Brand name, location and reputation mean a lot in the hotel business, but for management of the Hyatt Regency Lexington, a reputation of high-quality staff and a downtown room attached to the convention center wasn't enough to overcome its reputation of being "old" and "dark," according to the general manager.
In the midst of an $18 million renovation project, Hyatt General Manager Larry Bell is glad to have all of his 366 guest rooms finished, with the rest of the hotel slated for completion next year as the phases in the project move on.
"We're starting to see an influx now of local corporate accounts and we've tracked them, and we're seeing their numbers grow and grow and grow on a weekly and monthly basis, and that speaks to the renovation of the product," said John Gennuso, director of sales and marketing.
Renovation of the rooms began around New Year's and wrapped up in June, and while work on the lobby's facelift will continue through November 15, Gennuso and Bell said the impact of construction will be held to a minimum during the first major renovation since the 1990s and the biggest in the hotel's history.
"Back in the late '70s, early '80s, I'm sure that was pretty cool," Gennuso said of a fountain and mural in the hotel's restaurant area that will be removed when the hotel's bar and restaurant area are renovated following the completion of UK basketball season and the culmination of the Sweet 16 held at adjoining Rupp Arena.
Already guests to the hotel will see completely changed rooms designed to be more open, bright and contemporary, boasting flat panel TVs in each room, granite countertops on furniture and seating more akin to trendy boutique hotels.
On top of the new look in the rooms, Bell said they aimed to be more traveler friendly, as lamps on both sides of guest beds come equipped with multiple electrical outlets to keep guest from having to hunt for places to charge personal and work cell phones. In addition, each room has wireless and Ethernet hookups for internet access at a workcenter, a corded and cordless phone and an alarm clock that allows for docking your iPod for listening and recharging.
"The comment cards are day and night," Gennuso said about customers' reactions to their accommodations once checked into the hotel. "It's been a long time coming," he said as changes in ownership delayed the renovation that had been on the horizon for some time.
"I've been hearing (from corporate customers) that, 'We've been wanting to put our customers here, but we just didn't feel the product was up to par to do that,'" Gennuso said. "At this point, we have the upscale product and the amenities to go with it that will coexist with our location in the downtown."
While they are the most recently renovated hotel in town, it won't be that way for long, as the former Radisson just across Broadway from the Hyatt is going through a rebranding process followed by a renovation of its own. But that is seen as a positive by Gennuso.
"It will do nothing but bolster the downtown; it's going to help us," Gennuso said. "Our renovation is going to help them when they turn into a Hilton, which I believe is a stronger brand from a national standpoint. We're excited about that happening because we feel it is going to strengthen the downtown market and it is going drive more folks to come down here, and everyone benefits from that."
The lure of 366 recently renovated rooms in their hotel and the prospect of the same in the 367 rooms directly across the street at what is now called the Lexington Downtown Hotel & Conference Center combined with meeting space at both hotels and the Lexington Center can attract more and bigger conventions and conferences to Lexington, he said.
Leading up to the tip off of Kentucky basketball season, Bell and Gennuso's Hyatt will tear out the existing monolithic front desk and replace it with a brighter, more open area that will use separate "pods" to allow front desk employees to better assist customers with personal contacts.
Next spring, work will begin on the bar and restaurant facility in the hotel's "glass garden" area, giving it a contemporary facelift and replacing the stone and brick look currently adorning it. The orientation of the bar will be shifted and a separate entrance will be added to encourage more customers beyond hotel guests as well as adding a business traveler aimed rim around the bar, allowing space for a meal, drink and a laptop.
Once complete, the restaurant area will be refocused on breakfast only and allow for flex space for larger meetings and receptions, Gennuso said. They will also overhaul the current menu available in the bar area to encompass the hotel's variety of guests.
"We're going to have a food and beverage outlet that is going to offer for our corporate travelers the opportunity to get a nice steak, a bottle of wine - those type things at a decent price with quality. But you can also bring the family in and get some burgers and soda and not break the bank, so we had to have that balance," Gennuso said.