News   Nov 22, 2024
National Housing Day: City of Toronto and Riverdale Co-op Open Affordable Homes
 704     1 
News   Nov 22, 2024
Bauhaus Condos Rising in Toronto's Old Town
 1.2K     5 
News   Nov 22, 2024
49-Storey Waterfront Tower Proposed at Spadina and Queens Quay
 3.3K     8 

Hyatt on King West (Holiday Inn remake) COMPLETE

maestro said:
just googled the building


interesting ... they have a few images of an extensive reno with the "W" as in W hotels mostly blacked out

http://www.370kingwest.com/features.html#gallery
Click to expand...

Apparently W was asking for too much $$ (not sure if it was too high a percentage or too much of a base management fee) and wasn't willing to guarantee revenues, and were told to GFO&D by the owner.
 
3Dementia said:
Vox: where are those yummy renders that animate your posts from a while back?


Gimme gimme.
Click to expand...

I gave up asking, although I noticed that some of them had made their way into Adam Vaughan's latest newsletter, which another UTer was kind enough to scan and post.

I, for some reason, couldn't even manage to get that PDF to print.
 
caveatemptor said:
Sounds like you are mixing concepts.

I believe you are referring to the cost of the 'Flag'. W takes approximately 10% of gross revenues AFAIK. That is a high number for the industry but in the past they have proven to be successful although I believe their franchise is actually starting to wane myself and their properties are starting to look tired.

The hotel (ie the building and land) is typically owned by a private investor who then contracts with a franchise (Holiday Inn, Hyatt, W (Starwood), etc.) and then also hires a hotel management company to operate the hotel. This is not set in stone, some flags own some hotels and some hotels operate without flags and self-manage, etc. but that is typically the case. W is part of the Starwood brand that has multiple brands including the Sheraton and Westin.

If I'm not mistaken this hotel was under severe distress in the 1990's following the deep recession (condo boom driven) and may have changed hands multiple times in the interim.
Click to expand...

I am, no doubt, out of my depth talking about hoteliers' franchising/management/ownership arrangements. My source is on the periphery of the inside, and hence the info I am able to glean from her/him is anecdotal and not subject to follow up questions.

Still, my source is very (i.e. financially) interested in certain aspects of the re-flagging and associated renovations, so I have some confidence that the following basic details are true:

1. The owner had been seeking a W but the financial arrangements caused to owner to change its mind.

2. The Hyatt rebranding is a done deal.

3. The make-up of the street-level retail and other building amenities is still being negotiated.
 
3Dementia said:
Post the link and I'll fix it. Curious? Sorta.....
Click to expand...

The PDF was an attachment from Vaughan's office.

The only "new" renders in the newsletter were for 215 Queen and Front/John. Neither the Habitat-inspired TAS building (Joker site) nor the folding screens (117 Peter) were pictured. The fact that neither of these renders was included in the newsletter (and yet are some of the most interesting current archtitectural proposals in Toronto) suggests that the archtitects/developers don't want these renders out for public consumption yet.

Nonetheless, I have channeled your curiosity into making another call (just completed) and I am (unreasonably) hopeful that something might come of it.
 
King & Peter Development

Has anyone noticed the construction activity at the base of the Holiday Inn at King and Peter?

Apparently the Score Television channel is building a huge television LED Televisions as well as street-side TV studios. Sort of like what CityTV has up the street.
 
Walking by the Holiday Inn today I saw a sign in the window of (what was up to this point) their hotel cafe saying Starbucks is coming soon.

With this and the Queen/Bathurst Starbucks, and the recent opening at King/Brant a bit further west, how many *$ can this area take?

Only time will tell!
 
King and Brant is just across Spadina, but the Queen and Bathurst location is far enough away that it wouldn't snare the same walk-in traffic. Queen and John would be closer to this that that.

42
 
I suppose you're right. There's also one on the corner of Spadina and Richmond, and also John and Wellington.
 
Funny that they're closing locations in the US because they are cannibalizing each other's business, but here they still seem to be aiming for a 1 citizen to 1 Starbucks ratio.

42
 
The scaffolding is being removed from the SW corner of the Holiday Inn/Hyatt building today. They've painted the ugly silver panels around the base of the SW corner of the building a flat black. Someone (likely The Score TV network) has set up a camera in front of the M5V sales office to capture the action.
 
BobBob said:
With this and the Queen/Bathurst Starbucks, and the recent opening at King/Brant a bit further west, how many *$ can this area take?

Only time will tell!
Click to expand...
Clearly, you are not an experienced PATH traveller.
 
You must log in or register to post here.

Back
Top