It took 8 years, but downtown Cincinnati’s Holiday Inn is open and you need to see it: PHOTOS (Video) bizjournals.com /cincinnati/news/2017/01/09/it-took-8-years-but-downtown-cincinnati-s-holiday.html Jan 9, 2017, 1:34pm EST Updated: Jan 17, 2017, 12:39pm EST When Bimal Patel started working on plans to bring a hotel to the northwest corner of Seventh and Broadway streets, he had no idea it would be a project eight years in the making. It’s been quite a journey since Rolling Hills Hospitality put the former American Red Cross property under contract in 2008. “At the time, people were surprised I wanted to build a new hotel in downtown Cincinnati,” Patel told me. “I never thought it would take eight years.” Patel, president of Fort Mitchell-based Rolling Hills Hospitality, continued to work on the project through the Great Recession, a land swap with the city of Cincinnati and other challenges. The 117-room Holiday Inn & Suites Downtown Cincinnati hotel quietly opened on Dec. 16, 2016. Hotels typically ramp up after opening, which is currently in process. To get a look at the new hotel, click on the images above. It’s been more than 30 years since a new construction hotel was built in downtown Cincinnati. Other new hotels have opened in that time such as the 21c Museum Hotel, the Renaissance Cincinnati Downtown Hotel and Residence Inn Cincinnati Downtown at the Phelps, but all of those were conversions of existing buildings to hotels. The last newly constructed hotel to open in downtown Cincinnati was the Hyatt Regency in 1984. One of the features in the rooms Patel wanted to emphasize was the shower. While the hospitality industry has been a leader in bedding and technology, Patel said there is room for improvement in offering the latest and greatest in the bathroom. In 60 of the rooms the showers have a traditional shower head as well as two body sprayers. Guests can choose to just use the traditional shower head, just the body sprayers or both. “We wanted to do something different,” Patel told me. “It’s a unique selling advantage.” Patel said the showers, which he has installed in other Rolling Hills hotels, create customer loyalty. But Patel kicked the showers up another notch in the corner suites. He added rain showers in those bathrooms complete with a digital control panel to set the water temperature exactly where you want it. Each of the rooms has a microwave, Keurig coffeemaker and a mini refrigerator. The top-floor meeting and event space, the Losantiville Ballroom, has room for up to 220 guests. There’s also nearly 1,900 square feet of pre-event space outside the ballroom that provides a spot to step out from a meeting or have cocktails before a dinner event. The hotel also has an indoor pool and a 24/7 fitness center. 1/2
Patel worked with Artonomy Inc., an art consulting company, for the artwork in the hotel. The Cincinnati company designed artwork for the guest rooms and public spaces. Miller Gallery, an extension of Artonomy, also is providing a selection of fine art pieces to the hotel on a rotating basis. On the ground floor Patel saw the opportunity to do something special with the hotel’s restaurant and bar. While the typical hotel restaurant and bar are self-contained, mainly serving hotel guests, Patel sees a chance to serve the larger downtown dining community. Spoon & Cellar is a contemporary American restaurant. All of the dishes are made from scratch, Patel said, from the mashed potatoes to the ranch dressing. “You can have a glass of wine or a cocktail in an upscale, approachable environment,” Patel said. “It will add to the already vibrant dining scene in downtown Cincinnati.” Since starting work on the downtown hotel, Rolling Hills Hospitality has grown from three hotels to eight hotels with a ninth under construction in Sharonville. Tom Demeropolis Senior Staff Reporter Cincinnati Business Courier
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