Hyatt Place opening highlights hotel changes at Lakewood Ranch
The hotel landscape at Lakewood Ranch is changing fast with the first Hyatt Place in Manatee County preparing to open at 6021 Exchange Way, near the University Parkway-Interstate 75 interchange.
Big changes also are coming to Lakewood Ranch’s two other hotels, the Holiday Inn and Fairfield Inn and Suites.
On Tuesday, workers at the new five-story Hyatt Place were tending to hundreds of details needed to make the hotel ready for April 28, when the first guests are already booked. All 122 rooms are spoken for that day, general manager Ashleigh Gonzalez said: “Everyone is working 24/7.”
The Hyatt Place is situated to accommodate weekend guests visiting the area for special events such as rowing competitions at Benderson Park or grass sports at Premier Sports Campus, and for business travelers and others any time of the week.
“As Lakewood Ranch continues to grow and thrive economically, we are excited to add to the momentum by welcoming the first Hyatt Place hotel to this area,” Gonzalez said. “With our smartly designed social spaces and guestrooms with separate areas to work and sleep, Hyatt Place Sarasota/Lakewood Ranch offers multitasking travelers the room they need to spread out, and our free hot breakfast is just the thing to get our guests moving in the morning.”
Cecilia Maddi, director of sales, said that restaurants and other amenities within walking distance of the Hyatt Place will help guests feel like they are in a retreat atmosphere.
Calling it the “Hyatt touch,” the company wants every customer to feel like family when they enter the hotel, Maddi said.
Rooms include a cozy corner with a sofa-sleeper, free Wi-Fi and a minibar.
The hotel will offer a gallery menu with freshly prepared meals at any time of day, a bar serving specialty coffees, premium beers, wines and cocktails, and an odds-and-ends program for items that guests may have forgotten to bring.
With our smartly designed social spaces and guestrooms with separate areas to work and sleep, Hyatt Place Sarasota/Lakewood Ranch offers multitasking travelers the room they need to spread out, and our free hot breakfast is just the thing to get our guests moving in the morning.
General manager Ashleigh Gonzalez
The bar and restaurant will be open to the public, as well as to guests.
Hyatt Place will include 900 square feet of high-tech meeting/function space, a pool and a 24-hour gym with cardio equipment. The hotel will also be available for wedding parties.
A soft opening is set for April 14, with a grand-opening event set for sometime in May.
Other hotels at Lakewood Ranch have changes of their own to announce.
The Holiday Inn, 6231 Lake Osprey Drive, will become more upscale by rebranding as an Even Hotel with $6 million in renovations.
The third Lakewood Ranch hotel, Fairfield Inn and Suites, 6105 Exchange Way, will receive $2.2 million in renovations. The Holiday Inn and Fairfield Inn and Suites are both owned by the George Steinbrenner family and their partners.
Robert Ferguson, corporate director of sales at the Holiday Inn Lakewood Ranch, confirmed the changes on Tuesday.
“The Holiday Inn has been a good brand for the community. We feel we can become a higher-end brand and do even better than we did as a Holiday Inn,” he said.
Even Hotels is a brand created by InterContinental Hotels. It caters to travelers seeking more options “to stay healthier and happier away from home. That’s why we’re equipped with a wellness-savvy staff, a best-in-class fitness experience, healthier food choices and natural, relaxing spaces,” according to the Even website.
Other Even Hotels are located in New York, Omaha, Neb., Norwalk, Conn., and Rockville, Md.
Also changing at the 128-room Holiday Inn is the Alamo restaurant, which will become a Cork and Kale restaurant with a revamped upscale menu. Renovations are scheduled to begin in May and end in September.
When renovations at the Holiday Inn/Even Hotel are completed in September, two months of upgrades will begin at the 87-room Fairfield Inn and Suites, Ferguson said.
Although Hyatt Place brings to three the number of hotels on Lakewood Ranch property, there likely will be more in the future. New locations could be located in the core area of the community and near Premier Sports Campus, said Lisa Barnott, spokeswoman for developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch.
For more information about Hyatt Place, visit place.hyatt.com. For more information about Even Hotels, visit evenhotels.com.
James A. Jones Jr.: 941-745-7053, @jajones1
This story was originally published April 4, 2017 at 3:25 PM with the headline "Hyatt Place opening highlights hotel changes at Lakewood Ranch."