The current 603-room property�s two towers will undergo a simultaneous $25 million conversion and redevelopment into two separate and distinct hotels:  a 150-suite upscale Embassy Suites Hotel and a 316-room Marriott Hotel with approximately 70,000 sq. ft. of meeting and banquet space.  Noble will operate the total meetings and convention space as one complex, which when combined with commensurate upgrades at the 200,000 sq. ft. Benton Convention Center, will provide large and small groups with a pre-eminent meetings venue.

Adam�s Mark Hotel 425 North Cherry Street Winston-Salem, N.C.

�We are deeply committed to the future of Winston-Salem,� said Mit Shah, president of Noble.  �Our family has had a home here for over 30 years, and we currently have two existing Marriott-branded hotels in the city.  I had the pleasure of growing up in Winston-Salem and then graduating from Wake Forest University, where I remain actively involved.  In addition to our investment in the convention complex, we are investing in the community through the creation of new jobs.  We plan to partner with our city�s constituents to make Winston-Salem and our downtown a better place in which to live, work, play and, of course, visit.�

Gayle Anderson, president of the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce, noted that city leaders believe the investment will be a catalyst for further development and redevelopment in the core downtown area.  �Business leaders in Winston Salem are ecstatic to have a quality partner like Noble to help us drive business and industry to our city.  Their investment creates a highly competitive venue for local and regional companies, which will attract more corporate business, meetings and conventions, as well as leisure travel to downtown.  As momentum builds in the downtown area, we expect to see the proposed new restaurants and retail area on Fifth Street come alive, creating more jobs and a more vibrant downtown.�

�This is great news for Winston-Salem and will be a tremendous boost to the CVB sales effort as we offer a greatly improved product to a new customer base,� said Bob McCoy, Winston-Salem Convention and Visitors Bureau president.  �Upgraded facilities will help us to position Winston-Salem as a real player in the meetings and convention industry by providing us with extremely high-quality facilities.  The project also provides a new entertainment district anchor, which is an integral part of our downtown redevelopment plans.� 

The two towers will remain open during renovations and continue to operate under the Adam�s Mark name until the conversions are complete.  The schedule anticipates the conversions and re-brandings to occur by early summer of 2005.  The hotels will be both owned and operated by Noble Investment Group and are located at Cherry Street and Fifth Street in the heart of downtown Winston-Salem. 

The comprehensive interior and exterior Embassy Suites conversion includes creating a new street presence outside and a soaring atrium lobby inside.  Guest suites will be created by combining two existing guest rooms into one large suite, complete with separate living, sleeping and working areas.  The finished product will serve as the only upscale all-suites hotel in the area.  The hotel also will feature approximately 10,000 square feet of vibrant street-front retail along Cherry Street and Fifth Street that will serve as venues for a potential sports bar, doughnut and coffee shops and bistro. 

The 316-room Marriott Hotel conversion will touch every surface area in the existing hotel, including a complete renovation of each guest room, and feature a comprehensive exterior renovation, with a new exterior entry circulation.  Noble also will establish a street-front, upscale, high-energy specialty restaurant that will serve guests of the hotel and the Winston- Salem community.  Other amenities being considered include a spa and health club. 

�Noble�s partnership with the city and the Benton Convention Center will result in a win-win situation for everyone as our investment will create two of the finest hotels in the Triad area,� Shah said.  �Following our significant renovation and conversion to the new hotel brands, we believe the complex will become an important engine for further business and industry growth in Winston-Salem.�

Founded in 1979, Noble Investment Group is one of the nation�s foremost privately held, hotel ownership, management and development companies.  Noble currently owns and/or manages 22 hotels with 3,300 rooms together with 41 hotels with 6,044 rooms operated by Alliance Hospitality Management, a majority owned affiliate of Noble Investment Group.  Noble's development arm, Stormont Noble Development, and its predecessors have developed nearly $700 million in preeminent hospitality projects representing close to 5,500 rooms and 300,000 square feet of convention and meeting space.  Noble has an active development pipeline in both the public and private sectors, is a strategic acquirer of hotels and also targets relationships in which the company can provide third-party hotel and conference center management.  Noble is a leading franchise partner of premium-branded hotels under the Marriott, Hilton, and InterContinental Hotels Group brands.

http://www.nobleinvestment.com/