WILMINGTON, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Officials with PM Hospitality Strategies (PMHS), a leading, national hotel management company, along with officials from a joint venture ownership group comprised of Buccini/Pollin Group and Westport Capital, today announced that the 180-room Westin Wilmington will open April 17. Connected to the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Delaware, the hotel is the first Westin-branded hotel in the state and the first new-build hotel in Wilmington since 1980. PMHS will operate the hotel under a long-term agreement.
"The opening is another important step in the revitalization of Wilmington's riverfront, and we are delighted to play a role," said Joseph Bojanowski, president of PMHS. "This project has allowed us to showcase all of our management skills from planning to brand selection, from construction oversight to pre-opening. With the opening of this four-star hotel, Wilmington and the Chase Center are well positioned to be major players in the meetings and convention industry in the Mid-Atlantic region.”
“The new Westin may well be the most important Wilmington project in recent memory," said Michael Purzycki, executive director of the Riverfront Development Corporation of Delaware, the state-funded, non-profit corporation which owns and operates the Chase Center. "A catalyst for Chase Center business, it is a symbol of Riverfront’s dynamic future, and surely will further enhance Wilmington’s reputation as an attractive, regional visitor destination.”
“We are thrilled to debut Westin Hotels in Wilmington’s dynamic Riverfront district, which has been transformed into a leading entertainment and cultural center,” said Brian Povinelli, Global Brand Leader for Westin Hotels & Resorts and Le Meridien. “Business and leisure travelers are invited to recharge and revitalize at The Westin Wilmington with the help of all the Westin brand’s signature programs and amenities, designed to send them home feeling better than when they arrived.”
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver-designed hotel is within walking distance of such Fortune 500 companies as Barclay’s, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Capital One and DuPont. The hotel features a 2,100-square-foot, state-of-the-art legal center with private offices and a hospitality area for meals. The center was purpose-built to support visiting legal teams that are participating in legal proceedings at the nearby Wilmington federal courthouse. Combined with the adjacent Chase Center on the Riverfront, the hotel/convention center complex offers a total of 92,000 square feet of conference space and a 24-hour business center.
“The PMHS team has extensive expertise in large, meeting-focused hotels, and we are confident that this property will be well received by meeting planners, while still perfectly sized to comfortably host business and leisure guests,” Bojanowski said. “The Westin Wilmington can handle and cater groups over 6,000 people in conjunction with the connecting Chase Center. The property also can easily handle more intimate business and social groups.”
Located at 818 Shipyard Drive, the four-star hotel is an ideal launch pad for leisure travelers looking to explore the historic city, numerous nearby restaurants and retail, as well as such attractions as the Delaware Theatre Company, Delaware Children’s Museum, Penn Cinema IMAX Theater, and the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts. The Delaware Art Museum, Winterthur Museum Garden & Library, Longwood Gardens and the Brandywine River Museum of Art are within a short driving distance.
The Westin Wilmington’s guestrooms and suites feature the brand's signature comforts, including the world-renowned Westin Heavenly® Bed and the Heavenly® Bath enhanced with the brand’s Heavenly® Shower, Heavenly® Robe and White Tea Aloe bath amenities, in-room and high-speed Internet access. Guests can maintain their workout regimens in the fully equipped WestinWORKOUT® studio, complete with New Balance gear and running maps that take guests along the Christina Riverfront. The hotel's full-service restaurant, River Rock Kitchen, serving locally sourced and seasonally selected small plates, is led by chef David Lattomus and also will offer the Westin brand’s signature SuperFoodsRx® menu.
About Westin Hotels & Resorts
Westin Hotels & Resorts offers innovative programs that transform every aspect of a stay into a revitalizing experience. All Westin signature services – like the Heavenly Bed®, delicious SuperFoodsRx® and WestinWORKOUT® studio – have been designed with the guests’ well-being in mind. Westin hotels, with more than 190 hotels and resorts in nearly 40 countries and territories, is owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with nearly 1,200 properties in 100 countries and 181,400 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®, Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, Aloft®, and Element®. The Company boasts one of the industry’s leading loyalty programs, Starwood Preferred Guest® (SPG®), allowing members to earn and redeem points for room stays, room upgrades and flights, with no blackout dates. Starwood also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., a premier provider of world-class vacation experiences through villa-style resorts and privileged access to Starwood brands. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
About Chase Center on the Riverfront
The Chase Center on the Riverfront is the Brandywine Valley’s largest special events facility, with more than 87,000 square feet of meeting space, hosting everything from trade and consumer shows to conference, conventions and weddings. Additional information may be found at www.centerontheriverfront.com.
About PMHS
PMHS is an award-winning, independent hotel management company, operating full-service and select-service hotels in the Hilton, Marriott, Starwood and Choice families of brands. The company’s expertise covers all aspect of hotel operations, including development, technical consulting, marketing, accounting, pre-opening services and on-going management. PMHS currently manages approximately 25 hotel and development projects, comprised of more than 4,000 rooms, throughout the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., PMHS has participated in the development and acquisition/renovation of dozens of hotels with a market capitalization in excess of $1 billion. PMHS is an approved management company for all leading hotel brands. Additional information about the company may be found at www.pmhs.com.
