May 02–The Colorado Springs Marriott hotel has completed its first major renovation in nearly 10 years. It was highlighted by a "Great Room" in the lobby for working or socializing and rebranding of its restaurant as "The Ascent," featuring local and seasonal cuisine and craft beers from the Springs and around the state.
The hotel's owner, Providence, R.I.-based The Procaccianti Group, declined to reveal the value of the project, saying only that it was a "multimillion-dollar property-wide renovation."
However, Marriott Colorado Springs General Manager Mike Giamundo said the project completed last month was "similar in nature," but smaller in scope, to a $15 million renovation completed in 2007 that also included replacing guest-room furniture and remodeling the sales office.
The latest renovation included all 309 guest rooms, 24,000 square feet of meeting space and the lobby, restaurant and bar.
The renovation was designed by the Dallas office of Leo A. Daly, an Omaha, Neb.-based architecture, engineering, planning and interior design firm.
The project included design accents to complement the state's outdoor environment, including wooden fixtures and furniture as well as new carpeting and wallpaper to give guest rooms a residential feel.
The lobby area and ninth-floor concierge lounge are designed to allow guests to work, relax and eat in settings ranging from long tables to sofas, love seats and overstuffed chairs, Giamundo said.
"Every element (of the project) is designed to energize our guests, whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, bringing a natural element into the space," said Giamundo, who became the hotel's general manager in February after a year at the Denver Marriott Tech Center and nearly 32 years with Marriott International.
The Colorado Springs Marriott finished 2015 with record occupancy and outperformed the rest of the Colorado Springs hotel industry in the first quarter, boosting occupancy by 18 percentage points and its average room rate by 4 percent from the first quarter of 2015, Giamundo said.
The area's occupancy rose 5.9 percentage points and the average room rate was up 2.6 percent during the same period, according to the Rocky Mountain Lodging Report.
