Ritz-Carlton/
New York–Westchester in White Plains, New York. Yahr has been with the
Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company for more than 10 years, most recently serving
as hotel manager of the Ritz-Carlton/ Coconut Grove, Miami.
Kim
Rediker has been hired as assistant general manager of Antlers at Vail
Hotel in Vail, Colorado. Rediker previously served as general manager of
the Simba Run Vail Condominiums in Vail.
The
Lotte New York Palace in New York City has promoted David Shenman
to director of sales and marketing and Megan Ferguson to director
of sales. Shenman most recently served as the property’s director of sales,
and prior to that, worked with both Starwood Hotels and the InterContinental
Hotels Group. Ferguson was previously group sales manager at Four Seasons
Hotels & Resorts before starting at the Lotte New York Palace in 2011.
After
33 years as president and executive director of the Saratoga Springs City
Center in Saratoga Springs, New York, Mark Baker has retired. Baker
was present for the center’s groundbreaking in 1983 and its opening in
1984, and he oversaw its expansion in 2011. A selection committee is interviewing
candidates for his replacement.
Construction
& Expansion
The
Henderson, A Salamander Beach & Spa Resort, has opened in Destin,
Florida. It features 170 guest rooms, a spa, a bar with views of the gulf,
a rooftop terrace and private beach access. For meetings, the property
offers 30,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space, which includes the
5,221-square-foot Crystal Ballroom and a junior ballroom.
The
W/Las Vegas has made its debut on the north end of the Las Vegas
Strip. Housed within SLS/Las Vegas, the new W Hotel features 289 guest
rooms, 15,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space as well as an additional
30,000 square feet of outdoor function space.
The
SLS Brickell Hotel & Residences has opened in downtown Miami.
The 55-story hotel offers 124 guest rooms, 450 condo residences, two dining
options (one run by James Beard Award–winning chef José Andrés)
and three pools. For meetings, it features more than 58,000 square feet
of indoor and outdoor space.
The
20-story Conrad/Chicago has made its debut just steps from the city’s
shopping district, the Magnificent Mile. The hotel offers 287 guest rooms
and 10,000 square feet of space. Dining options include Il Tavolino, Baptiste
& Bottle and the rooftop Noyane, which is scheduled to open this summer.
The
Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa in Fort Lauderdale,
Florida, has completed a guest-room renovation that included the updating
of furnishings, fixtures, flooring and décor. Set on 16 acres, the
650-room hotel offers three restaurants, a 22,000-square-foot spa and more
than 100,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space.
The
Hyatt Regency/Los Angeles International Airport has unveiled new
meeting space as part of its recent $75 million renovation. The 580-room
hotel offers a 10,000-square-foot conference center with several boardrooms
and larger rooms for groups of up to 300 attendees. The hotel features
a total of 50,000 square feet of meeting space.
The
Hyatt Regency/Coral Gables in Coral Gables, Florida, has completed
a four-month renovation of its mezzanine- level rooms, boardrooms, the
Alcazaba Ballroom and the Two Sisters Restaurant. The hotel offers 250
guest rooms and more than 26,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting
space.
The
W/Boston, located in the heart of the city’s Theater District, has
unveiled newly redesigned guest suites and a welcome area with design elements
inspired by iconic figures and events including Edgar Allen Poe and the
American Revolution. The 235-room hotel offers 5,000 square feet of meeting
space.
The
Deer Path Inn, located in Lake Forest, Illinois, has reopened after
the completion of a year-long renovation project. The property now features
57 guest rooms and more than 4,500 square feet of function space.
And
Finally…
The
Flanders Meeting & Conventions Centre recently opened in Antwerp,
Belgium, with event space for groups of up to 2,700. Located in the Antwerp
Zoo, which opened in 1843 and houses some 7,000 animals, the center offers
the “Room With a Zoo” experience that utilizes the entire zoo, with activities
such as breakfast with penguins, a yoga practice by the flamingo pool or
networking among elephants.
This
current issue of Association News can be viewed in digital format
online by clicking
here.
About
Schneider Publishing
Schneider
Publishing is the parent company of Association
News, America’s most-read magazine for association executives,
and SportsTravel,
the sports world’s event magazine. In addition to Meetings
Quest, Schneider Publishing organizes the TEAMS
Conference & Expo, the world’s largest gathering of sports-event
organizers, TEAMS ’17 will be held October 30–November 2, in Orlando, Florida.
The group travel markets served by Schneider Publishing generate 156 million
hotel room nights annually.
For
press information, please contact Ann
Shepphird, or call 310-577-3700.
Association
News, Meetings Quest, SportsTravel and TEAMS are registered
trademarks of Schneider Publishing.
|