March 25–The hotel rising along Highway 101 in Menlo Park has been given a name — Hotel Nia, gaelic for "bright light," in honor of the primarily glass exterior.
Nia, a 250-room, 11-story luxury hotel financed by Ensemble Real Estate Investments and AECOM Capital and valued at roughly $100 million, is situated in the Menlo Gateway project along Independence Drive and is expected to open by early 2018. The hotel will be managed by Denver-based Sage Hospitality.
Nia is part of Marriott's Autograph collection, with rooms starting around $400 a night, 43 larger suites going for between $50 and $150 higher and an even pricier presidential suite on the top floor that can hold up to 30 people. Each room will feature 9-foot-high floor-to-ceiling windows.
"The individual business traveler is going to be the driving force for the hotel," said Brian Ehrlich, Ensemble's chief investment officer for hotels. "Folks visiting Facebook, Amazon just moved into the area, venture capital and legal firms and other existing businesses." He added that on weekends, rooms would be discounted to "make it more attractive to the leisure traveler."
Ehrlich said the site was chosen not only for its proximity to Facebook, but due to the amenities at the Gateway site. When Nia opens, it expects to pull some business from tenants of one of three planned office buildings that will be occupied at that time. Ensemble and AECOM also have an agreement with property owner Bohannon Development Corp. to lease spaces from a parking structure expected to be completed over the summer.
"It's part of our strategic plan to build within mixed-use projects," Ehrlich said. "It's more financially viable; in this particular case, we do not have to pay for a parking structure."
What will set Nia apart from other Autograph hotels, he said, is there will be 20,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, including a large ballroom, that spills out onto additional outdoor space with an expansive deck, garden courtyard, event lawns and a fire pit. A cocktail bar that attaches to what is planned to be a coastal Mediterranean restaurant will also link to the outdoors, there will be a coffee bar that turns into an ice cream bar at night and a 20-foot by 60-foot pool with an additional bar will feature a multi-level deck to allow for private functions. There will also be a 2,000-square-foot fitness center near the pool.
